Twitter rolls out faster, sleeker mobile website for iOS and Android

Twitter has updated its website with a version designed for use on the browsers of iOS and Android mobile devices. The company wants to provide a unified mobile experience whether you choose to use the browser-based interface, install the official Twitter app, or both.

Twitter boasts the new mobile Web version was built from the ground up and designed specifically for smart phones and tablets. It makes judicious use of HTML5, which is widely available on a number of devices.

It's supposed to be much faster to use than its predecessor and takes advantage of increased screen sizes. Everything you expect to find on Twitter -- the timeline, replies, direct messages, trending topics (though we could do without those) and lists -- is presented and should behave more like a native app.

It marks another update to Twitter's Web interfaces, which have seen a fairly dramatic shift over the past few months. The desktop version of twitter.com has had a makeover, with the older version being switched off imminently.

Users who tweet incessantly or handle multiple accounts may still find the update lacking. There are no shortage of third-party Twitter apps for desktop and mobile operating systems, many offering more advanced features and easier updating. There's still the possibility of Twitter acquiring TweetDeck and bundling premium services.

A "small percentage" of Twitter users with iPhone, iPod touch and Android handsets can already access the luxurious new app. It will be rolled out to mere mortals over the coming weeks. Presumably Twitter is trying to avoid too many instances of the fail whale popping up.

We're really looking forward to being able to do everything we already do on Twitter, but more quickly. Faster gossip. Speedier jokes. High octane court cases. Of course some things you can't do from the mobile site, like shooting your own Twitter movie, but we can live without that.