The Rap on Wap
What to expect
By STEVE HOMER
Despite all the hype there will still be less than 1 million Europeans using Wireless Access Protocol (WAP) phones by the end of the year, according to London-based technology consultancy Ovum. The phones — which until recently were hard to get because of manufacturer delays — still carry a price premium of 5% to 25% over regular mobile phones. But slow sales in some markets, such as the U.K., mean some operators are giving away phones, hoping to make profits on the service contracts. Should you take the plunge?
Models on the market now are the equivalent of the Model T Ford. If you're an early adopter or a business traveler who wants to access e-mail on your phone, then go for it. But be warned that setting up your e-mail can be difficult. Surfing the Internet is even more daunting. The phrase mobile Internet is more than a little misleading when it comes to today's wap phones. The experience is roughly equivalent to using a PC to connect to the Internet back in 1995. Drawbacks include per-minute connection charges, cumbersome navigation and limited access to online content. Getting your phone to connect to the services you want can be a pain.
You might want to wait for phones based on General Packet Radio Services (GPRS) technology. Expected to be available within six months or a year, these phones will be easier to use and offer instant Internet access avoiding annoying delays. ³I wouldn't recommend wap phones for the average consumer,² says Lars Waagstein, a wireless analyst at technology consultancy Jupiter Communications. ³It is probably worth waiting.²
But if you are determined to go wap now, here are a few tips for things to do before you leave the shop. Get the sales assistant to show you how to:
Enter bookmarks into the phone. Try a couple out while you're there.
Set up a different service provider. And write the details down because you might not want to do this until well after you have bought your phone. When you do choose a service, make sure you avoid a walled garden — one that will only let you visit sites on its approved list.
Set up your phone for e-mail. But beware of services that only permit you to get your e-mail by signing up to the network's own service. That will tend to tie you into sticking with a provider just to keep your e-mail address. — By Steve Homer
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