As with all online services, growing the user base is always going to be a focus, and Twitter is no exception to this rule. So in a bid to attract new users, the social network is launching Twitter Lite with a promise of up to 70 percent less data consumption.

Twitter explains the creation of Twitter Lite is a reaction to the barriers that exist around its use today, including "slow mobile networks, expensive data plans, or lack of storage on mobile devices." It also doesn't help that 45 percent of mobile connections still rely on 2G networks.

Introducing Twitter Lite on mobile web! ??



Loads quickly, takes up less space, and is data-friendly. Learn more: https://t.co/Zd825WOdQz pic.twitter.com/l1n0cYJuPc — Twitter (@Twitter) April 6, 2017

With that in mind, Twitter Lite isn't an app, it's a web experience. It uses less than 1MB of storage, loads 30 percent faster, and consumes 70 percent less data when data saver mode is enabled. None of the core Twitter features have been sacrificed to achieve these savings (your timeline, Tweets, Direct Messages, trends, profiles, media uploads, and notifications all still function).

The only difference you'll notice with data saver mode enabled is images and video are presented as a preview you need to choose to view. Even push notifications work if you're on an Android handset, and Twitter Lite remains functional when a connection is lost by using a temporary offline browsing solution.

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While clearly aimed at areas of the world experiencing poor mobile coverage and/or expensive data charges, Twitter Lite is available to use worldwide. Simply visit mobile.twitter.com using your device.

In a separate blog post about how Twitter Lite was made, the development team state work is continuing to improve the system. For example, new compression formats are being experimented with that could reduce data use even further.

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