RIM goes open source for its new Blackberry mobile browser
An on-going complaint from BlackBerry users was about the mobile web browser on their devices. Not that it was particularly bad, at the start at least, but it hasn’t kept up with the rapidly advancing field of mobile Internet browsing. Well, RIM has announced the purchase of a company called Torch Mobile, which maintains a web browser called Iris. And the general opinion is that this is the pre-cursor to a huge rehaul of the Blackberry browser.
What’s this Iris browser like, then?
Iris is a mobile browser, developed by Torch. The important thing about it is that it is based on the WebKit platform. WebKit is an engine that was developed from an open source engine by Apple in 2002. In 2005, Apple made WebKit open source as well. Since then, it has gone on to power multiple on-line and mobile browsers - including Safari for both Mac and the iPhone, the Symbian S60 browser, Palm and Google Chrome. By using a browser based on this engine, Blackberry will be able to bring its mobile browser up to spec with others.
The current Iris browser is fully compatible with touch screen devices. It has a PDF Reader, IM Client, can manage separate windows and tabs, has its own multimedia support and its own widget platform.
It hasn’t been disclosed how much the purchase was for.
What we think?
The Blackberry was never intended as a mobile browsing device - it was designed with the aim of giving business people easy access to SMS and email. As a result, RIM might not have that many people on board who are experienced with mobile browser design. So bringing a mobile browser firm into the RIM family is a good play.
Sound Great, However business is going to more and more Web applications which most professional would love to use there handheld device to access the web sites. That is the only things holding BB behind. The new Palm Pre cover that gap. I hope BB builds a bridge soon.