The responsive Website
Today, the access of websites through different devices like PCs, Tablets or Smartphones has made Responsive Design an indisputable design standard.
Some time ago, the designer of a website had to decide for which device a website should to be optimized. As a consequence, a website either used only a small part of the PC screen or - looking perfectly on the PC - was not usable on the mobile phone.
As a first step towards Responsive Design, web designers offered the user a mobile web version or an app which had to be loaded down first.
Responsive Design spares the user this decision. The app recognizes automatically, which page formats and content are provided for the mobile device. This way, smart phone with limited screen display may receive reduced content.
A responsive website costs more time and money. On one hand, there are additional efforts through all phases of the development process, from the coding to the user tests on the different mobile devices. On the other hand, no mobile version is needed anymore, thus simplifying content management and avoiding potential error sources.