I've been doing some holiday shopping. I like to do all my shopping online. I don't really enjoy being in stores and I like the convenience of having the items delivered to me.
This holiday season, I've been trying to shop more on mobile, both phone and tablet. I am doing this partly because I want to see what the experience is like and partly because as I spend more time shopping on mobile, I realize it's easier in some ways.
It feels to me that as a reaction to the shrinking real estate that is available in mobile, particularly phones, designers have made the user experiences simpler and more intelligent. Features that were smart on the web, like recommendations, become essential on mobile.
My favorite holiday shopping service remains Etsy. I know I am talking my book here as USV has owned a large stake in Etsy since 2006 and I am on the board. But the things you can find and buy on Etsy are one of a kind, special, and ridiculosly affordable.
In previous years, I found Etsy on the web preferable to Etsy on tablets and phones. Not this year. I just spent twenty minutes on Etsy's android app and completed most of my holiday shopping. If you try some holiday shopping on their mobile apps, you can download them here.
I'm curious if others are feeling this same way. Has the mobile shopping experience become better than the web shopping experience for you too?
