Amazon.com’s Kindle Fire is known as a solid reading and media device. But when it comes to email, well, maybe not so much.
Users who’ve struggled with the Kindle Fire’s built-in email functionality in recent months may soon get some relief, thanks in part to the efforts of Seattle startup Xiant. The company, backed by billionaire Paul Allen, is taking the wraps off a new service called Xiant Mobile that’s designed to eliminate some of the common headaches that Kindle Fire customers routinely experience on the tablet.
First and foremost, Xiant Mobile supports Microsoft Exchange — something that the built-in Kindle Fire email client does not offer. It also allows users to search the entire contents of their email inboxes; allows for easy set-up of multiple email accounts and offers better contact management, integrating contacts from Gmail or Microsoft Exchange directly to the Kindle Fire’s contacts app.
“The Kindle Fire is an amazing device packed with great software, but the default email client just isn’t up to snuff,” said Chris Purcell who is helping to develop the service for Paul Allen’s Vulcan. “Xiant Mobile is not an ordinary email client. We developed entirely new features that make dealing with your email interesting again, and more rewarding. We think that a smarter email client is the key to helping you be more productive — and to reclaiming your inbox.”
Of course, services such as Xiant Mobile do face challenges. After all, what happens if the next versions of the Kindle Fire come equipped with that very same functionality?
The new Xiant Mobile app for Kindle Fire sells for $9.99, with a release of the app for Android phones and other Android-based tablets coming in May.
Interestingly, the technology behind Xiant Mobile comes from Kiha Software, a heavily-funded project from Paul Allen’s Vulcan Ventures that is no longer in existence. Xiant is using the original technology from Kiha to form the basis of the new email product, while the Kiha team has moved on to another “stealth project” that is set to be announced this Spring.
