There was a time when browsing the Internet using a mobile phone was
as pleasant as submitting tax returns. Mobile browsing and development
has progressed in leaps and bounds, with contemporary phones capable of
handling features normally reserved for desktop browsing.
Although the first mobile browser was developed in 1994 - as PocketWeb for
Apple Newton - it was only in 1998 when Wireless Application Protocol (WAP)
became the industry standard that mobile browsing truly took off. Very few
mobile handsets actually supported WAP, and even fewer websites were
formatted for mobile browsing. So, the concept of anytime, anywhere Internet
access became firmly entrenched in the developing mobile community as the
first generation of access (1G) was born.
Using the Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM) network, developers
quickly began formatting websites for mobile devices. Applications like
MXit , launched in 2003, took advantage of low data costs to transfer instant
messages. At the same time, phones started looking less like construction
bricks and more like the standard numerical keypad phones used in the
majority of countries today.
In the early 2000s, feature and smart phones began utilising the newly
launched Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE) network as part
of 2G technology – a technological expansion of the original GSM network.
Developers also began utilising EDGE for content heavy websites and small file
downloads. As the use of 2G phones became more prevalent and people began
to utilise mobile phones in their daily lives, it became clear that the demand for
data services would soon need overhauling.