browser on prepaid phones

I've had three android prepaid phones and a Sprint Evo 4g. Let's say I don't have any browser windows open and I open a link from Gmail. The browser opens the link and I leave the page open in the browser. On the Evo if I switched back to Gmail and hit another link, the browser would open new windows until the max 4 windows were used. On every Boost and Virgin phone I've used when I open a link then go back to Gmail and open another link the same window is used and I lose the original page I was on. Is there anything I can do about this?

The only way around this seems to be to copy the link and paste the URL into a new window.

 

Is this a vanilla Android feature or something specific to prepaids?

 

Yes, I first had a Virgin Mobile Samsung Intercept, VM LG Optimus V, then the Sprint EVO 4G, and now back to a Boost Samsung Transform Ultra. My wife had a VM HTC Wildfire S but I never tested it out.

I guess I just got spoiled to the EVO