Skyfire 3.0 for iPhone gets cozier with Facebook

Skyfire's Flash video-playing iPhone browser gets a few more features in its first update.

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Jessica Dolcourt

March 2, 2011 10:30 a.m. PT

Skyfire, iPhone — Skyfire for iPhone ($2.99) gets deeper Facebook hooks. Skyfire

If you enjoy watching Flash video on your iPhone browser, you'll want to check out Skyfire 3.0 for iPhone, updated today.

Skyfire is a WebKit-based alternative to the iPhone's default Safari browser that uses Skyfire Labs' servers to render pages more speedily by first compressing data before delivering it--up to 85 percent, the company claims.

However, the app's most significant draw, and the reason the company is charging $3 per download, is its ability to work around Apple's blocking of Flash video content.

Version 3.0 remains largely the same as Skyfire's inaugural iPhone app, which had a shaky launch last November. Yet, response was so positive that Skyfire also expanded to the iPad.

The new version does get a visual refresh with some reworked graphics, and it adds more social content, like Facebook Connect and "liking." You can also view Facebook and Twitter feeds.

On the more technical side, Skyfire now has a user agent switch that's easy to access in the Settings menu--this lets you tell the browser if you want to see iPhone-optimized Web sites or the full desktop experience.

Keep in mind that Skyfire won't yet support every Flash-enabled Web site, but this release does represent an expansion of the sites it will support. There are more new and improved features in Skyfire's video below. In the meantime, if you like or don't like the browser, tell us why.

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