Natalie Ashes Team : Web Production Tags : Web Development Mobile Web

Placing cookies on mobile devices

Natalie Ashes Team : Web Production Tags : Web Development Mobile Web

With mobile browsing increasingly growing the need for sites to function properly in the mobile world is critical.  This includes cookies used to store user preferences and identify users. Login cookies are one of the most important forms of cookies, with users originally being prompted for membership to view a site, then being “remembered” each other time they visit. In a mobile version of a site these cookies need to translate.

Are cookies guaranteed to work on a mobile device?

Cookies are supported by mobile devices but have been found to not be as “guaranteed” as they are on a full version of a website. It is essential to do extensive testing for mobile site cookies to guarantee each time a user returns they are remembered and do not have to log in. This is particularly important for mobile devices as the login process on a smaller screen is often much more tedious.

Some gateways are said to forget cookies before they expire, and even limit the amount of cookies per user but overall are said to function properly.

Summing up mobile cookies

With mobile browsing continuing to advance their handling of cookies is only getting better with reports of issues declining. Overall for effective browsing and optimal user experience cookies are essential which is why they should be used in mobile browsing where appropriate.