Nintendo Wii Mini hands-on

Nintendo Wii Mini handson

Nintendo’s Wii Mini has been a bit more elusive than we thought, but we’ve at last snagged the entry-level console ahead of its official release and given it a quick shakedown. While it does what it says on the tin — welcome newcomers and second-system shoppers to the Wii universe — we’ve found that there’s a few important details to consider beyond just the absences of internet access and GameCube support. Read on past the break for our quick look.

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Atari Flashback 4: 75 Classic Games, 2 Wireless Controllers, 1 Box of Nostalgia

Another year, another Atari Flashback. But this year’s edition of the old school console has significant improvements from the Atari Flashback 3. Theoretically. More on that later.

atari flashback 4

The Flashback 4 has 75 built-in games, 15 more than the roster of the Flashback 3. But the more significant upgrades are the two wireless controllers included in the box. However, some of the customer reviews on Amazon claim that the wireless controllers are finicky. It seems that you have to keep the controllers pointed directly at the console at all times; even a slight tilt could cause them to be disconnected. You can connect wired Flashback controllers to the console, but the package only comes with wireless controllers. You can use the controllers from previous Flashback consoles or buy spare ones from At Games. Here’s a review from YouTuber classicL337:

You can order the Flashback 4 from Amazon for $82.99(USD), where a kind reviewer has also posted the full list of games from 3D Tic-Tac-Toe to Yar’s Revenge.

[via Technologytell & Boing Boing]

 

Wii U hits UK early

Nintendo’s Wii U has begun showing up for pre-order customers in the UK, a day ahead of the console’s official release on November 30. Retailer Amazon UK notified some buyers of the new motion-gaming system on Wednesday this week that their Wii U had been dispatched for a November 29 delivery, and sure enough the first boxes hit doorsteps from this morning.

The Wii U has already been on sale in the US for some weeks now, with Nintendo struggling to keep either the Basic or Premium bundles in stock. In fact, over 400,000 units have apparently been sold according to first week US figures, with company execs forced to scramble to deliver new stock in order to meet Black Friday demand.

In Europe, the Wii U has been up for preorder since mid-September, but early availability quickly dwindled as customers got in early. That’s despite the console missing some functionality, at least initially, that US and Japanese users will enjoy: the delayed TVii smart TV system won’t hit Europe until sometime in 2013, whereas it’s expected in early December the the US and Japan.

That hasn’t been the only hiccup along the way. A sizable day-one update to deliver features like backward compatibility with Wii titles left early-adopters waiting an hour or more before they could actually play with their new console, and some unlucky owners found the update actually bricked their Wii U altogether.


Wii U hits UK early is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.


Nintendo Wii Mini Official, Priced under $100, Release Date 12/7, Canada Only

Just moments ago, we published a post about the Nintendo Wii Mini being leaked by Best Buy Canada. I guess they only jumped the gun a little bit, since the console has now officially been posted up on Nintendo’s Canadian Website.

wii mini

The Wii Mini will sell for just $99.99 (CAD) (~$100 USD), and has a bold new look that I really like. The console comes in a small red and black box, and includes a matching red Wii Remote Plus and Nunchuk controller, as well as a plain white power brick, sensor bar and a composite video cable. Those who want an HD connection via HDMI or Component video will still have to buy that cable separately.

wii mini 3

It’s fully compatible with the over 1300 current Wii titles and existing accessories as well. Other than its (as yet unspecified) smaller size and cooler industrial design, it does away with one other aspect of the original – the Wii Mini has no internet connectivity, nor will it offer backwards compatibility with the Gamecube. That will certainly keep cost down, but will also reduce the potential revenues from online game purchases and DLC. I’m not sure how I feel about this move on Nintendo’s part.

But with the console going on sale on December 7th exclusively in Canada, it’s perfect timing for Nintendo to flood the market with a low-cost gaming system and get people excited about the Wii again – especially with the Wii U being priced at $300 to $350 – and already in short supply.

