Opera Targeting Next Browser At TabletsOpera Targeting Next Browser At Tablets

Opera's Mobile and Mini browsers are used by millions of cell phone owners around the world. Will those same users find the same features and benefits appealing on an Opera-made browser for tablets? Opera believes the answer to that question is "Yes!"

"In 2011, tablets are a new must-have. Opera is creating waves with the first public preview of Opera for tablets," said Christen Krogh, Chief Development Officer, Opera Software. "Opera for tablets brings the same trusted Internet experience to tablets and netbook PCs as users have come to love on their mobile phones and desktops."

Opera has said little about how this new browser will operate. Opera Mobile is a full-fledged, device-side browser that renders web sites on the handset. Opera Mini uses compression, and web sites are rendered on Opera's servers before they are delivered to handsets. Which tech will Opera use for the tablet form factor?

My guess is Opera for tablets will be a full-featured, device-side application that bakes in the best that Flash and HTML5 have to offer. If Opera does anything less, it will far short of what technologies are already poised to deliver. Apple and Google have sided with HTML5 at the expense of Flash, while RIM is plowing forward with Adobe's Flash deeply embedded in its forthcoming PlayBook tablet.

Opera has a chance to make and deliver a stand-out browser that can sync between the desktop, tablet, and handset with its existing toolsets. Can it? Such a browser could be a killer business tool, or just as easily a convenience to consumers who browse a lot from different devices.

In this short preview, Opera demonstrates how its browser would work on an Android-based tablet (in this case, a Samsung Galaxy Tab). Take a look.