FlyScreen, the lock screen replacement for Android and Symbian phones from Israeli startup Cellogic, has landed on the iPhone. But not as we know it.
That’s because Apple’s iOS is locked down as it were (see what I did there) and doesn’t allow third-party apps to take over the lock screen. This doesn’t mean that iPhone users of FlyScreen don’t get access to the app’s array of content widgets – they do – but this functionality is accessible like any other app. However, Cellogic has come up with a nice new twist for FlyScreen, something that the company is calling “Ambient Mode”, a more fun presentation of content for when the phone is docked.
The idea is content streams in “passively”, using different skins or “themes” when the phone is docked. It’s a similar concept to HP/Palm’s webOS ‘Exhibition’ or reminiscent of something like the Chumby. “So as an RSS reader app, we’re now covering both the active reading, and passive too”, says the company.
There’s a monetization play here too. FlyScreen for iPhone offers a Premium upgrade using Apple’s in-app purchasing to support Social and Custom widgets or to purchase the first “Ambient theme pack”. It’ll set you back 99 cents for Premium (Twitter, Twitter Lists, Facebook, Google Reader, Custom RSS) or $1,99 for those extra themes, which do look quite fun.
