Yahoo Search One-Ups Google On The Pocket PC

[Ed Hansberry]

<a href="http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,1684254,00.asp?kc=EWRSS03129TX1K0000605">http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,1684254,00.asp?kc=EWRSS03129TX1K0000605</a><br /><br />"Yahoo makes its Web, local and image search available on browser-enabled mobile devices, following a different approach than rival Google...Yahoo has focused on bringing a slimmed-down version of its search interface to mobile browsers. Yahoo Search for Mobile requires color and data-enabled wireless phones with either an HTML or WAP 2.0 browser installed. While local and image search works on either type of mobile browser, Web search only supports HTML browsers, said Thad White, Yahoo's director of mobile products."<br /><br />Let the search wars begin! :mrgreen:

[bdegroodt]

This isn't an entirely accurate article (I just had an email exchange with the author a couple of hours ago about it.). As many of us already have know for years (?) Google has had a far better (and useful) mobile interface than Yahoo! ever did at http://www.google.com/ie.

The author tells me that Google failed to mention this in their interview--not sure why. In any case, Yahoo! is way too late to the game to claim my business.

[Pony99CA]

"Yahoo makes its Web, local and image search available on browser-enabled mobile devices, following a different approach than rival Google...Yahoo has focused on bringing a slimmed-down version of its search interface to mobile browsers. Yahoo Search for Mobile requires color and data-enabled wireless phones with either an HTML or WAP 2.0 browser installed. While local and image search works on either type of mobile browser, Web search only supports HTML browsers, said Thad White, Yahoo's director of mobile products."
I'm not sure how much Google's and Yahoo's approaches differ. I've had a WAP version of Yahoo (http://wap.oa.yahoo.com) in my mobile favorites for a long time as well as a mobile version of Google (http://www.google.com/ie). Google's interface is already "slimmed down".

I tried Yahoo's mobile site (http://mobile.yahoo.com), and it required horizontal scrolling on my iPAQ 5550. I hope that's the wrong URL, because it would be worse on a phone (which they seem to emphasize over PDAs).

Google is also offering SMS but I don't see image or local search for mobile, while Yahoo sounds like they do offer image and local searching. However, I view those more as feature sets than completely different approaches.

Steve

[Ed Hansberry]

This isn't an entirely accurate article (I just had an email exchange with the author a couple of hours ago about it.). As many of us already have know for years (?) Google has had a far better (and useful) mobile interface than Yahoo! ever did at http://www.google.com/ie.
That isn't a mobile search interface. That is for the IE side bar, hence the "IE" in the URL.

It just works good for mobile users with high bandwidth connections. It is pretty bad on GPRS and slower connections. The results aren't optimized for mobile connections, etc.
The author tells me that Google failed to mention this in their interview--not sure why.Because Google doesn't see it as a mobile site.

[PR.]

Google do have http://www.google.com/palm again it aint great cos all the results aren't mobile designs...

[bdegroodt]

It just works good for mobile users with high bandwidth connections. It is pretty bad on GPRS and slower connections. The results aren't optimized for mobile connections, etc.

Works incredibly well for me via GPRS. Far better than any other site I visit when mobile.

I am surprised to hear that it's not specifically for mobile use. Especially since when I enter Google.com into my PIE, it automatically moves it to the /ie site. I hope it doesn't go away.

[urologyhealth]

I think this is only for mobile phones. I don't see how it works on a PPC.

Am I correct?

Thanks

[bdegroodt]

I think this is only for mobile phones. I don't see how it works on a PPC.

Am I correct?

Thanks

Yahoo! Web Search is available if you own a supported HTML capable PDA or convergence device.

[urologyhealth]

I have Dell Axim X30---and use wifi -- where do I find it? I have yahoo as home page, but don't see a link for search.

Thanks

[bdegroodt]

I have Dell Axim X30---and use wifi -- where do I find it? I have yahoo as home page, but don't see a link for search.

Thanks
http://mobile.yahoo.com/search

[Ed Hansberry]

Works incredibly well for me via GPRS. Far better than any other site I visit when mobile.

I am surprised to hear that it's not specifically for mobile use. Especially since when I enter Google.com into my PIE, it automatically moves it to the /ie site. I hope it doesn't go away.Strange. When I go to www.google.com I get redirected to http://www.google.com/palm which is lighter graphically and the search results have the Similar Pages and Cache icons.

[Darius Wey]

The Yahoo! Search address is simply: http://www.search.yahoo.com

I've posted a screenie so you all know what it looks like.

http://img75.exs.cx/img75/8514/ppc_yahoosearch.jpg

EDIT: And no horizontal scrolling required..."oh yeah"... ;)

[Ed Hansberry]

I just looked this up on my Nokia 3650. Tons of side scrolling on that on the main page. Once you log in though, it is pretty good. Definitely looking for a WAP browser. it sees to feed HTML to PIE though and it isn't nearly as polished as the phone experience.

[Darius Wey]

I just looked this up on my Nokia 3650. Tons of side scrolling on that on the main page.

Hi Ed...

Which page were you referring to? The http://mobile.yahoo.com/ page or the link I posted above?

EDIT: Actually, don't worry, I think I figured out what you were talking about. :oops:

[Darius Wey]

Actually, the main search page can be a little deceiving. If you sample the other portions of the website, the news section seems to do a horrid job at formatting itself for PIE.

http://img79.exs.cx/img79/25/ppc_yahoonews.jpg


NetFront, on the other hand, seems to go one-up on this, and does a better job than PIE.

http://img96.exs.cx/img96/7719/ppc_yahoosearch_nf.jpg


However, at the end of the day, it's good to see Yahoo! provide other search services (news, images, local, directories, products, etc.) which Google (mobile) fails to provide.