Exalead has just launched a new version of their search engine on www.exalead.com.
I was one of the lucky who was given the opportunity to test the beta version of this release and I am quite impressed. I think they did a great job on the user interface and untill now I’m pretty satisfied with the quality of the search results as well. So, maybe exalead will offer some serious competition for Google.
The improvements basically come down to:
– entirely redesigned user-interface (I personally like the approach to advanced search)
– bigger index (growing to 8 billion pages)
– ability to personalize the homepage
Another feature of exalead that isn’t completely new but what does distinguish them from other search engines like Google and Yahoo is the possibility to choose between three views for the resultpage:
1. text only
2. text and thumbnails (like ask’s binoculars)
3. text, thumbnails and extra info (directory and RSS information)
People who like to use advanced search options should definitively check out Exalead’s advanced features. Proximity search, phonetic search and logical expressions are just a few. I must admit that most users won’t take advantage of these features but it’s very powerful for those who do.
I think Exalead has the potential to become a bigger player in the international search market. Should Google fear them? Time will tell.