Google Web Light is a service that speeds up browsing on Chrome for Android mobile devices. It is a Google service that was used to detect slow speed, i.e. 2GB, and switched to Google proxy servers with built-in data compression. Using these servers, developers were able to reduce loading times for websites with text content.
The service was available only in Indonesia, Brazil, and India.
Web Light Service Retires
But, recently Google decided to retire the Web Light Service and associated user agent (googleweblight).
By making webpages more efficient, the service enabled users to download them with 80% reduced data usage and four times the speed of 2G mobile networks. In simple terms, the service leads to a 50% increase in traffic to web pages.
But, the need for the service is no longer needed. The emergence of affordable, powerful mobile devices and an increase in mobile connection speeds have filled in the gap.
In India, 4G smartphones accounted for 99% of all mobile data usage in 2021, according to Statista.