With its Canada-only release, I wouldn’t be surprised if you start seeing tons of these show up on eBay so those outside of the Great White North can enjoy a cheap Wii.


Nintendo makes Wii Mini official: currently exclusive to Canada, launches December 7th for $100

Nintendo makes Wii Mini official exclusive to Canada, launches December 7th for $100

That was quick. Scarcely two hours after Best Buy spoiled the party, Nintendo is launching the Wii Mini. The crimson console is billed as a Canada-exclusive for now — we’re reaching out to confirm if and when it might go elsewhere — and is clearly meant to catch those families that find the Wii U (or even a regular Wii) too pricey. To get there, though, they’ll have to make some big sacrifices. The Wii Mini cuts out both GameCube compatibility (seen in some regular Wii variants) and, more importantly, internet access; unfortunately, this won’t be your budget Netflix box. Still, when gamers in the Great White North can pick one up on December 7th for $100, it might be the ideal fit for that TV in the basement or the occasional party.

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Source: Nintendo

Nintendo TVii will launch with the Wii U in Japan on December 8th, IR remote costs $1

Nintendo’s Wii U has yet to launch in Japan, but over there it’s been revealed that the innovative Nintendo TVii app will be available when the console launches December 8th. Interestingly, the IR remote functionality that we’ve already seen packed in will cost 100 yen ($1.21) from Nintendo’s eShop. The TV guide data will be pulled from Rovi’s G-Guide service, ready to pull up even when you’re not using the console, or in the middle of a TV show or video game. We still don’t have an exact release date for the i.TV-based feature in North America (it’s due in “select” European regions next year) but at least gamers can enjoy their Netflix, Hulu, Amazon and YouTube access until then.

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Via: AV Watch

Source: IPG.jp, Nintendo Japan (1), (2)

Nintendo reportedly planning Wii Mini console

All eyes may be on the Wii U at the moment, but that doesn’t necessarily mean Nintendo is ready to abandon the Wii. A new rumor from Nintendo World Report claims that the big N is planning to launch a new redesign of the original Wii, this time going a bit smaller scale. Yes, we’re talking about a Wii Mini – it seems that everyone is going for a smaller form factor these days, so why not Nintendo?


Nintendo World Report apparently received this information from an employee of a major retailer, but sadly, doesn’t spill the beans as to which retailer we’re talking about. According to this retailer’s internal release information, the Wii Mini is scheduled to launch on December 7, 2012, which is right around the corner. It’ll come packed with a sensor bar, nunchuk, and Wii Remote Plus, which is standard fare for normal Wii consoles.

Unfortunately, we’re don’t have any word on the price or size of this new Wii. It’s hard to imagine that it’ll be much smaller than the current Wii, considering that console is already significantly smaller than the Xbox 360 and PS3. New Wiis tend to be priced around $130, so we can’t see Nintendo going much higher than that in terms of pricing – if it does, we probably won’t see the price go over $200.

Now we play the waiting game. If Nintendo is really planning a Wii Mini and it’s actually scheduled to launch on December 7, we should b3 getting official word shortly. Such a redesign isn’t necessarily out of the question considering it would be a chance for Nintendo to capitalize on the holiday sales rush, but it probably wouldn’t be a bad idea to take these rumors with a grain of salt anyway. Stay tuned.


Nintendo reportedly planning Wii Mini console is written by Eric Abent & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.


Hulu Plus hits Wii U

Hulu Plus has launched for the Wii U, bringing another streaming media option to the new Nintendo console. The new update – joining Netflix, which was released on launch day – uses the Wii U’s GamePad for a second-screen experience, putting secondary content such as actor biographies, series guides, and other details onto the smaller display, while allowing you to continue watching the main action on your TV.

There’s also the functionality to stream Hulu Plus content directly to the GamePad, meaning that even if you’re roaming around the house, you should still be able to watch. A button in the lower right corner of the screen flips playback between the GamePad and the TV.

