Research In Motion is still playing catch-up when it comes to offering a good internet experience on the Blackberry, and today at Mobile World Congress RIM (NSDQ: RIMM) Co-CEO Mike Lazaridis said a revamped browser is coming this year.
The new browser will be based on the open-source WebKit technology that’s also leveraged by Apple’s Safari and Google’s Android. In an interview with Bloomberg, Lazaridis would not provide specifics, but said: “You’ll see how fast it downloads, how quickly it renders and how smooth it scrolls and zooms in.”
Many of RIM’s competitors have solved browsing an entire internet page on a small screen by using touchscreens that can zoom in and out with a pinch of two fingers. But the Storm is Blackberry’s only
touchscreen device, which creates a more difficult challenge. The Waterloo, Ontario-based company bought browser-design firm Torch Mobile last year and has increased the number of Web patents it has filed fivefold in the past three years, according to Bloomberg.
No word on whether RIM will partner with any others to create a better browsing experience. Opera, Skyfire and many others have created browsers for various platforms.