Opera Software said yesterday that the Nintendo DS Browser powered by Opera is now available in Europe for the Nintendo DS and Nintendo DS Lite.

The browser is available on a Nintendo DS game cartridge for an estimated retail price of €39.99. It uses both screens for surfing and the touch capabilities of the gaming device for navigation.

European users can access all websites via Wi-Fi at home, or at one of Nintendo's free Wi-Fi Connection Hotspots or public access hotspots.

Opera offers two rendering modes for surfing on the Nintendo DS. For faster surfing a fit-to-width modem displays the entire contents of the page in a single column spanning the two screens on the Nintendo DS.

DS mode, meanwhile, displays an overview of the web page on the lower screen and a coloured thumbnail which can be moved around an area of the page and shown in zoom on the upper screen.

Laurent Fischer, marketing director for Nintendo Europe, said: "Since Nintendo launched its free Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection Service in November 2005, over two million people around the world have linked together to play Nintendo DS games.

"The next logical step was to enable people to browse the internet from their Nintendo DS and Nintendo DS Lite."

The move leaves the US as the only country without an official DS Browser.