The new Nintendo Wii seems to have got som press lately, and the fact that Opera is going to be included also.What – if anything – does this mean to the popularity and usage of Opera compared to other browsers? At the moment, Opera seems to be at the 1% mark globally, but will we see a rise in Opera users now, with Opera on Nintendo DS and Nintendo Wii?
It depends. Some don’t see the use of a browser on a game console, and don’t think it will be used. Others love the idea, and can’t wait to use it. On the Nintendo DS they could also easily use the browser anywhere where they can connect to internet – which means many places. But basing predictions on general usage on what youself like or have use for is rarely a success. I guess Nintendo have thought long and hard though, and not just spent lots of money to include Opera just for fun – they’ve got to think there’s a market for it.
I don’t know how many game consoles Nintende expect to sell, but it will be several millions. Several millions potentional Opera users, too. I doubt everyone will use the Wii or DS to use the web, but still, there should be a lot. But – does the deal between Nintendo and Opera have further implications? Sure!
One thing is, Opera will be known to more people. Already on Nintendo forums I see people saying they’ve never heard of Opera until the news about this deal. Some of them check it out, and discover that they can get it for their PC/Mac/other too. Some are bound to try it, and start using it.
Another thing is, that if/when all these Opera users show up in the web logs for different sites, it will become obvious that you shouldn’t design for one or two browsers – as too many still do – but develop for standards, and then make adjustments for the browsers that need it because of bugs or lack of implementation. This would benefit everyone, not just Opera users.
So – it’ll be interesting to see, how much Opera for Wii and DS will be used, and how this will effect web sites. At least, I’m curious. 😉