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Wii Gets Opera-ized; New Wii Channels

LOC   on 19 December 2006 - 19:15 · 10 comments & 7667 views

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Nintendo's wildly popular Wii(TM) home video game system not only revolutionizes how people play games, but it also entices new people into the world of gaming. On Dec. 22, Nintendo and Opera Software bring the Internet to the living room couch with a free beta version of the Opera Web browser. Wii owners who are connected and have activated the Wii Shop Channel can download a free beta version of the Opera browser to activate the Internet Channel of the Wii Menu and begin surfing the Web.

"This newest Wii Menu channel provides yet another feature to draw non-gamers in," says Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime. "All kinds of people already have discovered that Wii is like nothing they have ever tried before, and our red-hot sales reflect this public enthusiasm."

"Our software brings the power and reach of the Internet to the hottest video game system available," says Scott Hedrick, Executive Vice President, Devices, at Opera Software. "Wii's unique interface adds a new dimension to our browser, making it a useful tool that the whole family will enjoy operating with ease."

The final version of the Opera browser will be available at the end of March 2007, and will be free for all Wii owners to download through the end of June 2007. After June, users who haven't already downloaded the Opera browser can go to the Wii Shop Channel to download it for 500 Wii Points.

The Internet Channel provides an optimal Web browsing experience on people's home television. The Adobe Flash-enabled beta version of the Opera browser puts the Internet right onto owners' television screens and lets them browse with ease, enabling them to check sports scores, plot maps or visit their favorite Web sites. Multiple family members can gather around the television to plan a vacation or make online purchases. The pointing abilities of the Wii Remote(TM) allow users to click on links they want to see or to zoom into any part of the screen through the motion of the controller. In addition, the Wii Remote can be used with an on-screen keyboard to make text entry as easy as point and click.

The Internet Channel joins the four already-live channels: Disc Channel, Photo Channel, Mii(TM) Channel and Wii Shop Channel. The Forecast Channel goes live on Dec. 20 and provides current and future weather information that can be accessed using a text list of cities or by using the Wii Remote to zoom in on a 3-D interactive globe. Weather information is provided by Weathernews. The Internet Channel, Forecast Channel and Wii Shop Channel are available at no charge, though they require Wii owners to have a high-speed Internet connection. For more information about Wii, visit Wii.com.

Link: Wii Homepage

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#1 tehl3x on 19 Dec 2006 - 19:48
Weather channel is slated to be live tomorrow, the 20th, but is live today with a system update.
#2 Morphie on 19 Dec 2006 - 20:21
I grabbed the weather channel today before work. It's pretty fun making the world spin via WiiMote.
#3 Interize on 19 Dec 2006 - 20:23
how good is the flash support?
(2 replies) #4 +Dale on 19 Dec 2006 - 21:05
i downloaded the update today, i have another wii issue, i can not connect to the shop channel as of last night.. so thats not good, i called up Nintendo and they don't know whats wrong, they told me that they will get a techie to call me

but the weather channel is neato!
#4.1 Lexcyn on 19 Dec 2006 - 21:39
I wasn't able to get on the Shopping Channel last night either, but after trying again today it works.
#4.2 +Dale on 20 Dec 2006 - 03:57
Quote - Lexcyn said @ #4.1
I wasn't able to get on the Shopping Channel last night either, but after trying again today it works.


actually, an update.. i need to mail in my wii.. sigh.. i have gone through two wiis in exactly 1 month .
(1 reply) #5 skase on 19 Dec 2006 - 22:58
"on-screen keyboard to make text entry as easy as point and click."

pffft... as easy?
#5.1 nav1 on 20 Dec 2006 - 01:43
Well, it is as easy as pointing and clicking, since it's what you're doing to select each character. But I think I get what you mean, in that's it's not as easy as typing with a keyboard. However, in my experience with the wii, is not bad for typing short terms, such as common url or form input. Plus, I think it's fair to say that most people these days browse the web mostly through bookmarks, so that shouldn't be an issue.

Now, I just need to know two things, what flash version it supports, and if it supports tabs.
(1 reply) #6 +BeLGaRaTh on 20 Dec 2006 - 08:39
SHould be interesting, BTW anyone got the news channel sowing but cannot access it? Mine just says update to use it, but there are no updates
#6.1 rajputwarrior on 21 Dec 2006 - 07:16
it's not realeased yet, coming in january i think

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