Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #5853 in Computer & Video Games
• Brand: Nintendo
• Released on: 2006-10-05
• Platform: Nintendo DS

Amazon.co.uk Review:
In a nutshell:
The DS finally gets its very own Web browser, as Nintendo firmly embraces the Internet age and finds some clever new uses for the touch screen and stylus.

The lowdown:
The DS Browser comes on both its own DS cartridge and a memory pack that fits into the GBA slot of your DS (there are two version of the Browser, with memory packs to fit either the original DS or the DS Lite). The obvious benefit of surfing the Web on a DS is the large screen area afforded by two screens and the stylus – which also makes typing in Web addresses a lot easier. The problems though are a low screen resolution and the fact that the browser doesn’t support Flash files, movie files, sound files, PDFs or anything else that needs a plug-in to work. As long as you recognise the limitations though, this is still a cheap and easy way to access the Internet when on the move.

Most exciting moment:
The big problem with accessing the Web outside of PC monitor is that it doesn’t all fit on screen at once. The DS overcomes this problem in perhaps the most elegant manner yet, with an option to put an overview of the whole page on the top screen while letting you scroll around on a zoomed in version on the touch screen.

Since you ask:
The DS Browser is based on a PC application called Opera, developed by Opera Software. The same company is also creating a version of the browser for use with the Wii console, which will be free for the first six months of the console’s life.

The bottom line:
Surf the Web on the move, but don’t expect an entirely smooth ride. -HARRISON DENT

Manufacturer's Description
Opera Software will deliver the World Wide Web to Nintendo DS users via the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. In Opera's agreement with Nintendo, Nintendo DS users will now be able to surf the full Internet from their systems using the Opera browser. The Opera browser for Nintendo DS will be sold as a separate DS card. Users simply insert the card into the Wi- Fi enabled Nintendo DS, connect to a network, and begin browsing on two screens

The Opera browser for Nintendo DS is based on the same core as the Opera desktop browser, delivering superior speed and rendering of web pages on the Nintendo DS. Using the DS card, users can connect the internet with the WiFi-enabled Nintendo DS via a HotSpot or wireless router, and begin browsing absolutely free.

With an on-screen keypad and stylus, users can easily navigate the Web from their Nintendo DS with PDA-like functionality. The two screens are used for multifunction purposes -- both can show one web page together, or one can show a zoomed-in view of the page, and when typing, the bottom screen shows the text being entered while the top shows the webpage you are on.

Customer Reviews

Great browser, But not without problems.
First of all im letting you know that this review is all written with the DS Opera Browser!

Its all easy to use and i didnt need the instruction booklet at all. Viewing websites has never bee looked so good before on a mobile device.
The touch screen makes it a breeze t type in reviews responses adresses and much more.
When i first got it i thought i'd be sad with it but now after 1 week using it i can tell you that i'm gladly with it.
people my say why a DS browser when you got a pc? but pleace think aboutthe people who are sharing the pc with others or travels or even hen you use the pc as tv its hard to surf so the DS browser is all good afterall.

Als i see people talking about horrible loading times, Afcourse the DS isnt a pentium 4 when it comes about loading stuff but i wouldnt say its horrible. I got Amazon started into 1 minute. Poeple must also know that if the website uses really alot of pictures (for its design, screenshots etc. etc.) it will be harder for the ds to load!

The problems are that its a bit bumpy ith moving the camera on loading a newer part outside the screen.
it also comes with write function (This ls written with the handwright function) see you cant see it but its easy as that.

The other problem is that the pictures are to bright (well thats good you might think)
but its too high in resolution you actually can see graphical errors on a website design
it also mkes high res JPEG blurry.

I daily check my hotmail with it and use msn with the famous Ebuddy mobile chat messenger (to use msn on mobiles)

i clearly give it a 4 stars becouse of its easy nd friendly use and afterall no connection problems.

(i wrote this review pure and easy n the DS browser and it took 17 minutes)
Greets a satisfying costumor from Nintendo!

Alright-ish
The browser is a tiny bit of a disappointment, but not for the reasons you'd expect. A friend of mine told me the browser was somewhere in between browsing from your computer, and browsing on a mobile phone, and it's exactly that.

The first disappointment was that it needed *both* the GBA slot, as well as the normal DS game slot. The speed is alright for such a device as the DS, but it definitely lacks in features: no javascript, no Flash. There's also the ever-present "Nintendo/Opera" logos on the top screen when loading a page, showing you tips, but mostly huge logos. Switching view modes is also quite slow.

All in all, it's an alright browser to have when slouching on the sofa, checking the weather, reading the football news (kudos to the BBC for the low-graphics website that looks great in this browser), or the TV schedule. Don't expect your Web 2.0 apps to rock at all though.

Its Ok, I guess!
I guess that it is ok but then its not that great as you cant really do much as you only have a small screen but other that that it is good fun!