Wii-volution round-up

For the past several months I've been following the development of Nintendo's new console Wii (formerly called Revolution). Yesterday at E3 Nintendo released more details about Wii:

• Nintendo didn't reveal pricing, but there's speculation that Wii could sell for under $200. The loaded PS3 will cost as much as $600.
• Opera will be bundled with Wii. It's Web TV all over again.
• The Wii-mote has an internal speaker for some 3D aural feedback.
• How influential is the Wii-mote? Sony tacked on motion-sensing capabilities for the PS3 controller at the last minute.
• Wii Connect 24 allows Wii to be connected to the Internet all the time, even when it's off. I wasn't sure what this meant, but Nintendo President Satoru Iwata said this: "anytime the console is in standby, [gamers playing something like Animal Crossing] may return to find that a friend has visited their village and left a message or a gift." Does this mean most games will have MMOG elements?

Wii is interesting because its goal is to appeal to non-gamers without alienating hardcore gamers. It's also a good innovation story--Nintendo developed a radical new controller and bailed on the hardware one-upmanship game played by Sony and Microsoft. (Notice, too, that Nintendo is much more focused and interface and interaction design than its competitors, and that Wii has an Apple-like aesthetic.)

Of course, Wii will fail to attract the non-gamer market if it's harder to play than the promo videos indicate. But the early demos look great.