BIOS: Technology Means Business

A free trial version of the Opera browser is available for download on Nintendo's hot, new game console, Wii.

Opera on Wii allows connected Wii users to surf the full Internet, accessing popular sites such as Yahoo!, Google, Nintendo.com and more.

Wii revolutionises the gaming experience with the Wii Remote. The unique Wii Remote has made it possible to surf the Web in a new way with the Opera browser on your TV. Simply point and click to go to a Web page, select a link or input text. Click and move the Wii Remote up, down, left or right to navigate a page.

"Opera on Wii adds a new dimension and functionality to a video game console system. It is a unique Web experience that everyone can use, and the Intelligent Zoom feature allows consumers to read Web content on the TV from the comfort of their couch," says Reggie Fils-Aime, President of Nintendo of America. "Whether surfing the Web or playing a Wii game, users of all kinds will find fun, new experiences with Wii."

"We are thrilled to have the opportunity to deliver our browser to Wii and let the world see what Opera is capable of on a game console," says Jon von Tetzchner, CEO, Opera Software. "Wii users will enjoy navigating the Web with the flick of the Wii Remote while viewing their favorite content with ease from the TV screen. We are proud of our product and are working hard to make the final version of Opera as revolutionary as the Wii itself."

Opera unleashes its new Intelligent Zoom technology for the first time on the Wii. Point the Wii Remote at an object on the page and zoom in on that object with the + button. Once zoomed in, the Wii Remote allows you to pan around the page while remaining in zoom mode.

By pointing the Wii Remote at the TV and pressing the B button, Wii users can simply move the Wii Remote up or down to scroll a page. Pick your favourite page and select the star button from the user interface to add it as a favourite. Once in your favourites you can edit, rename or delete your current selections.

To view the Web page in new way, select single column mode to get your content stacked. This mode is similar to Opera's Small Screen Rendering technology for mobile phones and other small screen devices, and is useful when viewing content from a distance. You can input text with the on-screen keyboard by pointing your Wii Remote to select the letter. Wii has a predictive text feature to auto-complete words and URLs.

Sites such as maps.google.com work on Wii, as Opera offers full support for AJAX-based applications in its browser for Wii. You can also view Flash content on the Web, including popular sites with video content.

The My Opera community has also launched a splash page for users accessing this site from Wii. My Opera for Wii will feature gaming news provided by Gamespot, spotlight My Opera gaming enthusiasts and groups, as well as provide links to forums about gaming and Nintendo products. This page is only accessible from Wii.

Nintendo is currently offering a free trial of Opera for Wii which is now available for download. The release of the final version of the Opera browser for Wii is currently scheduled for late March 2007. Opera for Wii will remain a free download until June 30, 2007. After June 30, Opera will be available for download from the Wii Shop Channel for 500 Wii points. Users who download Opera before June 30, 2007, can continue to use the browser at no cost for the lifetime of the Wii system.

The Opera browser for Wii is based on the same standards compliant core as Opera 9, and includes the Adobe Flash Plug-in. This means that Web sites can be tested using the latest version of the Opera desktop browser. Getting sites to work in Opera 9 will help ensure that it works across a wide range of browsers on many devices. For best results on Wii, validate a Web site using the W3C validator, and check that Flash content is compatible with Flash 7. Download Opera's free developer tools at http://dev.opera.com/tools/ to aid development using Opera.

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