We reported early December that the Nintendo Wii browser would be available on December 23rd. This was a very close hit. Nintendo announced to make a beta version of the Wii Browser available on December 22nd.

The Wii browser is from Opera Software. Nintendo 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.
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.
Nintendo says that 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. I find this rather strange to charge for what is actually just a "feature". Maybe Nintendo will still change its mind on this one. Yesterday for the first time I tested the browser on the PS3 that finally arrived at the I4U offices. This browser is very slow and considering that a CELL chip is somewhere inside the glossy black sculpture made me actually weep a bit.
I hope the Wii browser is faster and that Sony is improving the PS3 browser soon.
More about the Nintendo Wii browser in this announcement on the Nintendo USA site. Check also the press-release on the Opera site.

Published by Nikki Inderlied.