Earlier this month, Danluu.com released a 23-page in-depth analysis/editorial/manifesto on the current state of unoptimized web page and web app performance. They found that even entry-level devices can stop functioning simply by loading a web page. It can run the popular game PUBG at 40 fps. In fact, Wix webpages have to load 21 MB of data per page, while the more popular websites Patreon and Threads load 13 MB of data per page. This can cause slow load times, up to 33 seconds, or even cause the page to fail to load altogether.
Key measurements can be found in the table below (expand the Tweet to see the table). This table measures maximum content-full paint (LCP) times across multiple websites and low-spec devices. As the official name LCP suggests, this is typically the time between when a user opens a page and when the device renders its main content. In addition to the time it takes to load, each site’s bandwidth request is displayed in the left column. Tests include the bottom-of-the-line Itel P32, the entry-level His Tecno S8C, and more powerful systems such as the Apple M3 Max, M1 Pro, and M3.
Impact of web growth on users with slow devices: https://t.co/O6Cb4u1KoW pic.twitter.com/0eri7AmVdTMarch 16, 2024
As the test above shows, some of the most brutally loaded websites include Quora and basically every major social media platform. Newer content creation platforms like Squarespace and newer forum platforms like Discourse also perform significantly worse than older platforms and are often unusable on some devices.
The Tecno S8C is one of the prominent entry-level phones common in emerging markets, and one of our particularly appealing test devices to be stuck with. This device is actually quite impressive in several ways, including its execution capabilities. PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds Mobile 40 FPS – But I can’t even run Quora on the same device and it has unusable lag when scrolling through social media sites.
This example is likely the one that best summarizes the overall point: modern web and app design is increasingly moving toward unrealistic assumptions about ever-increasing bandwidth and processing. That means there is. Quora is a website where people come together. I will answer the question— There’s no reason why running these websites is any more difficult than running a battle royale game.
The full text explains these points in more detail and includes several quotes and quotations from web developers.For example, Jeff Atwood, founder and former CEO of Discourse, said that Qualcomm “Their work is terrible. I wish they would go out of business.”…because Qualcomm’s CPU was 15% behind Apple’s. This feels like an extreme statement for a manufacturer that provides the majority of smartphone SoCs available on the market. For more information on the test and resulting performance measurements, you can read the full report here.
