We’re very happy to announce the third kikin-powered device, the Vodafone Smart III. We’ve taken everything you love about kikin on a tablet and combined it with a sleeker, smoother design.

The Vodafone Smart III is available here.

International Data Corporation (IDC) recently released a report stating the current growth of desktop PCs, portable PCs, tablets, and smartphones. Touch devices (tablets and smartphones) grew the most. We’re very happy to see this trend and kikin will be there to power many of these devices!

http://www.idc.com/getdoc.jsp?containerId=prUS24037713#.UWzLmqKG2Sp

kikin is now available on the Vodafone Smart Tab II (7-inch). You can enjoy everything kikin has to offer on a smaller and more portable device.

• Long press on any text in the browser, email, or any app to receive instant Internet search results and answers
• Find everything you want without typing or copy-and-paste (maps, webpages, photos, videos, and more!)
• Receive contextual and personal answers without leaving the current application
• Define words, convert units, discover and learn more with the long press of a finger

The Smart Tab II, powered by kikin, is available in Germany, England, and Ireland.

Visit Vodafone.com for more information.

kikin has stopped the distribution of kikin Browser for iOS. This may seem unusual due to its popularity and high ratings in the iOS app store, however we’ve decided to focus our efforts on a different platform and product.

The kikin Browser was released in September of 2011 as showcase for how kikin’s search technology could be deployed. kikin initially chose an iPad browser as it’s showcase for contextual search due to amount of consumption that takes place on the device, the polish of iOS, and our own frustration with mobile Safari. Since its release we’ve maintained a fantastic response from our users and ratings averaging over 4.5 stars (out of 5). This was a success by any measure.

At a startup focus is paramount. It is what allows a small group of people to take on the big ideas and succeed despite the odds. kikin Browser was a great first step towards making kikin’s search technology pervasive and we’ve learned a lot in the past year. Most importantly we learned that contextual search doesn’t just belong in the browser, but in all applications. It is as important to be able to search in email, sms, or a 3rd-party reader as it is the browser, which is why kikin has been working on a new Android operating system feature that allows users to search wherever they can select text. While we would like to be able to support both products, sadly there is only so much time in the day. We want to make the new product the best it can be, which means spending time we normally would have devoted to kikin Browser on the Android product and other operating systems.

kikin for Android is due out in December 2012 on select Android tablets and starting in 2013 it will be shipping on smart-phones as well. This means that users won’t need to install kikin, it will already be on their devices when they open the box and built into the operating system!

Thanks to all those who have used kikin Browser on iOS, it will continue to work for those who already have it installed, but there will be no further updates for new features or to support new versions of iOS.  To use kikin elsewhere, be on the lookout for product announcements for your Chrome browser on the desktop and Android devices coming soon!

Some of our favorite app store comments about the kikin Browser:

Ridiculously well developed ★★★★★
by Very bizzy – Version 1.9.5 – Oct 27, 2012
Okay folks, go ahead. You have my permission to save yourself the trouble of searching for a better browser. You won’t find one!

Touch search is the future ★★★★
by Sgco561 – Version 1.9.0 – May 26, 2012
Great Idea… Apple needs to buy them and build this into Safari

Kikin five stars! ★★★★★
by Clpoorman – Version 1.9.0 – Apr 14, 2012
This is the easiest search ever! Plus the added bonus of searching within the search….genius! Easy to use and I will only use this app from now on!

The best yet! ★★★★★
by Yopaullowe – Version 1.8.0 – Feb 27, 2012
I have tried them all(I think) and this one has great speed and functionality . To select and search on a word or phrase in a pages content is nothing less than OUTSTANDING!

Close to perfecto ★★★★
by – Version 1.4.5 – Sep 20, 2011
I have tried a few different Safari alternatives, but have’t been satisfied. Kikin takes the cake. The primary complaint I had was that you couldn’t choose to open a link in a new tab. The update fixed that! Kikin is fast, I love, love, love the Kikin search feature (long-hold a word, a search window pops up), I adore the Chrome-esque Omnibar, and I am crazy about the pin tab feature. Almost everything I want in a browser.

Thanks again to our loyal fans

hackNY is accepting applications for its 2013 hackNY Fellows. If you’re a student and you’re interested in working at startup in NYC (kikin), apply here.

kikin for the iPhone and iPod Touch is almost ready! The screenshots below display how easy it is to search with kikin despite the small dimensions of the iPhone and iPod Touch. Simply long press on a word or phrase, and kikin gives the user the option to copy it or search for it with kikin. kikin then pulls up search results about that term within the Web page the user was originally browsing, eliminating the need to venture to another page or tab for search results.

An important update to the iPhone and iPod Touch version of kikin is the lack of navigation buttons; now, any gestures users make within the browser are solely based on Touch. Users can now seamlessly swipe back and forth to navigate the Web, motions that work perfectly with the iPhone and iPod Touch.