RIM demos new WebKit-based BlackBerry browser at MWC -- it's fast!
By Nilay Patel 
posted February 16th 2010 11:56AM
posted February 16th 2010 11:56AM
posted February 16th 2010 11:56AM
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I hope this gets leaked...
@PlatinumSkeet Me too. We need this yesterday!
@PlatinumSkeet
me too, i dont have any real problems using the browser on my tour, but cant complain about something better :)
Looks really good. I would say this is where a touch interface has the advantage as all those clicks to zoom in look tedious and scrolling a mouse ALL the way across the screen with so many swipes looks cumbersome also.
welcome to the family blackberry users
Still doesn't look as good as Opera Mini.
@GTYellowJacket9
Those menu's in Amazon would not have worked on Opera Mini.
@GTYellowJacket9 yeah, opera was good yday, this is good today!
Looks ok, or at least almost good as Opera Mobile on Symbian
Nice to see so many mobile browsers performing better than the desktop IE8 at the moment!
@Jamma
Just loaded up acid 3 on firefox and it got a 94/100. 100/100 is pretty impressive for any browser.
thank god. the standard browser is pretty awful and Opera Mini isn't a whole lot better. can't wait for this.
Blackberry's touchscreen game is nowhere to be found. This looks nice, but RIM needs to bring something better to the table than an entire screen that's also a button.
@TJM
Guess you missed the release of the Storm2.
@bighap ...maybe I shouldn't have focused on their initial, failed attempt at a touchscreen phone so much. Sure, the Storm 2's hardware is an improvement, especially alongside software updates like this...
But RIM seems to have a mentality similar to Microsoft when it comes to phones. They've got a sizeable marketshare, and seem to take a very lax approach to bringing something out that people will really want to use. When I think of the key players in the market who'll still be here in the next few years, only Android and Apple come to mind. Maybe Palm, and maybe Microsoft with thieir 7 Series.
+1 for WebKit/HTML5 as well.
@TJM
I guess you could throw out "Maybe RIM and Maybe Nokia.." and just cover everyone...
@TJM
"But RIM seems to have a mentality similar to Microsoft when it comes to phones."
MS completely changed their phone strategy with 7 Series, and you're still making this comparison? MS just proved that mentality isn't there anymore. Wow...
Well, it's a decent browser for Blackberrys.
I guess that's exciting...but if you cared that much about browsing, you're not relying on a Blackberry anyway.
Rejoice?
Blackberry's are great at doing e-mail, and messaging but browsing the web on such a small screen just isn't their game.
@XChrisX It's not the screen size, it's the resolution. My Bold 9700 has more pixels than an iPhone. It's plenty capable to provide a good browsing experience.
@XChrisX
I have a Blackberry Storm.... Not enough screen space my ass...
@PlatinumSkeet Agreed, but the standard blackberry form has buttons and a smaller screen. Unless they change the OS a bit, I don't see the storm becoming one of their flagship products.
by the time this gets released apple, google and palm with have better browsers..
@young hov 718
And as a Blackberry owner/user...this would matter to me how?
@young hov 718 True, but by that point, will any of them have decent Exchange support?
@kspraydad you as a crackberry user will be using outdated tech, like you do now.
@young hov 718 This *is* Google, Apple, and Palm's browser. As long as RIM keeps their browser in sync with the main WebKit branch, they'll be just as good HTML-wise (with speed and rendering) as the other browsers.
@mmaestro by then anything is possible. Rimms os needs a overhaul. And 6.0 better be it
YESYESYES
full html5 support? RIM needs to read some tech document first.
@chrislevin I'm sure they would read those tech docs if Adobe would let them be released.
nooo! they stole webkit from winmo!!
Adobe, that's the sound of the bell ringing your eminent demise. Apple rang it once for you already. More are lines up holding hammers...
@zelannii
For flash perhaps...They still have Creative Suite, After Effects, etc..Their bread & butter..flash is very minute...bit annoying not to have it, but not gonna kill them by any means.
They're *just* getting around to having a browser that doesn't suck?
Isn't that like bragging that you recently stopped beating your wife?
So they stole iris from winmo to create a browser that actually works for an OS no one wants anymore?
@l3it3r RIM has sold over 50 million Blackberries, and have over 20 million customers. Where do you get your information?
@l3it3r that is about as funny and original as "whats a Zune?" just because you don't use a BlackBerry doesn't mean that nobody does.
WebKit is good and stuff, but the most important thing of WebKit is that it is easily updatable.
Also, will there be NPAPI support for plugins like Flash 10.1?
The bottom line is blackberry needs a better touchscreen experience. It can't even compare to that of a Droid or iPhone. RIM needs help. Maybe Microsoft will buy them out. It would only them.
@sw1storm "blackberry needs a better touchscreen experience"
says you
Or they're the only one who still caters to the consumer who dosn't want or need a touchscreen
@KeegdnaB I sell mobile phones, and I gotta agree with you there. So many customers come in looking for a good phone without a touch screen. Young customers love a touch screen but those who didn't grow up with a cell usually don't want anything to do with a touch screen.
long story short... sw1storm, you are not the only customer of these companies. you are one of millions and the other several millions don't want what you want.
Full HTML 5 would mean OGG/Vorbis video, right? Show me a demo of that and I'll cream my pants. This + BES Free = long time coming.
@Epon
No. HTML5 doesn't support specific codecs. Ogg support was removed from the spec b/c of objections from certain companies (one of which was Apple). So now it is up to the browser/engine developer to specify which codecs they support. IIRC, webkit supports h.264 while Gecko supports Ogg Theora. I think Opera was going Ogg too, but I'm not sure.
@scyber Ohhh well that's fine. I don't really care about the codec, but the chance to have embeded video is sexy. At least while we wait for Adobe to push something out ::eye roll::
Finally, now hurry up and release it!
@gernblanston I wouldn't hold my breathe on this. BB may very well take an entire year or longer to release this with some future Curve device. Us current users, I doubt well get the upgrade because I am as sure as pie that this new browser will not be compatible with current BB devices. BB already needs a new phone lineup, touchscreen, and a new OS that simple to design for.
@Jhig Well, would you hold your breath for it?
This would fix one of my major complaints about my BlackBerry. Most of the phone is just fine for what I want to do, but to browser is just plain awful.
Though I love my BB, I think Blackberry missed the ball on this one. BB has had a considerable markets share against the others and they just finally decided to develope a desent browser. Other's like Apple and Android came in the game with a above decent browsing experience and now we are suppose to "praise" BB on this minor feet that should had been done two-three years ago. Too little too late on this one BB. Other mobile developers are looking ahead, designing better application base, advanced touchscreens, social apps, while still focusing on the business customers. BB reminders me of Yahoo and MS when Google took over. Yahoo and MS were deers in headlights. BB is going to end up like Palm, resting on it laurals ... but even Palm learned its leson, at least they are activley competing with the Big Dogs of Apple and Goolgle in the mobile market. Tisk, tisk BB. My next phone will be Apple or Google.
Pushing a mouse cursor around on a mobile phone screen looks so much last century to me but it's great to see RIM hoping on the WebKit-train. It's the best one they could have taken and some better implementations/devices may follow very soon.
In short: It's a good day for RIM and for mobile web browsing in general.
HTML5 rules and I wish IE9 came out yesterday, with a companion named "subIE9killswitch". Being realistic, let's hope IE9 will at least sport some HTML5-capabilities, especially the video-tag and h.264 ... Afterwards only Mozilla would have to surrender in the pending question of video-format and HTML5's path to victory was free.