Remember RockMelt, the Chrome-based “social browser” that aims to bring your Facebook and Twitter life into your web browsing all the time? The company is now aiming for your iPhone, with a new app expected to debut later this week.
GigaOM is reporting that Mountain View, California-based startup RockMelt plans to introduce an iPhone-based mobile version of their social-themed browser which is expected to hit the App Store later this week. The move comes on the heels of the original social browser, Flock, announcing that it’s throwing in the towel at the end of April and heading for that big browser in the sky.
“The 33-person company is competing against giants such as Apple, Google, Microsoft, and Mozilla, and it needs to use its small size as an advantage by quickly out-innovating its rivals,” GigaOM reports. “The new mobile browser will allow current RockMelt users to access their bookmarks, contacts, and settings on their iOS devices, in addition to their desktops.”
Of course, the RockMelt team isn’t going to stop there, and plans a version for Android as well as “other mobile operating systems” in the future. Their iOS app sounds a bit like competitor Mozilla’s Firefox Home, but the RockMelt team is confident that their approach is unique.
“We’re not going for the power users, the ones who already know how to customize a browser,” co-founder Eric Vishria explains. RockMelt’s mobile sync will be automatic and a “core aspect of the browser’s user experience” rather than an optional feature tacked on.
No word on pricing, but RockMelt for the iPhone is in the final stages of approval with Apple and should hit the App Store by week’s end.
Updated: Scratch that, it's available right now and it's free -- if you can't find it in an iTunes search, just hit this link and download the RockMelt goodness right now.
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(Image courtesy of GigaOM)
