Oslo, Norway – Jan. 20, 2004
After having revolutionized how peopleinteract with their data-enabled phones with the introduction ofSmall-Screen Rendering (SSR) technology in 2002, Opera Software todayunveiled Medium-Screen Rendering (MSR). While SSR does a great job ingenerating a user-friendly version of Web pages for today’ssmartphone-sized screens, it is not a perfect solution for larger screens.Until now, devices ranging from PDAs used in “landscape mode” tolow-resolution TV screens have not had a satisfactory way of rendering Webpages. MSR addresses all these mid- to top-tier devices, delicatelysqueezing content to fit the screen, without having to resort tohorizontal scrolling or zooming. Opera’s breakthrough has been met withenthusiasm from the industry, and MSR has already been delivered toseveral vendors. Products that include MSR will be announced in the nearfuture.
Most Web pages are designed with personal computers (PCs) in mind.Typically, the screen width on a PC is assumed to have a resolution of atleast 800 pixels. Smaller devices with smaller resolutions or screen sizestherefore cannot render most Web pages as designed without introducinghorizontal scrolling. Like SSR, MSR readjusts Web pages to fit on otherscreen sizes without introducing horizontal scrolling. MSR identifies theWeb page’s content and adapts these different elements individually to fiton medium-sized screens. Original fonts, colors, design and style are leftvirtually untouched.
“It’s part of Opera’s vision to give users access to their favourite Websites no matter what device they are using. SSR marked the beginning ofhelping the Web from its desktop confinement, and MSR now takes the Webeven further towards full interoperability,” says Jon S.von Tetzchner,CEO, Opera software ASA. “From our experience with SSR we also know thatboth users and the industry want full Web access on their devices. That’sa big part of the reason why you can now find Opera on handsets fromNokia, Motorola, Sony Ericsson, Kyocera, Sharp, Sendo, and BenQ. Gettingaccess to compelling Web content enhances the user experience, drivespick-up of hardware, as well as increases operators’ data revenues peruser.”
MSR Screenshots
Desktop View (800×600 px)
MSR view (300×250 px)
MSR in PDA landscape mode view
Download high resolution images:
Desktop view (1420×1156) | MSR view (1047×873) | MSR in PDA Landscape mode view (3222×1928)