Nintendo Wii Console has Everything You Need to Start Playing Right Here in the Box

You buy yourself that shiny new toy you've wanted for ages, and you bring it home and tear it out the box. You're dying to try it out. There's nothing worse than discovering you needed to buy a few extras before you can actually get going – "Batteries Not Included."

Thankfully this isn't the case with the Nintendo Wii console. Everything you need to start playing is included in the box.

When your Nintendo Wii arrives, it's easy to think you've been short changed looking at the size of the package. But inside this small box, Nintendo has managed to pack in all the essential items to get you going right away.

When you open the box you'll find everything you need to set up and start playing right away (and it's really easy to set up too).

You'll even get a free Wii Sports game included in the box. Wii Sports has 5 sports games – tennis, baseball, golf, boxing and bowling -- that you literally "play" using the remote controllers like sports equipment.

What's in the Box

Here's a quick check list of all of the goodies you’ll find in the box...

• The Nintendo Wii console itself. The console is really small - the size of 3 DVD covers stacked together. It's only available in trendy ice white at the moment and no other colours have been announced just yet. When you set it up, you can stand the console either upright (like a computer tower) or lie it flat on its side (like a DVD player).

• A silver stand for the Wii console. The stand helps keep the Wii console sturdy if you're going to use it in the upright position.




• One Wii remote controller. The Wii remote (known as the Wii mote) is the main controller for most Wii games. It's also used for navigating around the Wii's home menu and around game menus (like a wireless computer mouse). The Wii mote doesn't have any wires and doesn't plug into the Wii console at all. Batteries for the Wii mote controller are also included in the box. You can learn more about how the Wii mote controller works by following this link (opens in a new window).




• One Wii nunchuck controller. The nunchuck is a secondary controller that is used in many of the Wii's games where two hands are needed at the same time to play the game (hey, it's very hard to box with one hand :o)). In these games, you'll hold the Wii mote in one hand and the nunchuck in the other. The nunchuck simply plugs into the Wii mote controller and doesn't need any batteries. You can learn more about how the Wii nunchuck works by following this link (opens in a new window).



• Nintendo Wii AC power supply. This is the Wii console's power cable. The Wii comes with the standard plug for your country, so you don't need any plug adaptors.



• Wii AV cable for connecting the console to your television or VCR.




• Wii sensor bar. The sensor bar is a small infrared device that detects when the remote controller and nunchuck controller are moving around. The sensor bar tells the Nintendo Wii console what the controllers are doing. You can stick the sensor bar to the top of your TV or onto your TV stand (again, even the sticky foam tape is included!). The sensor bar just plugs directly into the Nintendo Wii console. The bar is really thin so it doesn't look ugly when you stick it on your TV.

• Wii Sports game. The Nintendo Wii console comes with a free game called Wii Sports. The games on the Wii Sports disc put you right in the thick of the action! With remote controllers in hand, get ready to swing, throw and punch your way to sporting greatness! The games are amazingly addictive to play and you and your friends will spend hours laughing with (or at) each other. Wii Sports will really show you what the Wii's revolutionary controllers are all about, and will teach you how to use the controllers in an easy, fun way.



• A Setup Manual with easy to follow, step-by-step pictures to get your Nintendo Wii console set up in record time.


• The Wii Operations Manual shows you how to use the Wii channels, create your own little characters (called Miis), and change the Wii console settings. The operations manual also has easy to follow pictures, making it a breeze to understand.

There’s a lot of stuff in the Nintendo Wii console box and you won't use all of it.

Here's a small tip...

Keep the box in one piece for storing all of these extra bits and pieces, and for storing your Nintendo Wii console if you ever want to take it with you to friends.

Extras You Might Need

The Nintendo Wii console really is an amazing package and its huge popularity is no surprise. It retails for around $315 in the US and £179 in the UK. At this price it's one of the cheapest video games consoles you can buy, and is much cheaper than the Playstation 3 console.

Now that you know what the console costs, let's talk about any extra bits and bobs you might need...

The standard Nintendo Wii console box only comes with one set of controllers (one Wii mote controller and one nunchuck controller). This means that only one person can play on the Wii at a time.

If you're going to play your Wii games alone, or you're happy for a queue of anxious family members and friends to line up in your living room, then you won't need to buy anything extra, and the standard Wii console package will do fine.

If you think you'll definitely be playing with others on your Wii console at the same time, then it's wise to budget a little extra cash because you'll need the following 2 items...

• An extra Wii mote controller so that two of you can play together. Up to 4 remote controllers can connect to the Nintendo Wii console at the same time.
• An extra nunchuck controller. You should plan on having one nunchuck controller for each extra Wii mote. In a lot of the Wii's games you'll need to use both controllers at the same time, so you won't be able to play these games if you're short of a nunchuck.

The Wii doesn't have a hard drive for storing content like a computer does. To store any content the Wii needs a SD memory card. It's not a definite must buy, but you'll need a SD card if you plan on uploading photos, downloading games and other content from the Wii Online Store, or saving a lot of games.

You can learn more about how the Wii memory and SD cards work by following this link (opens in a new window).

If you have a spare SD memory card lying around from your digital camera, this will do fine and you don't need to buy a specific Wii branded SD card.

If you don't have a spare SD card, I know the cheapest places for buying all your Nintendo Wii gear, so follow me...


Price

Because the Nintendo Wii console is so popular, it's rare to find any major discounts on the console itself, but there are places that offer slightly better prices from time to time. For extra controllers and accessories, some retailers are usually cheaper than others, you just have to know where to look.

The most you should pay for your Nintendo Wii console and any extras in the US is...

Nintendo Wii console – $314.98
Extra Wii remote controller – $38.99
Extra Wii nunchuck controller – $19.99
1GB SD memory card – $11.99

Total US guideline price - $373.96

This is the most you should pay for your Nintendo Wii console and any extras in the UK…

Nintendo Wii console – £179.99
Extra Wii remote control – £24.99
Extra Wii nunchuck control – £14.99
1GB SD memory Card - £5.99

Total UK guideline price – £219.97


Finding a Wii in Stock

Because there is such a shortage of stock of Nintendo Wii consoles in the US, you might not always be able to buy your console from the cheapest stores. My recommendation would be to buy a console if you find one in stock at any reputable retailer, even if you pay a little bit more money for it.

The UK usually only suffers stock shortages over the Christmas season. For the rest of the year the Nintendo Wii game console is pretty easy to find at all the major online retailers. If you live in the UK, my favourite online retailers are Play.com, Amazon.co.uk and Game.

Play.com and Amazon are quite a bit cheaper than Game, and both have excellent delivery times and customer service. Although Game generally has high street prices, they often have really good special offers, and their customer service and delivery times are as good as Play and Amazon.

The Nintendo Wii video games console is an amazing entertainment system that's going all out to make video gaming fun for families, girls, groups of friends and younger children. Even if you've never played video games seriously before, the games and controllers are easy to pick up and play instantly, with a very basic learning curve. It's great to get a group of friends together for a few hours - lots of fun and even more laughs are guaranteed.


To read more about the main features of the Nintendo Wii console, return to the Nintendo Wii Console Features main page.


Nintendo Wii Explained Home page