Ars Technica turned me on to CoolIris several weeks ago, and since then I’ve stayed on top of the company’s news. CoolIris uses a 3D-like interface for browsing pictures and video on a range of websites including biggies like Google, YouTube and Flickr. There’s also a Discover feature for catching up on specific topics like news, sports, technology, etc. Very, very cool, but honestly more novelty than anything else. I don’t see the average Joe Shmoe bothering to download the plug-in.
On the other hand, the company’s new Shopping feature is a potential game changer. It’s even got Om Malik rethinking his position on plug-ins.
CoolIris replicates the window-shopping and catalog-flipping experience on the Web better than any other application to date. Forget apps like Zinio (a magazine digitizer which our buddy Kevin Tofel loves, but I’ve never been able to get into), browsing with CoolIris is smooth and instantaneous. Perfect for shopping.
Looking for a shirt at Macy’s? With CoolIris you can bring up a wall of photos showing everything available, scan it, and click on anything for a closer look. There are logical menus (apparel, kitchen, Jewelry, etc.), and there’s also a search function. The interface is beautiful. Reminds me quite a bit of an Apple app. You get the feel of momentum moving along the CoolIris wall the same way you do when scanning along a screen on the iPhone.
There’s still a lack of content on several of the shopping sites CoolIris has listed, but that’s sure to change. If the retail partners have any sense, they’ll start promoting the application directly from their home sites. It’s a nice online differentiator just in time for holiday shopping. And in this economy retailers will need everything they can get to draw in customers.
Hi Mari,
Thanks so much for posting about us! We sincerely appreciate it.
I also wanted to let you know that we’ve got some exciting news to announce from Cooliris! Now you can experience Cooliris anywhere and anytime by navigating the mobile web with our brand new iPhone App. Cooliris for the iPhone is the fastest way to browse media-rich web content on the go.
Searching the Web with the Cooliris iPhone app displays your results in the same intuitive, easy-to-navigate manner you’ve come to expect from the Cooliris web client. The Cooliris iPhone app overcomes the traditional limitations of mobile internet browsing by coupling the breezy, open-ended feel of the 3D Wall with the streamlined hands-on interface of the iPhone touchscreen.
Cooliris for the iPhone brings you the news and articles relevant to you from across the Web with our Discover feeds. All of the Discover feeds available on our web client have been optimized for the iPhone, so you’ll always have the latest current events at your fingertips.
No matter where you are in the world, Cooliris delivers content that is relevant to where you are based. Since the iPhone can detect your location through GPS, you’ll get news customized to your locale (UK users will automatically have a UK News feed available to them, for example). This will be a huge boon to our enthusiastic international user base. Discover also allows you to pull up the related story within its web context by clicking the associated metadata. There’s no need to jump out of Cooliris and visit the parent website in order to get the full story!
This is only the first release for Cooliris on the iPhone, and as such it’s meant to help you navigate the internet’s news and media as simply and easily as possible. As the application grows, you’ll be seeing more features currently only available on the web client, as well as new ones which take advantage of the iPhone’s unique interface – so stay tuned!
You can check out our app at http://blog.cooliris.com/.
Kindest regards,
Jenny & The Cooliris Team
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