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Did you know that just 13 percent of U.S. cell phone subscribers use the Web from their phones? That seems kinds of low if you live in a heavily populated area. It seems everyone nowadays is running around with a BlackBerry or an iPhone, or some other smartphone. We can count the reasons why this is so, but it all boils down to price and ease of access. People don’t want to pay $30 per month on top of their normal cell bills for Internet access, and if they do they want it to run like their desktop Internet.

But my phone already has an interface

You might already be familiar with your phone’s operating system, and as such would resist a change in formats. However, Yahoo! has made it super easy to get started with Go.

First, you can take the tour, which will guide you through the features offered by Yahoo! Go. You’ll be able to navigate the service with their comprehensive visual aids. Then its time to go take a test drive. You’ll need Java in order for this to work. Between the tour and the test drive, Yahoo has given potential users an impeccable and easy walk-through of their service, which quenches many objections along the way.

Using Yahoo! on your mobile is nearly as easy as using it on your PC

The best part about Yahoo! Go is that it accomplishes a major goal in the mobile Internet world: It simulates the experience you have on the PC Internet. This is a major hang up many people have about portable Internet devices. Sometimes, it can seem like learning a whole new system. But with Yahoo’s intuitive interface, navigating the mobile web can be as easy as it is when you sit in front of your computer.

Yahoo! is not shy about this goal. Adam Taggart, director of product marketing at Yahoo!, reveals the company’s aspirations: “We conceived this as the best mobile Internet experience for a phone…We want it to be the next big thing. We want it to be relevant for pretty much the same demographics that use the PC web.”

Upon First Inspection…

The graphics and layout of the main navigation page are rather impressive. They’re lined up along the bottom of the screen, and emit an orange glow when selected. This is nice, as I can only imagine the confusion that would ensue if there was no such indicator. This creates a very easy method of navigation.

After selecting your channel, you’re presented with a series of options to further narrow what you’re looking for. For instance, when you click on the News icon, you’re brought to another page which breaks down the news even further. You can select U.S. News, World News, Latest Headlines, and News Watch among others. Even when you click on these icons, you’re brought to other pages that help you further identify the content you’re looking for.

Of course, some people might find this frustrating. They want their news, and they want it instantly. There are a couple of steps in between with Yahoo! Go, which may cause people to give up. However, in the end it’s for the better. You don’t want to click on “News” and get a bunch of article slap-dashed together. So the additional menus make sense, since it helps deliver the specific news or information you’re looking for.

Perhaps the most impressive feature of Yahoo! Go is oneSearch. It does just what the name implies, though it takes things one step further. It uses your activity history and your My Yahoo! settings to deliver news geared specifically towards you. That’s an innovation that will go a long way in the mobile world.

Features of Yahoo! Go

oneSearch
Yahoo! was once known as a powerhouse search directory. Now they’re trying to redefine themselves with oneSearch. Just type in what you’re looking for, and let Yahoo! show you the way. Just set your search preferences in your Yahoo! account and let them do the rest. You’ll find search results in numerous categories, including web, maps, movies, images, news, and more.

You can search specifically for images as well, even ones from Flickr. And perhaps one of the neatest oneSearch features is that if you type in any flight number, you can find out if your plane will be on schedule.

Yahoo! Mail
Tons and tons of people use Yahoo! Mail, especially now that they’ve upgraded their service to be more Outlook-esque. It’s easy to access your Yahoo! Mail through Go. You’ll even receive notification whenever a new message appears in your inbox.

A few notable features are included in Yahoo!’s mobile email. First is that it integrates with oneSearch, allowing you to search your mail for keywords. Don’t have time to search through your inbox for a certain message? Just type in the sender’s name and voila! There’s your message. Second is that your mobile email is synced with your Yahoo! Mail account, so when you do something on one account, it is reflected when you log in from your PC.

Yahoo! Maps
Yahoo! Go utilizes your phone’s GPS, so it knows where you are at all times. It might sound scary, in a Big Brother kind of way, but it actually provides you with some neat services. For instance, you can instantly find restaurants in your area, or a local laundromat.

Yahoo! Go features city guides, which let you know what’s going on on any given day. Just click on “today in my city” and find hotels, restaurants, coffee shops, retail outlets, ATMs, theaters, and more.

Not only that, but you have instant access to transportation options. You can check real-time traffic, or even check the maps for subways in your area. The GPS can give you turn-by-turn directions to your destination.

News, Finance, Entertainment, Weather, and Sports
Want to keep up with what’s going on in the world while you’re on the go? Yahoo feeds you news sources from anywhere you choose. You can use the Yahoo! News feature, or add news sources of your liking. You can even add alerts, which email you when stories of interest pop up.

In addition to the financial news you can find with this feature, Yahoo! goes deeper and lets you read up on companies you’re interested in. You can find all the latest stock info, plus company profiles and recent news items. Financial alerts are also available.

Same goes for your favorite entertainment news and rumors. You can check the latest headlines, or browse by celebrity. Yahoo! Go makes it easy to keep up with the buzz.

The GPS features allows you to instantly check weather in your current location. A few clicks, and you can check the weather anywhere around the globe. Get five day forecasts and more.

And for all you sports fanatics out there, Yahoo! Go supplies you with the latest news, scores, and stats. You can add alerts here, too, so you’re constantly updated on your favorite teams and leagues.

Flickr
Yahoo! Go is works seamlessly with your Flickr account, allowing you instant access to all your albums. Uploading pictures is a snap, too, as you can upload it right from your phone to Flickr. They’ve even integrated oneSearch here, so you can browse through millions of photos to find what you’re looking for.

Getting Yahoo! Go
Of course, you’ll need a compatible phone to receive the benefits of Yahoo! Go. Thankfully, they’ve made it available on over 270 phones worldwide, so there’s a real good chance you can get it on yours. It’s not just for smartphones, either. Just check out the normal phones compatible with Yahoo! Go:

LG Chocolate
Motorola RAZR (V9, V3, V6)
Nokia: 3190, 3110, 3500, 5700, 6110, 6120, 6121, 7370, 7373
Samsung: A707, D800, Z130, ZV50, i520, i600
Sony Ericsson: K530i, S500i, W610i, Z750i

And that’s not even close to a complete list. There are hundreds and hundreds of phones you can use this service with. Check out the full listing of phones, including those compatible with version 3.0, which is in beta mode right now.

Yahoo! Go creates an ideal mobile Internet experience, giving you more choices than any other application of its type, and putting you in full control over those choices. All you have to do is navigate to go.yahoo.com from your desktop or laptop, and enter your mobile number to have a link sent to your phone. Alternately, you can head to m.yahoo.com from your mobile browser. You’ll be glad once you did.

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