Web browsing and video playback on mobile devices is becoming a huge hot topic this year. It makes sense, then, that the Nintendo DS may soon join that crowd of early super-mobile functionality with browsing and HDTV television support on the handheld.
"Taking another step in its strategy to develop features that will appeal to more than just hardcore game fans, the Japanese company said on Wednesday it plans to begin selling a Web browser in June and launch a card with a digital television receiver by the end of the year."
For around $32, an addon card for the DS will turn it into a web browser using the handhelds native wireless functions, and further on another card is planned to add the HDTV functionality. The idea of having to swap out cards to change the function of a system seems a bit outdated, but the small form factor of the cards and the dual screens of the DS may make it worth the while, especially with the tinier version of the DS being released early this year. The price of the TV card isn't available, but both will be finished and in most DS markets this year.