Wii Opera browser FREE worldwide until June 2007

by Blake Snow { Sep 26th 2006 at 7:35PM }

Not many gamers were thrilled with the idea of having to pay for a Wii Opera browser that was previously announced as free, myself included. But it's not like we play Nintendo consoles for the games... I kid, I kid; Nintendo gaming and "free" (especially when already declared as such) are always good.

Well Opera unveiled browser details via press release today along with a special Nintendo promotion for early-adopting Wii owners. From the release: "Opera's full Web browser [will be] available for download from the 'Wii Shop Channel.' Nintendo has stated that they will offer Opera free of charge as a temporary promotion for all Wii users until June 2007."

Starting in July of 2007, the Opera Wii browser will then be sold for an undetermined amount of Wii points. The browser supports Flash, AJAX, Wiimote navigation, and fancy shmancy Web 2.0 graphics formally known as Fisher Price web design.

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Raynre @ Sep 26th 2006 7:39PM

*happy dance*

Just a Note @ Sep 26th 2006 7:42PM

Sorry to say this but OLD NEWS!!.

Don't start telling me that it might be news to others because in that case you might as well repost all Wii articles daily.

reguy @ Sep 26th 2006 7:43PM

what is this, a James Ransom-Wiley post?

rudimentalist @ Sep 26th 2006 7:45PM

Yeah but the official press release backs it up now.

Shaun @ Sep 26th 2006 7:45PM

this is official from a press release today, until today the only official statement was japan get it free until June 2007. so yes it is NEW news, even if we all pretty much new it already.

Disco D @ Sep 26th 2006 7:46PM

I don't have the need for a browser in the console. Seems kinda pointless considering that if your even connected to the internet, your bound to have some sort of computer near by anyway. Youtube would be nice to have through it, but that's about it. I'm still waiting for the DS Browser, that has much more use to me.

K @ Sep 26th 2006 7:50PM

To #6,

IMO, the main draw of the browser is the ability to play flash games on a TV screen.

Thryon @ Sep 26th 2006 7:59PM

Am I the only once concerned for potential web based virus bricking your Wii? No matter the OS behind the Wii, there will be potential for virus, unless the browser is only a portal controled by Nintendo and not a real browser.

32_footsteps @ Sep 26th 2006 8:00PM

Well, I guess it depends on how much they charge. Opera is my browser of choice (though part of that is the whole "free" thing it has going). If it's reasonable, I could deal with paying for it.

nick @ Sep 26th 2006 8:05PM

I'm not crazy about the 'free UNTIL....'

Isn't Opera a free browser? Why even charge for it at all? That there's a charge on the browser concerns me when it comes time to upgrade the browser. Are they gonna charge for upgrades?

Meophist @ Sep 26th 2006 8:15PM

The security for the Opera browser is very good, better then even Firefox or Safari. I don't think it will be a major concern.

john @ Sep 26th 2006 8:16PM

No, Opera is not a free browser.

pasta @ Sep 26th 2006 8:32PM

Actually, Opera is a free browser nowadays, they used to charge a fee (or display ads), but this was revoked about a year ago, at the release of Opera 8.50.

Spence @ Sep 26th 2006 8:35PM

Wii Opera Browser Sales:

http://img92.imageshack.us/img92/475/graphmz9.jpg

BYAHHH! @ Sep 26th 2006 8:36PM

1. Will the browser be free until June then those who have it will have to pay for it, or will it be free for those who downloads it before june?

2. The browser virus thing is an issue to be raised even though wii won't be opening executives there are other malicious code that can corrupt things. So does this mean there will be upgrades and will those upgrades be free?

3. If it supports flash will it be able to upgrade to future flash versions such as 10, 11 etc...? Wii is estimated to last maybe until 2011. What limitations will it have?

Damn I wish I could talk to Nintendo about this... 0:-)

dantebk @ Sep 26th 2006 8:38PM

If Super Smash Bros Brawl comes out by June 2007, then I care. If not, then I don't care. Not buying a Wii until SSBB comes out Nintendo, whatever crazy promotions you may offer.

My PC is less than 30 feet from my TV. If I need to go on the internet, I can burn 3 calories and walk into the next room.

Btman @ Sep 26th 2006 9:08PM

With my opera browser I'll download FireFox or IE explorer Mr. Wii. And hopefully they shall make a compatible one for the Wii lol.

Btman @ Sep 26th 2006 9:08PM

Whoever said u wish to talk to nintendo go to their site click contact us... send them general comments or w.e its called... one time i was doing homework on gaming technology and asked them a few questions on the wii... they gave me fast very useful answers!

