T-Mobile calls it a day for WAP

[Guest tsutton]

UK operator T-Mobile is disconnecting its CSD-WAP subscribers from July 9th, suggesting customers might like to switch to GPRS or something a little more 21st century, and disposing of pay-per-minute internet access.

Circuit Switched Data (CSD) was how mobile phones accessed data services in the early days, or at least the technology that allowed them to try. Technically equivalent to a dial-up modem, it allows speeds of up to 9.6Kb/s, ideal for downloading the latest news and reviews from the Mobile Internet.

The first WAP phones only had CSD, and it was the 9.6Kb/sec speed that drove the creation of WAP itself: a desperate attempt to create a usable experience over such slow connections. But even the mono graphics and text-menu content was painfully slow to use, and starkly contrasted with TV advertising in the UK, from Genie Internet, promoting the Mobile Internet.

Source: The Register

T-Mobile Announcement - "Changes to internet access on your phone"

I remember the old days of WAP, but I'm not going to miss it! Too slow. :D

How about you? Will you miss it? Will it cause you some issue if you don't have any Data access package?

Edited June 12, 2008 by tsutton

[Guest Mark]

I remember back in the days of the Nokia 9000i using 0800 isp's to connect to wap @14.4k, then hscsd got introduced, 28.8k couldn't believe it!

Oh well, I doubt it gets used these days! :(

There are still people that have to/decide to?? use dialup to access the internet rather than dsl :D

[Guest tsutton]

There are still people that have to/decide to?? use dialup to access the internet rather than dsl :D

Yep. I know someone who is a user of Internet every day, paying the monthly fee and then 0845 bill on top... which is almost the same fee as broadband (minus the 0845 charges)! But they refuse to switch because "it costs too much".

Need to slap 'em and educate 'em that Broadband is cheaper in the long run!

[Guest Mark]

Yep. I know someone who is a user of Internet every day, paying the monthly fee and then 0845 bill on top... which is almost the same fee as broadband (minus the 0845 charges)! But they refuse to switch because "it costs too much".

Need to slap 'em and educate 'em that Broadband is cheaper in the long run!

People do some strange things! Don't know how I could survive without broadband now, especially when it is so cheap. I live right in the middle of nowhere and still get nearly 4mbs, that is being 3.2km away from the exchange! :D

[Guest Confucious]

I remember WAP. Rhymes with Cr....

My broadband speed at home sometimes drops to only 10Mb.....