USABILITY ISSUES IN MOBILE WEB

INTRODUCTION

T

here were 40.04 million users accessing the mobile Internet at least

once a month and number increased by 73% over a period of two

year.

A

s the prevalence of PDA and other smart devices with Internet

connectivity increase, so does the need for attention to the usability

of these devices.

PROBLEMS

M

obile devices present several unique problems in addition to the

standard usability issues that challenge Web designers.

I

ssues associated with mobile devices are a function of the devices

S

mall Size

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ow resolution screens

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imited input option

s

low computer hardware

s

low or sometimes  unreliable connectivity

M

ost sites are designed for full scale PCs or laptops

and they do not take the mobile user into account.

IMPACT OF LOW RESOLUTION

T

he high resolution screens were spend less time scrolling then there low

resolution.

M

obile users spend more time attempting to locate information rather than

simply browsing .

M

inimize the amount of scrolling required to find information

I

nclude more search options

IMPACT OF LIMITED SCREEN SIZE

O

ne of the most salient usability issues for the mobile Web is the limited screen size.

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obile users lack the ability to scan an entire page to locate information.

S

eparate HTML mark-up language

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imit the amount of text used

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rrange information (from most to least important)

SUMMARY

T

he mobile Web poses several unique challenges to usability

researchers and designers.

T

hese challenges are compounded by the mobile Web

environment being only a part of the Web universe.

W

hat may be most needed in mobile/Web usability is a

standardization of the usability process so comparisons can be

easily made between devices and systems.