If there are any Netflix users left following the price hike fallout — which is still going strong, mind you — you can now use the service on your Nintendo 3DS. While hand-held movie streaming is not necessarily a new thing, there are some integration features on 3DS service that makes it pretty nifty. To experience that aspect, however, you’ll need to have Netflix installed on your Wii, as well.
Of course, Nintendo is quite excited about the launch, because it does a great job of keeping them up with the Joneses in regards to being a viable option in the mobile device industry.
“The new Netflix application looks great, plays great and is a fantastic consumer experience,” said Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime. “It gives Nintendo 3DS owners access to an amazing wealth of movies and TV shows, which they can watch conveniently from thousands of free Wi-Fi access points across the country. Nintendo 3DS truly offers something for everyone.”
Another aspect of interest is the unique monitor size of the Nintendo 3DS, which might present some peculiar results when you queue up a movie. As pointed out by the PCWorld blog:
It’s not clear what resolution or ratio videos will stream at (the 3DS is capable of 800 by 240, but that’s a bizarro 3.3 to 1 ratio).
Whatever the case, such a capability only adds to the appeal of Nintendo’s hand-held device, something that already receives a warm reception, at least from the Amazon crowd. The application has already enjoyed it’s live launch, and is available from the Nintendo 3DS, according to Nintendo’s announcement, anyway.
Over at the 3DS applications section, the Netflix link still has a “coming soon” attached to it:
Perhaps the best aspect of the Netflix 3DS application is, when used in conjunction with a Nintendo Wii account, it will allow you to pause or stop watching on the Wii and then resume watching on the 3DS, picking the movie up where it was stopped. As for the dimensions of the streamed content, currently, 2D movies are only available, but according to Nintendo, 3D movies are coming soon:
The new Netflix application for Nintendo 3DS displays movies and TV episodes in 2D on the system’s upper screen. Users will soon have access to an additional library of select movies that can be viewed in 3D without the need for special glasses.
While the service is indeed free, naturally, interested users must be a member of Netflix’s streaming service subscription. Just watch out for the upcoming price increase.