Balla360 @ Sep 26th 2006 9:09PM

"The security for the Opera browser is very good, better then even Firefox or Safari. I don't think it will be a major concern."

Firefox and Safari's supposed security is a direct function of the fact that few are trying to exploit their security holes.

Regardless, all it will take is one hole to toast your Wii, which is certain to exist if human programmers wrote Opera. Hopefully they'll heavily segregate the OS from the browser.

aceregan @ Sep 26th 2006 9:14PM

This will be useful for me. I would like to browse the internet before work, or just before going to bed, but this is usually before booting or after shutting down my computer. It takes too long to start the damn thing, and it would be useful to have internet instantly accessible on my television.

Also, with the way I imagine channels, say you are stuck in a game or something. You hit the home button, and the game goes into standby, just like a DS, you are at your chanels browsing page. You go over to Opera the web channel, zip to gamefaqs, and look up the game you are having trouble on. See the place, hit the home button and jump back into your game. Now that would be awesome.

Retropants @ Sep 26th 2006 9:17PM

#12 is right to an extent - it's not a *free* browser in the sense that you can do anything you like to it, including editing the source code and re-releasing it with your own changes. (insert long discussion of Free Software politics and the GPL here)

It is free in the sense that it doesn't cost anything.
Well, until June 2007.

Suits me.

Core_12 @ Sep 26th 2006 9:29PM

Wii doesn't have an OS, it has a BIOS. High chance at least the most vital areas of it are quite well write-protected. The worst that might happen is getting your Virtual Console stuff wiped off, though I suspect Wii will not allow apps to interfere with other apps' "saves".

The questions concerning the actual "free-ness" of it are good though... I hope we get it for free, get to keep it for free and get updates for free. If not, they can count me out. I have a PC. Hell, we have 3 PCs and a Mac.

dsub @ Sep 26th 2006 9:35PM

yea, I hate to jump on the "old news" bandwagon, but really, back during the Wii press event, I read countless comments from joystiq readers correcting the fact that you were reporting the browser would cost money. They were all saying it was free until summer, and many other sites were reporting it to. Perhaps you guys just got too caught up in all the Wii posts to catch on to what your readers were saying.

Tobor @ Sep 26th 2006 9:47PM

Youtube. You guys are all missing the killer app here. Youtube videos from the couch. Everytime I have friends over, we end up huddled around my desktop trying to watch a youtube video somebody thinks is hilarious.

Besides my PC is in a different room. This will be insanely useful.

Squeek @ Sep 26th 2006 10:10PM

"15. 1. Will the browser be free until June then those who have it will have to pay for it, or will it be free for those who downloads it before june?

2. The browser virus thing is an issue to be raised even though wii won't be opening executives there are other malicious code that can corrupt things. So does this mean there will be upgrades and will those upgrades be free?

3. If it supports flash will it be able to upgrade to future flash versions such as 10, 11 etc...? Wii is estimated to last maybe until 2011. What limitations will it have?"

The wording of this article leads me to believe that this "promotion" is in place to secure sales until the end of the fiscal year. It says to me "Get one now or you'll have to pay for this feature later."

I think it's an attempt to sway those who might want to wait until a price reduction on the console.

As for the other two, I strongly believe viruses will not be a large issue. Most viruses aim at the mainstream computer users. People who use Windows XP, use the Internet Explorer browser, and know nothing about anti-virus. That's why Firefox is more secure than IE, aside from the obvious security FF provides. That's also why Macs are less vulnerable to these kinds of mishaps. Unless the Wii runs on Windows XP, I don't see this as a big issue.

The last point: I say yes. They just said downloadable content. Meaning patches and game updates aren't out of the equation either. I'm sure Opera will want to upkeep this service as well.

Thryon @ Sep 26th 2006 10:20PM

A few notes about virus creators...they crave attention. More viruses are created for IE and Windows XP as they know this will maximize exposure for their virus. Now if they created a virus for the newly released and super successfull Wii, this will get worldwide exposure. I guarantee that we will see a virus within months of release.

On the other hand, if the browser does support Java or Falsh, there are versions of MAME build for those platforms....I can see the Wii becoming my new arcade box :)

Mark D @ Sep 26th 2006 10:35PM

Although I do have beef(kosher, it's Yom Kippur, even if I'm not Jewish) with the overuse of the Web 2.0 catch phrases, I sense a little web design envy from Mr. Snow. Joystiq sure could take a few hints of web design savvy.

(Or barring that, make a mobile XHTML page already!)

shoop008 @ Sep 27th 2006 12:13AM

For all those worried about viruses. Maybe the Wii will have a dual bios and a small reset button somewhere on the for this type of thing. If you hit the reset button i t copies the backup unchangeable bios and keeps on ticking. Also useful if the Wii was updating itself and the power went out in the middle of an update. There a few mobos that have dual bios.

