Video: Mobile Twitter web app vs mobile web (demoed with Nokia N9 and Nokia Lumia 800)

One of things I use all the time is mobile twitter. It was my a homescreen bookmark on my N900, on my N8 and on my Omnia and Lumia 800. Whilst an app is great, I sometimes find unreliable connection wise, even with Gravity sometimes, it occasionally does not send out tweets. Plus, I find that when on a slow connection, mobile twitter still works fine.

So I was pleasantly surprised to fire up the browser on the Nokia N9 and see a web app version. It has neat buttons at the top for quick loading of home/mentions/messages etc. Furthermore, being a web app, it seems to already have loaded mentions so it just instantly switches when you press it, where as with a mobile web version, e.g. on lumia 800 it will have to reload. The only advantage I find is when on a slow mobile internet connection – then the mobile web is lighter on data and will load quicker. But when on WiFi, the web app is more pleasant.

Video 1: N9 with web app, 800 with mobile web. N9 on WiFi, 800 on 3G 

(I thought they were both on WiFi but I forgot I switched off the WiFi on the 800 to use the 3G when as the internet dies when I was uploading a N9 video earlier)

The only thing I’m having issues with is adding mobile wep app twitter to my app menu on the N9. It’s odd because all other websites work. I have it as a tile on my Lumia.

Note, this post isn’t a browser comparison.

It’s a bare mobile website vs a mobile web app.

Oh I think the mobile web app is automatically refreshing for new tweets too.

For a quick light check on twitter, more reliable for slow connections I prefer the mobile web version, but if I’m at home with WiFi, I do like the look of the web app better that’s seen on the N9.

Video 2: N9 with web app, 800 with mobile web. N9 on WiFi, 800 on WiFi

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBz78ks4r64

(On WiFi you can see the bare plain mobile web loading faster obviously than the much nicer looking web app)

On other sites, e.g. YouTube, both will load the mobile wep app version, e.g. YouTube (a HTML5 extra over the plain mobile web YouTube). I was just surprised as I did not know there was a web app version for Twitter. I’m looking forward to the expansion of web-apps. There are certain things on both browsers where I just use the web app than the app (e.g. Drop Box and Box.net).  They’re both touch finger friendly and lighter on data.

Both HTML5 ‘webapp’ versions of youtube work great. It does in this instance load slightly quicker on the Lumia 800. But again I will talk more about both browsers some other time. This was just a post on web app vs mobile web app.

Category: Maemo, MeeGo, Nokia, Nseries, Video, Windows Phone