I have been working with the beta of the Skyfire browser for a number of months. For those who love the Opera Mini/iPhone idea of shrinking a desktop browser onto your smartphone, this is the one you want.
Why? Because it doesn't just give you the look/feel like those other browsers do...it delivers all the capabilities. Ajax, Quicktime, Flash, Windows Media...you name it, and Skyfire handles it with aplomb. That means you get full access to YouTube, Facebook and every type of web content, without compromise.
However, as of right now, Skyfire only supports Windows Mobile devices.
Today, Skyfire comes out of beta, and goes public with a new release of the browser. While I have a personal preference for 'optimized' content on my smartphone, this is one browser I wish supported the Palm OS. I can state with certainty that iPhone and Blackberry users are going to drool with envy once they see it on their friends WinMo devices.
Here's more from the good folks at Skyfire:
Skyfire Opens
Floodgates, Offers Full PC Web Browsing Experience on Mobile Phones
Skyfire
Announces Open Beta, Improved Video Streaming, Zooming and More in New 0.8
Windows Mobile Version
(MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA) – September 24,
2008 – Skyfire, makers of the full PC Web experience browser for mobile devices,
Skyfire, announced today that they are opening up registration of their free
browser to all. In addition, the Mountain View based company is announcing the
.8 version of their revolutionary product for Windows Mobile. The new version of
Skyfire adds even more speed and ease to browsing the Internet from a mobile
device.
The Skyfire browser was the first
mobile browser to support full web PC browsing, including rich media content,
supporting Ajax, Flash, Quicktime, Windows Media, and others.
“We don’t like to think of ourselves
as a mobile Internet browser,” said Skyfire CEO and Co-Founder Nitin Bhandari.
“Skyfire is a full feature Internet browser on the mobile device.
“Leaving private beta is a huge step
for us,” continued Bhandari, “We have accomplished our goals of the private beta
– launch, listen, improve. Demand for Skyfire has been extremely strong and we
are excited to bring this more evolved product to more devices and users.”
Previously, people who wanted to
enjoy the exact PC web experience on their handsets had to sign up on a waiting
list for Skyfire. With today’s announcement, the latest version of the Windows
Mobile Skyfire browser is available to anyone. The 0.8 iteration of Skyfire for
Windows Mobile includes marked improvements.
“Our users love media rich sites like
MySpace, Facebook, YouTube, and ESPN on Skyfire ” said CMO Adam Sexton, “and
based on their input we added the most requested features and improved our user
experience. Users can now find content more quickly with Super Bar, and can now
easily share that content with anyone in their address book. ”
Super Bar
Super Bar makes it easier to find
what you’re looking for, by combining URL and search entry in one bar. It also
features auto complete, so you can find what you’re looking for by only typing a
few letters.
Share Content
Skyfire now lets you easily share
your favorite web content with others. You can send any web page via text
message to anyone in your address book or beyond.
In addition to known bug fixes and
general performance gains, the 0.8 version of Skyfire for Windows Mobile also
adds the following functionality:
- • Better video
quality
- • Ability to make
Skyfire the default browser
- • Faster launch and
auto-reconnect
- • Improved zooming
- • Ability to download
content
- • In-line text
entry
Today, Skyfire will begin the
migration of current 0.6 users to the 0.8 version and will also allow new
Windows Mobile users to download it directly from
www.skyfire.com.
Skyfire, which supports all Web 2.0
standards like Ajax and full Flash, is also available in version 0.6 on the
Symbian S60 platform. The 0.8 version will be released for Symbian
shortly.
About Skyfire
Skyfire is the creator of the Skyfire
mobile browser, which extends the PC Web to mobile phones so users can
experience the mobile Web exactly like they do on their PCs. The company was
founded in 2006 by Nitin Bhandari and Erik Swenson, who serve as CEO and CTO,
respectively. Skyfire is backed by Lightspeed Venture Partners, Trinity Ventures
and Matrix Partners.
For more information, visit
www.skyfire.com, or follow Skyfire on
twitter at
twitter.com/skyfire.