Zumobi calls it a widget-driven “zooming user interface” and we call it a cool and inventive way to interact with your handset. This advertising-backed UI enhancement is 100% free to users under the current model and is already available for Windows Mobile devices. For those unfamiliar with the application, it essentially provides a widget service that allows users to drill down on content tiles using a touchscreen or keypad. There are currently about 100 widgets available and once set up, Zumobi updates in the background so that content is always fresh and waiting. Widgets even provide live content pre-zoom, so for example your stocks widget will display a fresh quote for the first stock in your portfolio before you even touch your device to interact with the application. We had the chance to chat with Zumobi at CTIA and we were pretty impressed with the direction the company is headed in. Having launched only a month and a half ago, the Zumobi folks have already accomplished two great feats: They’ve landed their first carrier deal and they’ve achieved native status on Windows Mobile 6.1. This means that any manufacturer utilizing the newest variant of the Windows Mobile OS on a device can easily opt to include the Zumobi product as OEM. The app is quite attractive to all three parts of the mobile equation; it provides a great launch point / content-delivery experience to users, a nice unique option that can draw attention and advertising revenue to manufacturers, and an ad and data revenue-driving product to carriers. If you’re not packing a Windows Mobile device, don’t fret just yet. We spoke to Zumobi about its future plans and we’re happy to report that Zumobi plans to issue a BlackBerry client as soon as next month. A java client will then follow and we might even see a native S60 client in the coming months. With all the major bases covered, expect to be seeing a lot more from Zumobi as it continues to expand its reach and content.
