It just was one of many killer features. Contemporary phones also had web browsers, they just weren't as good, by far. I remember the awful browser on the Noki

It just was one of many killer features. Contemporary phones also had web browsers, they just weren't as good, by far. I remember the awful browser on the Nokia N73 (my last phone before the iPhone), which had a largeish screen and a little joystick to control a mouse pointer, but no touchscreen.