14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft is taking to the next level the way that iPhone users can handle giga-pixel images on their devices. In this regard, at the end of the past week, the Redmond company produced a mobile version of Seadragon, aimed exclusively at Apple's iPhone. Made available for download through the iTunes App Store, Seadragon Mobile brings Deep Zoom capabilities to the iPhone along with an entirely new perspective over a single giga-pixel image or a collection of digital photographies.
“The aim of Seadragon is nothing less than to change the way we use screens, from wall-sized displays all the way down to cell phones, so that graphics and photos are smoothly browsed, regardless of the amount of data or the bandwidth of the network,” reads an excerpt of the technology's description.
You can judge, at least via the video embedded at the bottom of this article, in case you don't have an Apple phone, if Seadragon Mobile manages to indeed change the way the iPhone screen is used. However, one thing is perfectly clear. Seadragon is right at home on the iPhone, just as it is on Microsoft Surface, and the natural user interaction model of both devices is a perfect fit for the technology.
“Want to see giga-pixel images on your iPhone? Now you can – with Seadragon Mobile. Seadragon Mobile brings the same smooth image browsing you get on the PC to the mobile platform. Get super-close in on a map or photo, with just a few pinches or taps of your finger. Browse an entire collection of photos from a single screen. You can browse Deep Zoom Images that you can create from your own pictures or your Photosynth collection (or anybody else's),” a member of the Live labs team revealed.
Microsoft is offering the Seadragon Deep Zoom functionality with the Deep Zoom composer for Silverlight, but also with Seadragon AJAX, on top of what is available for its Adobe Flash killer.