Dustin Hanson @ Sep 27th 2006 1:04AM

Opera is free for the Desktop PC. Its not free for other devices. Opera is the only quality broswer available for many devices. I've used it for years now and glad Nintendo make such a smart choice for its DS and Wii browsers.

Virus are nay say since you probably can't download anything from the browser, just from the Wii channels which Nintendo will control.

BYAHHH! @ Sep 27th 2006 5:14AM

True you can probably program an emulator like for the NES (better yet PSone) with flash and load the roms off an SD card or something.

Brian Sexton @ Sep 27th 2006 5:53AM

Opera for free on Wii sounds nice, but I wonder why Nintendo and Opera would do such a thing; it is not likely that many Wii systems would otherwise sit on shelves, but I suppose the promotion could generate some consumer good will that outlasts it. It may be a risky move, though; early-adopter give-aways can also disappoint customers when products are in short-supply. I bought the first Xbox 360 Premium set I could find available at retail (I refuse to buy anything from scalpers), but by then, the remote control was no longer included.

Of course, that was not nearly as disappointing as my Xbox 360 being defective or the realization that after I got past the pretty graphics in GRAW and started actually playing the so-called game, I was left with a bug-infested, boring piece of software that gave me less enjoyment than I might have been able to extract from using the money I spent on it for origami.

Anyway, I hope a similar supply problem will not affect Wii and prevent would-be customers from becoming actual customers until the Opera promotion ends. Not that Opera is not worth paying for on the Wii, of course, but I quit my job to focus on school, so as a student, I am especially conscious and appreciative of good deals.

Waccoon @ Sep 27th 2006 6:10AM

*Core_12: Wii doesn't have an OS, it has a BIOS.

How do you know?

*Core_12: High chance at least the most vital areas of it are quite well write-protected.

The only way a virus can get on your system is if there's some kind of scripting system included in the browser that commands the browser itself to access the filesystem, or if there's a 3rd party module installed (such as Java, ActiveX, or a browser plugin). I doubt the browser will be "sophisticated" enough to support such stuff. Maybe Javascript, but not Java or Flash.

PC Opera != Wii Opera. If Opera isn't free anymore, people will just use their PC -- and browse the web without all the cripling limitations.

Kamakaze @ Sep 27th 2006 6:53AM

Opera is often not "free" on devices, such as the cost to download it.

Also the browser should be updatable, so they can fix bugs if needed. It should support flash and stuff like youtube and flash videos are going to be high priority since Nintendos websites use a lot of flash and video content.

Browsing with the Wii remote on a TV will be a lot easier and more fun than a lot of people realise.

martinj88 @ Sep 27th 2006 7:37AM

Well the browser could be good and bad for Nintendo and Wii users.

Good, there are thousands of games available in flash (hopefully the Wii will have a decent amount of RAM), quick access to game guides, quick look at Joystiq for the best gaming news ;).....and probably more uses.

Bad, there are sites that have hundreds of Snes, Genesis and turbo graphics all in flash, which could lead to Nintendo disabling some features in the browser.

Jules @ Sep 27th 2006 8:01AM

I think Nintendo should be fair here: the uk release is several weeks after the USA release so we should have the june cut off date extended to nearer the end of july or something.

mark @ Sep 27th 2006 11:19AM

I really really want to see what the browser looks like, and how it works! Nintendo needs to do a video demonstration on wii.com.

The idea of browsing the internet on a tv with a motion sensitive tv remote control seems very neat...

Cymruan @ Sep 27th 2006 2:10PM

I agree, there may be some risk of playing pirated games emulated in flash on some websites, but how are you gonna play them without a keyboard, I doubt the wii controller or the VC controller will interface in the same way as you wont be able to assign keyboard keys to them, and using an on screen keyboard just wouldnt work. it would be fun watching someone with 2 wii motes trying to press a direction and jump buttons on an on screen keyboard to play though.

Mr. Khan @ Sep 27th 2006 6:31PM

At least its better than the DS Opera

But my question is; how much of my precious 512 MB will Opera and its bookmarks and such take up?

And playing flash games won't be nintendo's big concern for piracy; it will be people modding PC ROMs to run on the VC via their independent media storage

J @ Sep 29th 2006 3:26AM

How long do you figure before the following happens and please give an honest estimate.

VC is hacked and Roms are added:
DVD playback enabled:
Wii Linux:
Wii Devhook (some form or another):
Hard drive support via USB:
Wii Windows XP:
WiiFox (firefox):