Personally, we can't remember the last time we were in a McDonald's, so this news comes as, uh, well ... news to us. You see, the partnership between McDonald's and Wayport actually expired back in November of last year. Canadians are also up the same creek without a paddle, as the deal with Fatport also expired. This is not to say you can't still get online at McDonald's, it'll just take a bit more for you to get online with your DS.
Apparently, using the DS Opera Browser or a wi-fi dongle with a laptop will still allow you to get your DS online. But, as one might imagine, these alternatives aren't the best. Unless you go with the second choice, you won't even be able to enjoy a game online. Oh well, if it forces you to get wireless internet in your home, it can't be all that bad of a thing, right?
We showed you the winners -- now we thought we'd show off the best of the rest. You guys really came through on this one ... we wish we had a dozen browsers to pass out! Instead, you'll have to accept an imaginary gold star and a place in this gallery.
While this definitely goes down in the unsourced rumor book, word on the street forums is that Nintendo may be dropping production of the DS Opera Browser. Considering the lack of buzz or marketing for the DS's internet foray, and the long months of delay that passed before it came to the US, we can't say we're surprised, but we're a little sad. We'll just have to look to homebrewsolutions to save the day on this one. In the meantime, we've still got one up for grabs -- but hurry, the contest ends tomorrow!
We thought a friendly reminder about the ongoing contest might be in order -- you have until this Friday to send in your best amusingly captioned DS images. We're so nice, we're even making a few ourselves to help get you inspired! Check after the break for a much better effort, courtesy of JC. C'mon, you can do better than this ... so get to work and pick up that free browser, because free stuff is good.
If you're not too confident with your LOLDS photoshopping skills, there's always another option that you might want to consider -- actually buying the Nintendo DS Lite Browser. Spending money is for chumps, we agree, but with Amazon's day-long sale, you can feel significantly less chumpy about parting with your cash.
Usually selling for $29.99, the web browsing application has been discounted down to $21.99 at the online retailer. Throw another $3 item on your order, and you'll also be eligible for Amazon's Free Super Saver Shipping. You'll be loading up random images of anthropomorphised pets in no time!
The homebrew browser OKiwi is a step closer to competing with the official DS browser and other homebrew offerings -- it can now go online! Which is a pretty important feature for a browser, no? And there's more good news to boot: creator Pedro J. Estébanez promises that now, updates should be more frequent. Considering the number of requests in the comments on this latest release, he's got his work cut out for him, but it looks like we're not the only ones excited by this project. Next up, we'll guess, is text box functionality, since search engines are a pretty big part of navigating the internet.
If you're not quite comfortable with your ability to write the letter "F," then this is the video for you! Alternately, it could be seen as a quick test of the DS Browser's handwriting recognition. It was hard to tell, since we were completely focused on the Soul Glo commercial from Coming to America playing in the background. Check it out after the jump -- it's so short, you might even want to watch it twice.
With the releases arriving this week, many of you U.S. readers are probably trying to get your surf on with your DS Phat or Lite. Other regions have more titles to choose from this week, so if you fall in that category, what do you plan on playing this weekend? For the rest of you in the U.S., will you be surfing the web, or are you looking to get your puzzlin' on?
At last, the long-awaited DS browser is here, but just remember to be careful when you buy -- there are versions for both the Lite and Phat DS models, and it looks like not all online retailers have separate listings yet. Obviously, Nintendo thinks you should just buy another DS, since that seems to be the hip thing to do these days. So who's planning on celebrating this week with a little browsing?
Dragon Ball Z: Harukanaru Densetsu
Nintendo DS Browser
Planet Puzzle League
For this week's releases in the rest of the world, check out the lists behind the break.
Posted May 7th 2007 11:35AM by JC Fletcher
Filed under: News
Downtrodden DS Phat owners: here comes more ammo for insults from the elitist Lite crowd. It seems that Nintendo doesn't think there are enough of you out there who refused to "upgrade" to redundant systems, and has chosen not to release the Phat-compatible version of the Opera browser (which includes a GBA-cartridge-size memory pack and would thus bulge from a DS Lite) in stores.
Not to worry, however-- much like Electroplankton, you'll still be able to buy it from Nintendo's website and from other online retailers. That's fine with us. If we had any interest in talking to people in real life, we'd have less use for a Web browser.
(We tease the DS Lite adopters, but really, if you've got a DS, you're cool with us.)
For those of us in the U.S., the DS browser is finally being released. For those of you in other markets, you've already had several months to check it out. But here's the thing: do you browse on your DS? If you're thinking of getting one when it's released in America, do you plan to use it often? For those who have it or want it ... do you have any other portable means of accessing the internet? We're curious about how many readers are out there browsing on the go.
Posted Mar 14th 2007 10:00AM by JC Fletcher
Filed under: News
Siliconera got a chance to check out the American release of the Operabrowser at SXSW, and they handily took some video of the demonstration, so we can see ... what Japanese and European DS users have been seeing for quite some time. We've been waiting so long for this application. Could it really be on the way?
They also got some pictures of the US boxart, which says that the DS browser puts "The Internet at your fingertips". That's somewhat of a strange choice of slogan; as far as we can tell, the Internet is always at your fingertips, except when you use a stylus-based input method.
Obviously, wireless tube extension technology was only in its infancy here in America when Opera released its own internet browser for the Nintendo DS mid-last year. Tucked away in a laundry list of releases, however, we've noted that Opera has finally decided to port the darn thing over for our enjoyment, coming on June 4th.
Though no pricing has yet been revealed, one has to wonder exactly how many of these they're going to sell. It's nice to be able to browse in a hotspot without the bulk of a laptop, but as our sister site Joystiq notes, it lacks Flash, sound, PDF, and video support. Exactly how badly do you want to check up on DS Fanboy every hour?
It's been a while since we heard anything about the homebrew OKiwi browser, but developer Pedro J. Estébanez announced yesterday that the alpha is "imminent." While this will truly be a test version,Estébanez wants to be able to demonstrate how the various parts of the browser will come together to utilize the DS. It's not available yet, but we'll let you know the moment it's ready. We can all wade in together to see what we can break ... er, we mean test the alpha release.
There are really only two words of import this week: Phoenix Wright. Unless you're in Japan, and then the big word is "Wario." For everyone in browser-free North America, we can also turn a glaring eye on Australia, where the official NDS browser is set to hit shelves this week. The globe is teeming the DS goodness this week, so let's get to the details, with the US up first: