New Redfly Beta Adds Opera Mobile 9.5 Support

Celio Corp. has released a new beta of the software driver for its Redfly smartphone terminal.

The Redfly is a laptop-shaped device that can be used to give a Windows Mobile smartphone a larger display, full keyboard, mouse, and USB ports. Essentially, it turns a smartphone into a subnotebook.

What's New
To many, the most welcome improvement in the new driver (01.04.00.72) is the long-awaited support for Opera Mobile 9.5 beta, a web browser that ships on most devices from HTC.

In addition, Celio is promising that USB performance and speed have been "significantly enhanced" with this new version.

It also partially deals with Bluetooth issues when wirelessly connecting with an HTC Touch Pro, Touch Diamond, or AT&T Fuze.

Redfly users who would like to install this beta update can find it now on Celio's support website.

More about the Celio Redfly

Although at first glance this model resembles a subnotebook, the Redfly works completely differently. It serves as an accessory for a smartphone, and does not act as a stand-alone computer.

When Celio's device is connected to a Windows Mobile phone, either by Bluetooth or USB, any application on the smartphone is shown on the Mobile Companion's 800-by-480-pixel (WVGA) display without modification or synchronization. The user is then able to interact with that application through a large keyboard and trackpad or mouse.

There are two versions. The least expensive is the Redfly C7, which has a 7-inch display and weighs less than 1.5 lbs.

The second, the Redfly C8N, has an 8-inch screen and a multimedia port that allows an iPod, iPhone, Zune, or digital camera to use the Smartphone Terminal's display for video or images.

The Redly C7 sells for $230, while the C8N retails for $300.

More details can be found on Celio's website.

 Source: Celio