The mobile internet is arriving for normobs

Normobs, (“normal mobile users”) are getting internet on mobile. They are actually getting it. They are understanding it and they are using it.

How do I know this?

Well, I was listening to an absolutely rubbish radio programme last night in the taxi from Darlington station to The Grand (but not very) Hotel in Hartlepool. The presenters on TFM sounded drunk and were randomly taking calls on-air and, one moment, discussing getting absolutely wasted and on the other hand, discussing Auschwitz concentration camps with a surprising emotional range.

Quickly the presenters got off concentration camps and on to the subject of their T-Shirt competition. They asked one caller if he had ‘the internet’ as they were busy trying to give him their email addresses.

“Do you have the internet? Go on our site and you’ll see our address there…,” they explainded t the caller.
“Right,” said the caller.
“Do you have the internet?” the studio team asked again.
“Aye, I do, on me mobile,” replied the caller.

Fascinating.

The caller did not appear to have a computer and broadband connection, instead, he uses the internet on his handset. Brilliant.

When I hear of normal mobile users exhibiting this sort of behaviour, I smile. It’s by no means representative of the whole country but for one guy somewhere in Teeside, it’s breaking through! Mobile internet is moving from geek to normob.

About Ewan

Ewan is Founder and Editor of Mobile Industry Review. He writes about a wide variety of industry issues and is usually active on Twitter most days. You can read more about him or reach him with these details.

  • HeavyLight

    To my surprise, 3UK finally opening a shop in Bath last week, so I popped in on Saturday and signed up for X-Series Silver on an E65 — it didn’t take ANY persuasion to dump my 2-year old 6230i on Orange!

    I’m not exactly a normob (my friends would rate me as a pc geek) but this is my first experience of the mobile internet apart from the occasional (and expensive) use of wap and java apps and it’s already changing my perception of communication. And I’ve only just started playing with MobileMail, Fring, Shozu and Google Maps — later I’ll try out Truphone, Mobizines and remotely controlling my bittorrent downloads…

    But I can’t see myself pushing the X-Series experience to my friends and co-workers until I find normob guides to S60, setting up apps and customising the UI on these amazing phones.

    Any recommendations for useful websites and applications?

    ps. I signed up with Three SOLELY because of their enlightened attitude to 3G data but the next guy in the shop turned down unlimited email for £2.50/mth!
    :-)

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