Saturday, November 2, 2024

RIM Releases WebKit-based Browser with HTML 5 Capabilities

RIM’s new web browser for the BlackBerry 6 is measures above their previous mobile browser. The latest release supports the often-requested features of HTML 5, bringing true mobile web-based apps to the BlackBerry.


RIM is hoping that this new release will entice developers to develop for the BlackBerry browser instead of native Java apps. The two main features of HTML 5 that this release supports are HTML 5 video, and offline storage. That said, video embedding is not truly supported, and offline storage was already available using Google Gears.


JavaScript support in the new RIM browser is much better, however, and the new JavaScript engine in WebKit should make a difference, both for developers and end users. The speed at which JavaScript is able to access the new offline storage capabilities of the browser will enable developers to create apps that don’t need to be constantly connected to the internet. Whether they add the video support that developers are looking for remains to be seen–Adobe and RIM seem to have a solid connection, so there may be a wait for that to actually materialize.

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