Skyfire 1.0: Free Mobile Browser With Full Support For Web 2.0 Technologies
Skyfire, the free mobile web browser with over one million current users in under five month since the first public beta launch, has already reached version 1.0 stable. It is defined as a PC-like browser for mobile devices and runs on Windows Mobile (smartphones and PPC) and Nokia N and E Series (Symbian S60, 3rd Edition) phones. Skyfire delivers the same browsing experience as in case of using a personal computer, by enabling you to navigate the full-featured PC versions of your favorite websites and watch videos, buy products online, connect with friends on social networks and perform any usual task like in a regular web browser, with maximum page loading speed and content rendering quality.
As compared with similar products existing on the today market, this mobile web browser is the only one that is fully compliant with the modern technologies of Web 2.0 era: “Skyfire is the only mobile browser to support popular web standards and plug-ins such as Flash 10, Silverlight 2, Ajax, Javascript and more, so the rich media on websites work on phones just like the PC”.
Skyfire mobile browser has no limitations in functionality on mobile phones, as compared with web browsers designated to work on PC. For example, users are allowed to customize the start page with RSS feeds, publish web pages to Twitter and Facebook accounts with one click and more.
In this version, the Skyfire development team has optimized the page loading speed, as well as various basic functions: “Improvements specific to the Skyfire 1.0 release include enhanced navigation, zooming and interaction as well as faster launch, power optimization, and new search functionality. Having previously delivered rich media and text readability on a small screen, the focus of this latest release was helping users get to the content they want more quickly.”
Skyfire will be made available for a wider range of mobile phones. A Private Closed Alpha program for the BlackBerry platform was just launched and in the near future, there is also expected a Public Beta release. The free Skyfire mobile web browser is ready for free download from the official website.
What Is New In SkyFire 1.0
-Thumbnail interaction. Now you can click on links immediately after the page loads without having to zoom in. This enhancement is especially helpful for high resolution phones, and for familiar sites where you know right away where you want to click. It makes getting to the content you want on the page simpler, quicker and more efficient.
-Improved zoom. Double-tap or double-click to zoom over any element, including links, images or videos. The zoom interaction is smoother and more responsive as well. Best of all: when you zoom in you will get readable text instantly.
-Enhanced navigation. When you navigate back or forward, you return to the last viewport (e.g. zoom level and portion of the page). This eliminates the need to pan and zoom into the section you were viewing on the previous page. Skyfire remembers the viewport even when you select a page from your history. There is also added shortcut keys, (9) for forward and (7) for backward navigation.
-Improved page handling. Enhancements have been made especially for AJAX-intensive sites such as Facebook and Gmail. When larger parts of the page get updated, the client will more quickly and accurately reflect this. In addition, now, it supports full-width iFrames in Skyfire.
-Fast start. There is changed both the sequence and behavior of the Skyfire launch so you get started as quickly as possible. You can type a search or URL in the Superbar while Skyfire is connecting in the background. You can put Skyfire to work before the start page is even loaded. Plus, the connection performance is improved.
-Reconnect to last state. When you leave Skyfire in the background Skyfire disconnects to preserve battery life. When you come back to Skyfire (after minutes, hours, days), it will reload the same page to the same zoom level and focus. You can continue right where you left off. When you exit and start again, Skyfire you will always land on the start page.
-Connection helper. There is a new mechanism to detect when connections cannot be established to Skyfire servers. If this is due to a network configuration (common in GSM land), then we provide suggestions to help out. This is especially useful if you are with a carrier/data plan that places restrictions on certain APN configurations, which interferes with Skyfire.
-Enhanced search results. Google results now include video, news articles, local results all blended on a single results page and ordered by relevance. Vertical search categories are still available.
-Improved RSS feed search. Find your favorite custom RSS feeds through the improved Add-Feed feature, found under the Customize menu on the start page. Search by site domain, feed URL, or even topical keywords.
-Easier sharing of RSS items from start page. There is exposed a simple “Share this article” link below each RSS story displayed on your start page to make it easier to share interesting items to your Twitter and Facebook.
-Remember last connection (Symbian only). Skyfire can now remember the last connection for you, so you will not have to choose a connection every single time. In addition, if you want to change the connection type while you are in Skyfire you can do so.
The main features of Skyfire 1.0 are summarized in the next video demonstration:
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