Hulu has also taken the opportunity of Wii U functionality to launch its new Hulu Kids section, with over 43 shows – including some from Nickelodeon – with no commercials. Adults get content from ABD, Comedy Central, NBC, and other networks.

There’s a free week’s trial for Hulu Plus on Wii U, and after that it’s priced at $7.99 “with limited advertising.” Unfortunately there’s no way to access the free, more ad-heavy basic Hulu service on the Wii U.

WiiU_Blog_Image2_FINAL
WiiU_Blog_Image1_FINAL
WiiU_Blog_Image2_FINAL


Hulu Plus hits Wii U is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.


Nintendo Wii U review

Nintendo Wii U review

Nintendo‘s new console is an anomaly in the game console ecosystem, but not for Nintendo. The company that — in just the last decade — popularized stylus-powered gaming, microphone-powered gaming and motion-based gaming, is once again pushing game control inputs forward. And just like its previous consoles, lessons learned from past hardware build the foundation of its latest effort: the Wii U and its bizarre-looking, but conventionally named, “GamePad.”

The Wii U console itself, for instance, looks almost exactly like the original Wii. It’s longer (10.6 inches vs. 8.5 inches for the Wii), a bit rounder on the edges, and there’s an HDMI port out back, but overall it’s quite similar to its squatter predecessor. It’s enough that you’d get the two confused if they were sitting in the same entertainment center. Naturally, the beefed-up internals and Wii backwards compatibility mean you’ll likely be replacing the ol’ virtual tennis machine should you choose to pick one up.

Of course, the GamePad is the real star of the show here, bolstered by Nintendo’s ambitious “TVii” experiment. Everyone’s favorite Italian plumber looks super in HD, no doubt, but how software employs the multifaceted touchscreen tablet / traditional game controller hybrid is what really matters. So, how does the Wii U fare? Find out below.

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New Wii U stock on the way with US priority says Nintendo exec

Nintendo’s marketing vice president has insisted that fresh Wii U supplies are incoming to alleviate the new console bottleneck, promising “a great quantity” though warning that shortages may still be on the cards. “Demand has been phenomenal” Scott Moffitt told Forbes, though declined to give any specific sales figures, only highlighting the sell-out presales and insisting that there will be more Wii U units than there were Wii consoles at the older model’s launch.

“We want consumers to know upon launch they can go into their stores, and there will be new quantities available there to go in and buy” Moffitt said of Nintendo’s strategy with the US launch of the Wii U. “There may be lines, and we do anticipate tremendous demand. We’ll do our best to keep up with it, but there should be a great quantity available at launch. We know that for this launch week, we will have more available than we did during the Wii launch.”

However, the prospect for holiday sales may well be mixed, especially with Black Friday approaching at the end of this week. Moffitt is ambitious about Nintendo’s ability to meet demand in the run up to the holidays. “We’ll have more replenishment during the holiday season to replenish those stocks and refill those store shelves as quickly as we can” he said. “We can’t guarantee there won’t be shortages, but we’ll do our best to keep up with it.”

It’s not solely availability that is causing some gamers headaches, however; a launch-day update for the Wii U has seen consoles out of action for several hours as they gained features like backward compatibility with the Wii, but some owners found that their Wii U was bricked in the process. With supplies so tight, getting a replacement for a broken Wii U is also a challenge. GameStop is entirely sold out of Wii U, and Walmart, Best Buy, and Target all have limited stock; there are some mutterings that they might be holding select units back for Black Friday sales, however.

Moffitt also suggests that the US will get stock priority over other locations, such as Europe and Asia, where the Wii U is launching at a slightly later date. “Since the US is launching first, you can expect there probably would be more available in the US than in other territories” he admitted. “We’re going to manufacture as many as we can to keep up with demand, and hopefully we can do that this time.”


New Wii U stock on the way with US priority says Nintendo exec is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.