We mentioned last month that the folks at Skyfire were working on a big update that would bring a new set of features as well as a new pricing model, and today is the day it becomes available. There was some talk about that pricing model, so let's get that cleared up right away. All the features you currently use in Skyfire will remain free. The pricing revolves around what they're calling CAAS (Compression As A Service). It uses Google's new Android in-app purchasing to pay for "video cloud acceleration". Pay a one time fee of $2.99 and Skyfire renders and compresses video content on their servers, which offers up a more mobile optimized experience and saves both data usage and battery life. Now before you start grumbling, Skyfire also says the three million of you who currently use Skyfire are grandfathered in and there will be no charge. In addition, users who download Skyfire 4.0 through the VCast apps section of the Market n your Verizon phones will also get the service free. Now we can all grumble a little bit at content deals, but not too much. $2.99 isn't a bad price at all if you need to watch your data usage.
Along with the improved cloud acceleration, some other changes come along, notably Groupon, Twitter and Google Reader support. There's a few changes in the SkyBar as well -- check them out, along with some screencaps and the press release, after the break.
Skyfire 4.0 released with new features, paid and free posted originally by Android Central
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