Just when you think you have the world figured out, it all changes. For years we’ve been working with ECP’s to not only have a good website, but have a great one that really catches the eye and makes an impression. For years that included Flash animation introductions. Many of the Flash pages and introductions tended to be pretty sizable files that only really worked on higher speed internets such as DSL, cable and T-1s. Customers with dial-up were in for a bit of a wait and for most clients it was thought anyone still using dial-up probably wasn’t a great candidate, so there was little downside to using Flash.
2010 changed all that. The proliferation of smartphones meant more and more consumers were surfing the web via their mobile phones. Smartphones are expected to be 50% of all mobile phone sales this year. Add to that, the incredible success of Apple’s iPad. Now we have tablet computers that are surfing the web too. Most tablets can use Wifi, many are sold with 3G contracts that connect to the web on the same network as your cell phone. A decent 3G connection is around 750Kb per second. The cable connection here in our office runs about 25 times faster on average. That means the site that takes only a couple of seconds to load in my office now takes upwards of 30 seconds or longer to load on my 3G smartphone.
Let’s add one more factor to our speed issue. Steve Jobs and Apple have an ongoing spat with Adobe and will not allow any Flash animation to load on the iPhone or iPad. This is not fight over money or licensing, but a knock down dragged out fight over supposed flaws with Flash that have prohibited every iPhone since their launch 4 years ago and the current Ipad from seeing any Flash website. Recently Toshiba made fun of that issue with this image promoting their upcoming Android tablet.
Many web developers are rethinking Flash in this environment. As more and more people are using their mobile phones or mobile computing devices such as tablets, you don’t want them to wait too long for your site to load. We are not advocating the total abandonment of Flash altogether, just a rethink of how it fits in your web and mobile computing strategy. If you are looking at redesigning your website this year, and we advocate rethinking your website every 2-3 years, keep in mind how your site will appear on mobile devices over the next 12-15 months. As the mobile phone companies move everything to 4G or speeds of around 10Mb some or all of the concerns pointed out here might be moot, but that is still about 18 months to 2 years before most of us are on 4G.
