Opera on the Nintendo DS

dxprog writes "Opera has announced that they and Nintendo are going in together to create a web browser for the DS. The browser, based on Opera's core engine, will take advantage of the system's two screens and the touchscreen to provide on-the-go portable internet access. From the article: 'Within just five seconds of turning on the system, the Nintendo DS is already fully operational. This makes it the ideal device to enable people to swiftly obtain the latest information from the internet, wherever they are.'" Update: 02/15 15:50 GMT by Z : More information about the browser and game announcements available from Gamasutra, and Iwata's aim that they'll hit 10 Million DS units sold is reported on the Next Generation site.

Keyboard

[rlp]

Using a soft keyboard is feasible but fairly slow and tedious (I've got a WiFi enabled PDA with both a soft and a chiclet keyboard). Also a lot of sites don't scale well to a low-res screen. I enjoyed the novelty of WiFi browsing on a PDA, but don't use it that much any more.

It could be handy for quick (read) access to Web mail, sports, weather, etc. Not a Blackberry replacement though. :-)

How easy on the eyes will it be?

[antifoidulus]

Obviously this will not be a replacement for pdas for serious mobile internet users, but I wonder just how readable it will be. I have done a bit of web browsing on the psp, and while my eyes aren't perfect, I considered the psp's screen to be the "bare minimum" one really needs to be able to read web pages. The whole 2 screen thing to me would just seem jutting...I love the DS for games, but I don't see it being a great web browser.
Also, will the Opera cartridge contain a firmware update that will finally allow DS units to use WPA instead of the pitiful WEP? Would seem like a minimum for web browsing to me...

Re:Keyboard

[gurutc]

I use the Opera WAP Browser on my tiny cellphone. I have to say it's a vast improvement over the built-in browser. And it's usable on my cellphone which is hugely more ergonomically and visually challenged than the DS.

Re:This truly shows the versatility of Opera.

[Anonymous Coward]

My guess is that its similar to Opera mini [opera.com], which does all layout in a pre-processing proxy. If the real opera engine is running anywhere its on that proxy, not on the DS.

Re:Keyboard

[ILikeRed]

I really wish Nintendo would come out with a pda that could run their game carts. My Palm is getting a bit old, and I am not sure I trust them long term - and I still really dislike those WinCE devices. Simple, fun, WiFi, and a long battery life - maybe I am dreaming.

Controlling Audio /Video Devices With the DS

[h4ck7h3p14n37]

This is great news! I'm currently working on integrating my Denon AVR-2805 [denon.com] stereo receiver into my home computer network and am interested in using the Nintendo DS as a control device. Being able to use a full-featured browser will really help in this pursuit.

The AVR-2805 supports an RS-232 interface [denon.com] which is currently connected to the serial port on a FreeBSD server in my living room; my audio and video cards are also connected to the receiver. I've copied almost all of my music CDs and am in the process of copying my DVDs to this server. As it stands today, I can output different audio and video sources and can control the receiver itself by using a combination of kermit [columbia.edu] and vlc [videolan.org].

The next step is to add an HTTP based interface so that I can access this setup from anywhere in on the Net. My server has a wireless nic installed, and the DS has wireless support, so I've really wanted to use the DS to control everything. While I could also use my PSP, I'm more interested in the DS since it has a touch-screen interface. I think this will suit the application much better than having to use a keypad.

Give me productivity

[shoptroll]

If they could provide a limited productivity suite (Calendar, Contacts, maybe a lightweight e-mail IMAP client) this could be a good alternative to a Palm, especially for a younger generation who doesn't need to have full synchronization with a pc. Although, I wonder if the PC Lan connection for non-WiFi enabled lans could be jerry-rigged to allow synchronization of a productivity suite with a PC... But I don't think Nintendo has interest in programming apps for a PC.

DS browser could be awsome.

[_Pablo]

With the lower touch sensitive screen showing the scaled page and the top showing the page at 100% it would be quite comfortable to scroll around using the pen. Use the shoulder buttons to swap screens when you want to use forms or click links it could be pretty usable. I guess it's not going to be that powerful however considering the memory limitations (4MB RAM although I guess code and resources can be run inplace from the cart). I just hope I can put the browser on the M3 (with Passkey2) for convenience.

I've got to admit that I am a convert to the DS after intially being sceptical (but simply being unable to resist the allure of Mario Kart DS). Since then the DS has done nothing but impress, from the limited but flexible hardware to some of the most innovative games I have played in a long time (Trauma Center, Pac Pix, Nintendogs etc all make excellent use of the touch screen).

The one thing I'd like to see

[Dark Paladin]

Well, other than "Chrono Trigger" on the GBA? A Palm card. The Nintendo DS uses the same kind of chips found in Palm Pilots, and it would be interesting to see Palm OS 5 running on the sucker - if for no other reason than I could have my ebooks on it.

DS PDA

[metamatic]

Summitsoft were working on a PDA cartridge for the DS called Organizer Plus. If they had that for sale and it supported iSync, I'd likely ditch my Palm.

However, I haven't seen anything more than press coverage about the alleged product, so I'm not sure if it actually exists any more. Their web site doesn't even mention it.

There are also rumors that Nintendo is going to license Palm applications and sell them as V-Pocket, and Miyamoto mentioned in an interview that he sees PDA software as a way to expand the system's appeal. No official product announcements yet, though.

So, I'm sticking with my Palm until there's actual shipping product, or Sharp USA decides to start shipping the SL-C series, or someone else ships a decent Linux PDA, or Nokia fixes the handwriting recognition and speed of the 770.

Nintendo = Opera

[Spug]

Nintendo and Opera have many similarities. They're both underdogs in respective markets, and they're both innovators in their markets and create features that the competitors copy. And probably other similarities as well, I dunno.

Re:Pretty easy on the eyes.

[Tecfreak7]

GMail sniffs. When I set Opera 9 TP2 (on linux) to mask as mozilla on mail.google.com, the IM feature worked perfectly.