Bolt Browser has been in beta for quite some time and the last time it was updated was back in June. Today Bitstream let me know that they are officially dropping the Bolt Browser beta tag with the release of version 1.5!

Here’s a reminder of what BOLT is all about:

BOLT is a fast mobile browser that offers an uncompromised browsing experience on even entry-level mobile phones. It is compatible with virtually any handset with Mobile Information Device Profile (MIDP) 2.0 support. In non-geekspeak, this means “it works on lots of phones, even basic ones.”

Rather than offering a simplified, mini version of the Internet, BOLT provides users with an efficient, feature-rich way to enjoy full PC-style Web pages and rich media applications on all levels of mobile devices.

New in BOLT v1.5:

• Server upgrades (make v1.5 15% faster than Beta3)
• Cache support that enables directly browsing back to a previously visited page
• Download manager that downloads files directly within BOLT on JSR 75 capable devices
• Dedicated search bar, enabling search on popular search engines directly from BOLT
• Enhanced column width control that auto-aligns the text to columns for ease of reading
• Enhanced video support that includes inline media playing capability even on low-end devices.
• Support for streaming videos of any length
• Volume UP/DOWN controls in the inline media player
• Ability to rearrange the subscribed feeds using the ‘grab’ feature
• Access to History links from the URL window with inline editing OFF
• One click access on Home Page that ensures the cursor jumps to the desired widget

For more info or to download Bolt Browser directly to your BlackBerry visit boltbrowser.com. If you already have Bolt Browser you will be prompted to update the next time you run it. Let me know how this new version works for you in the comments!

The last time I mentioned BOLT Browser was back in early April. Since then it seems like Bitstream has been working hard with the release of their new BOLT Browser Beta 3, now faster with improvements on existing features.

New Bolt Browser features:

• Copy and paste text
• Enter and edit text directly within online text boxes
• Upload files such as videos to YouTube or pictures to Photobucket
• Order favorites and arrange them into custom folders
• Toggle between viewing websites with or without images displayed

Bolt Browser enhancements:

• Rendering bold, italics, superscript and other rich text styles
• Enhanced rendering of complex web pages
• Faster page rendering
• Servers upgraded to WebKit 4

Bitstream has also launched a forum where you can post questions and support issues.

BOLT and BOLT lite are available for free to anyone as part of Bitstream’s public beta test. If you already have BOLT Browser you will be prompted to update the next time you load a webpage. If you don’t have it yet visit boltbrowser.com/download to have a download link sent to your BlackBerry.

For more info check out the full press release after the jump.

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Some highlights from the press release:

• With well over 300,000 users from around the world participating in a public beta that began in February, Bitstream Inc. (NASDAQ: BITS) today announced that BOLTTM, the company’s web browser for mobile phones of all types, will get a significant upgrade today.
• People are enjoying the video streaming feature of the BOLT browser – the only mobile browser that lets people enjoy streaming videos on average mobile phones from such popular video services as YouTube, vids.myspace.com, video.yahoo.com, blip.tv, dailymotion.com, metacafe.com and more.  Of the total bandwidth used by all BOLT users surfing the Internet, nearly a third was consumed by streaming video.
• Optimized to conserve battery life and data transmissions, BOLT features unrivaled speed – consistently 25 to 50 percent faster than competitors.  The WebKit based BOLT browser offers ultra-fast viewing of streaming and flash video, high standards compliance, rich media and graphics enabling people to view websites just as they do on a PC.
• BOLT is now available for free to anyone as part of its public beta test.  Visit http://boltbrowser.com.

Read the full press release after the jump.

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By David Needle:

BlackBerry users are the majority of 150,000 downloads of the speedy alternative browser in since its beta release earlier this year.

A few years ago, the idea of downloading a third-party browser to a mobile device was something only mostly tech savvy users would even consider. Nowadays, particularly with the popularity of Apple’s App Store for the iPhone, customizing your mobile device is far more common.

Bolt is a great example of this brave new software world. Bolt is a generic mobile browser that runs on a variety of mobile devices, but Bitstream, its developer, tweaked it a bit for BlackBerry users making use of specific key functions, like T for top and B for going to the bottom of the screen.

The growing popularity of third-party applications prompted RIM itself to develop an online storefront for applications that it’s slated to rollout this month, but Bitstream isn’t waiting. It released a private beta of Bolt for BlackBerry and other mobile devices in January and opened it up to a more public beta last month.

In that time, the company said its Bolt browser has been downloaded over 150,000 times. “The response has been completely overwhelming. It shows we’re meeting a real unmet need,” Bitstream CEO Anna Chagnon told InternetNews.com.

Read more @ InternetNews.com

BOLT has been in closed beta for a while, but today you can download the public beta version of the BOLT mobile browser for free!

Some highlights from the press release:

• As the world’s wireless and mobile industries assemble at Mobile World Congress, Bitstream Inc. (Nasdaq: BITS) announced today the public beta of its acclaimed BOLT(TM) mobile browser.
• One month ago Bitstream began offering BOLT in a private beta that included more than 30,000 users around the world. From the data collected and comments received over the past month Bitstream made improvements to the user experience and further optimized BOLT by adding device-specific features and making pages load even faster.
• BOLT features unrivaled speed – routinely 25 percent faster, and as much as 50 percent faster, than the next fastest competitor in speed tests.
• The BOLT mobile browser lets people view full websites as they would on a personal computer.
• Built with proprietary compression, navigation and rendering technologies, BOLT enables users to find and read information quickly and easily.
• BOLT beta is available for virtually any handset with Mobile Information Device Profile (MIDP) 2.0 support that can run mobile Java (J2ME) applications, including BlackBerry devices.
• Attendees of Mobile World Congress can meet with Bitstream executives at booth 1E31 in Hall 1. Download the public beta of BOLT for free at http://boltbrowser.com.

Read the full press release after the jump.

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The good folks from Bitstream were nice enough to give me a referral code for BlackBerry Rocks! readers to download the BOLT Browser application.

Visit the download page at BOLTBrowser.com and use the referral code bbrocks when you sign up.

After you download BOLT Browser onto your BlackBerry be sure to send plenty of feedback to pr4beta@boltbrowser.com about your experiences, bugs and any other findings.

Bitstream let me know that their BOLT Browser application for BlackBerry has been updated to version 0.83.

What is BOLT?

BOLT is a fast mobile browser that offers an uncompromised browsing experience on even entry-level mobile phones. It is compatible with virtually any handset with Mobile Information Device Profile (MIDP) 2.0 support. In non-geekspeak, this means “it works on lots of phones, even basic ones.”

Rather than offering a simplified, mini version of the Internet, BOLT provides users with an efficient, feature-rich, way to enjoy full PC-style Web pages and rich media applications on all levels of mobile devices.

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