Opera: Wii's World Wide Web solution

by James Ransom-Wiley { May 24th 2006 at 2:25PM }

IGN recently chatted with Opera for Devices' executive vp Scott Hedrick about the company's commitment to develop a web browser for Wii. When asked about the lack of keyboard support, Hedrick had this to say:

"Opera plans to use [the Wiimote] to its full advantage and it will provide an intuitive way to surf the Web. Imagine the possibilities in terms of surfing with a motion sensitive remote control. I cannot specifically comment on the lack of keyboard, but many devices running Opera don't have keyboards ... and feature on-screen keyboards to solve this problem."

Hedrick also confirmed that the browser will "not be sold as a separate item," but declined to elaborate further.

See also: Opera on the DS.

Tags: Opera, Opera for Devices, Opera Software, OperaForDevices, OperaSoftware, web browser, WebBrowser

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Gonzo @ May 24th 2006 2:32PM

Maybe they'll give us a Wiiboard to type stuff in. Maybe it'll be motion sensitive too.

Tush @ May 24th 2006 2:46PM

The interview was pretty boring... The Opera rep just said the same thing over and over again.

All they had to do was have this quote:

"We are providing Nintendo with a custom version of the Opera browser, incorporating the Wii remote control into this unique browsing experience. Much like we have done for the Nintendo DS, we are creating a browsing experience especially suited for the Wii."

dvddesign @ May 24th 2006 2:46PM

I would so applaud nintendo if they didn't use a traditional keyboard styled input and came up with something different. If anyone's ever used Alias Wavefront's Sketchbook Pro, that's the way you use a pen tool to get things done.

And having Opera built into the Wii is exactly why I want a red Wii.

bv @ May 24th 2006 2:49PM

Could have sworn it said Oprah. I was waiting for some pics of her wii-jabbing doctor phil in the gut...damn.

Steve @ May 24th 2006 2:50PM

i think it would be pretty reasonable to bet on being able to plug just about any USB keyboard into the Wii's two USB ports, much like you can on the Xbox360.

Cradrock @ May 24th 2006 2:50PM

Opera makes total sense for both DS and Wii. I'm surprised they don't talk about the built in mouse gestures for it. Seems like a perfect fit for both the DS and Wii.

see:

http://www.opera.com/features/mouse/

Snakey J @ May 24th 2006 2:51PM

I just noticed that Nintendo's site finally works with the Opera browser. Last time I tried Nintendo.com with Opera I got a browser compatibility message.

Babu @ May 24th 2006 2:56PM

is it just me or is opera teh crap. I do web design and it just seems like Opera has NO freaking javascript support. SHAME ON OPERA!

But great css support nonetheless :)

Mike Ray @ May 24th 2006 2:58PM

"I just noticed that Nintendo's site finally works with the Opera browser. Last time I tried Nintendo.com with Opera I got a browser compatibility message."

veery interesting

the_game_master @ May 24th 2006 3:04PM

Does the Wii remote controller also have a mic as well as a built-in speaker? I was thinking how neat would it be if the Wii Opera service be voice-command operated. You can just speak into the Wii remote controller the site destination that you want to vsit. Having that as a feature alone puts Wii over the edge.

Belcho @ May 24th 2006 3:12PM

Internet browsing without a keyboard sucks. Doesn't the Wii support bluetooth for the Wiimote? So maybe we could just use a bluetooth keyboard. Here's hoping so.

32_Footsteps @ May 24th 2006 3:16PM

Nintendo modified Nintendo.com to work with Opera for E3, because they wanted to show off the English version of the Opera DS browser by taking it to Nintendo.com. Of course, as a long-time Opera user, I heckled Nintendo for not making their site work with Opera earlier (like when the deal was first announced).

Though, to be fair, Nintendo.co.jp worked with Opera quite well before the deal was announced.

For Opera Wii... I could see it working similar to Opera DS, except using the Wiimote instead of the stylus to type. Given that I was able to get used to using the DS version quite rapidly, I could see it working just fine.

Though if it turns out they get it to work with a USB keyboard, I'm already there.

Finally, goofy question - when's Nintendo going to get off their tails and make custom Nintendo skins for any version of the Opera browser? My websurfing needs more Link. Or Ness.

Doug the Aquacell Guy @ May 24th 2006 3:22PM

Whoo-hoo, bundle.
I want a Samus skin. Zero...Suit...Samus.

Doesn't the Wii have USBii ports? I have a wireless keyboard I've been using with my 360. They'll be close enough to each other where the switch will be easy.

DG @ May 24th 2006 3:24PM

I think websurfing without a keyboard is not only easy, but preferred. While I do email and post on sites like this, most of my web browsing is done in the point and click mold -- a lot of reading, mostly off of bookmarks and links.

Of course, lowered resolution makes web browing on the TV a chore to begin with, so perhaps they should skip the whole thing. All the same, terrific for Opera -- a fine browser with minimal market impact.

the_game_master @ May 24th 2006 3:34PM

#13 what are you some IE or Mozilla fan? Why you want Opera to have a small impact? I think this is a good business move on Opera's part. They will be getting the name recognition needed.

mikk @ May 24th 2006 4:22PM

A Wii-ji board!

DG @ May 24th 2006 4:35PM

To 15 -- Yeah. That's what I said. This is good for Opera because it is a good browser with little pub.

epobirs @ May 24th 2006 4:35PM

I guess enough time has passed that people have forgotten how utterly awful it is to use NTSC/PAL for a web browser display. It isn't just the low resolution. It's the interlacing that results in fuzzy text that is very hard to read compared to $10 VGA monitor from a thrift store junk pile.

I best thing I can say about the time I put in with WebTV use was that I was being paid. This was a company that did various kinds of testing. Their biggest source of work was in printer drivers. This meant setting up a machine with an OS image and the required apps, then performing a bunch of print runs complex documents to see if they came out correctly. Then you installed the next OS on the list and did it again with another set of apps. It was kind of tedious but the money was goood and it gave me my introduction to drive imaging back when Ghost was still by a little independent company.

One job that came up was testing the WebTV drivers for a bunch HP and Canon inkjets. This meant using the WebTV a lot to find challenging pages to print. The novelty wore off pretty quickly and the work began to seem like, well, work. What worked fine for displaying sitcoms and video games was incredibly annoying for static pages of text and images that were created with a minimum non-interlaced 800x600 display in mind.

When I brought home the dreamcst on 9-9-99 the trauma had faded a bit, so I spent so time using its bundled web browser. Some interesting features but still horrible. If I wanted to stop a game and look up a hint or cheat it made far more sense to just go to where my PC was rather than suffer through a wretched display.

I can see why Nintendo is using Opera to implement the display and some transactional elements of their online services but that will use custom pages designed to be readable on NTSC. Sites that aren't part of the Wii services will be just as wretched as they ever were under WebTV. Worse, since the expectations for the average PC monitor are a good deal higher these days and a lot of sites really expect a minimum of 1024x768.

Some sites designed to support handheld devices will be far more usable but I think the chances of me using a Wii to access any Web content that isn't part of its online infrastructure is extremely small.