radiant.matrix

According to this article on Geek-news site Slashdot, the well-known Opera web browser is being slated for release in Japan on the Nintendo DS gaming platform.

The browser will reside on a cartridge, and makes novel use of the dual-screen configuration of the DS. This news has been greeted warmly by the DS gaming community, as it allows them to use their WiFi-enabled gaming devices as full-featured web browsers.

The mobile phone and PDA industries have been trying to push the mobile Internet network for a long time, but maybe it will be the gaming industry that finally cracks this potentially lucrative new market…

Mobile phone devices seem like the ideal network connectivity platform: we already have a ubiquitous digital data framework for relaying voice communications in the cellular networks, why not leverage it as an Internet platform? Unfortunately, the small screen size, limited storage (and even more limited expandability), and dearth of any “killer app” have led to the mobile data network being scarcely more than a text-chat and time-wasting platform, despite a few wonderful examples of businesses leveraging the idea to boost communication among workers.

PDA mobile connectivity is rising: PDAs have long been able to connect to networks via plug-in modems and a smaller subset of data-enabled mobile phones, thus leveraging the best of the mobile phone and PDA technology. The growth of affordable Bluetooth technology has caused the PDA networking bubble to expand rapidly, and the increasing availability of WiFi on the portable computing platforms is opening the market for would-be surfers who don’t want mobile phone data plans — they can leverage local hotspots, home networks, and corporate access points.

Unfortunately, PDAs are fairly expensive, and for those who can’t justify the expense in terms of productivity and organization gains are unlikely to buy such a device for its mobile networking capabilities. Not to mention, those that can justify the expense tend to be interested primarily in e-mail and messaging applications.

If the browser on a popular mobile gaming device takes off, though, it opens a potential windfall market. Mobile gamers demanded WiFi as a way to compete with each other online, and system makers responded enthusiastically. Opening the mobile gaming platforms to other Internet tasks has the potential of leveraging a fairly widespread and lucrative customer base into pay-per-application distributed networking — the pipe dream of the mobile networking think-tanks.

Think of it: a device many people will purchase without network capabilities, with the ability to compete wirelessly as well as run exceptionally powerful network applications from a small disc or cartridge. If the Opera browser on the DS is successful, it will prove that while people won’t pay for browsers on their PCs, they will gladly fork out $20 or more to have one in their pocket.