Nintendo of Japan has just started a new Wii channel that allows users to view and even print digital photos from the Wii. Through a collaboration with Fujifilm, Japanese Wii users can now order prints of digital camera photos through the Wii for 30 yen (28 cents) each. Users can also purchase special Wii Photo Books for 1,575 yen ($14,71), or deluxe Mario-themed Wii Photo Books for 2,480 yen ($23.16).
In addition, the service offers meishi (like Japanese business cards, but even more prevalent) in multiple colors, emblazoned with the Mii of the user's choice, at a rate of 500 yen per 30 cards.
We think this is a really cool and unique feature that we wouldn't mind trying out oursel -- oh, wait, we're supposed to be "hardcore gamers." We almost forgot to hate it and blame this new service for the death of gaming! Oh, man, how embarrassing.
Love the imports? Then keep up to date with the import scene by keeping up to date with us! Want more info on the variousChannels, both at home and abroad? We've got you covered through our Channels category!
Depending on what you download, you might have quite a few channels on your Wii. Aside from the Disc, Mii, Wii Shop, Photo, Weather, and News channels (which can't be deleted), you might also have the Nintendo, Check Mii Out, and Everybody Votes channels hanging around on your menus.
Then, there's the Internet Channel, not to mention whatever VC or WiiWare titles you've downloaded. Some games even have their own channels, like Mario Kart and Wii Fit. Then, it's possible you have some unofficial ones lying around, too.
How many channels do you have on your Wii? Which ones do you utilize the most, and which do you utilize the least? Are there any channels you wish to see from Nintendo in the future?
That blue glow from our Wiis can only mean one thing -- time for an update!
This wasn't just any old update, though. After months of coveting the service, the Nintendo Channel (known in Japan as Everybody's Nintendo Channel) is finally available for download via the Wii Shop Channel. The download is free, but will take up a few blocks, so make sure you have enough space. You'll also need to have updated your Wii since March 20th in order to get it, according to Nintendo.
We're pretty pleased with what the channel has to offer so far. There's already around forty videos available for your viewing pleasure. Most of them are just trailers for upcoming Nintendo games, but there's also a nice little Miyamoto interview.
Aside from watching videos, make sure to click on the "Find Titles for You" tab. Here, you can check out the newest titles for Nintendo consoles, and also download demos for DS games.
These are just our initial impressions from browsing around the channel, so if you notice any other neat features, be sure to let us know in the comments! Nintendo also posted a video of the various things you can do with the channel, which you can check out here.
PAL gamers-- welcome to 2007! Oh, that doesn't work, because it implies that it's later than 2007 here and just now 2007 where you are. Okay, let's back out and start again.
PAL gamers-- welcome to August of 2007!There we go-- burn. Of course we're kidding, and it's all done with love for our Fanboy friends in Euroland. The point is that the Metroid Prime 3preview channel is now available in your region. Chances are you've already watched all of the videosfeatured on the channel, unless you've been avoiding spoilers. But now you can watch them on your Wii via a somewhat different interface!
Much like Super Metroid, just because you're getting it a bit later doesn't mean it's not awesome. Go enjoy some videos!
If you've been wondering what to do with all that space from Wii channels you don't use so often, you can stop -- you're about to start spending a lot more time clicking around the home screen. This latest enormous press conference unveiled an avalanche of channel-related content that will should satisfy even the pickiest of Nintendo fans.
From DS demos to strutting around with your Miis, channel content is about to blow up ... at least, in Japan. We can only hope that the new channels are soon to follow for Wii owners in the rest of the world. Until release dates are confirmed, however -- or even rumored -- we'll have to settle for checking out what's to come, and we've got a ton of information for you after the post break.
We're taking a break this week from our usual Mii Spotlight format to discuss the future of Miis, including the forthcoming Mii-focused channel, and what we would like to see in the way of updates to the Mii creation process. We hope you don't mind ... and anyway, we're short on Miis! We can only guess you guys were far too busy immersing yourselves bodily in E3 videos and news to create any new little people this week.
But no worries! Not only will we have new and interesting ways in which to wield our Miis in the near future, games like MySims seem to be running with the super-cute avatar idea, and soon we'll be able to expand our tiny armies of near-lookalikes to epic proportions. Miis even turn up in Wii Fit, though there it seems they must do battle with faceless VR mannequins who threaten to take over our exercise plans.
Actually, Miis v. Mannequins could be an excellent game inside Wii Fit. Too bad we're mostly sure it isn't included. We do love our cartoon violence ... perhaps a little too much.
Well, you're not ugly, but there are a lot of ugly Miis out there. We just can't resist moving facial features around and into places they're not supposed to be. Sure, sometimes you do that and you get Admiral Ackbar, but other times, it looks more like what's under the hockey mask in the Friday the 13th films. Not pretty.
But even ugly Miis need a little time in the spotlight, so we're dedicating this week's edition to the worst of the worst. Check out the parade of awful after the jump!
Even with a diminished E3, there's no controlling the wave of rumors that hit the Internet every year before the show. Why fight it? From now until E3 hits, we'll be posting one piece of wild speculation every day. Some may be patently ridiculous, and others just might turn out to be true. Even some of the ridiculous ones might turn out to be true! Rest assured, everything will be totally made-up and unfounded. Except, of course, when we speak about all the ass Reggie is going to kick. That part? Totally true.
Rumor: The Mii Popularity Channel will be the only new thing Nintendo shows off at E3.
Posted May 29th 2007 9:45AM by JC Fletcher Filed under: News
Chris Kohler of Game|Life interviewed Nintendo of America VP George Harrison about the future of the Wii system, and his responses were, well, generally unsurprising. We wouldn't expect Nintendo to suddenly change their strategy in the midst of such success.
Harrison said that because of the high prices of the Wii's competitors, he expected the Wii to have a lifecycle longer than the traditional five years. (Would that mean more than 35 million installed units in the US?) And it'll continue to have a pack-in for some of that lifecycle, since Wii Sports is a "cultural phenomenon" that is helping to draw people in to the system.
Harrison also mentioned that more Wii software targeted at Nintendo's new "expanded" audience would be revealed at E3, and that a game download channel is in development.
There's more, including some weird comments about localizing Virtual Console games and a response to the continuing shortages. Go read the whole thing, if you are so inclined.
Besides the disc channel, of course, what channel gets the most screen time on your Wii? Are you a Mii-maker, or do you prefer to browse from the comfort of the sofa when you're not gaming? Do you like to get into the voting, or are you constantly window shopping for new Virtual Console titles? We'd like to know how you spend your Wii time.
Hot on the heels of the received word the Wii Shop Channel would be making this title available a few days ago, new gameplay details have made their way onto the net. These new details document a variety of different game modes the player will be able to, well ... play. These include:
New Mode: The original game, only completely reimagined, with updated graphics, music, effects and some new levels thrown in for good measure
Classic Mode: This is the Impossible Mission you remember
Merged Mode: A mixture of the old and new, with updated graphics and the original gameplay
So who's ready to prove this mission is anything but impossible?
Aeropause's Stephen Munn, reacting to a recent Everybody Votes Channel question about how people preferred to buy music, suspects that the Everybody Votes Channel may not be just about harmless fun.
He believes that this question is aimed at gauging interest in a future music download channel, implying that the Everybody Votes Channel has always been an attempt to get marketing data from Wii users and pretend it's a game. We're going to have to add this plausible theory to our our ownlist of Everybody Votes conspiracy theories.
What do you think? If this is true, are you outraged? Or does the intent of the service not matter as long as you're having a good time?
We wander the Fanboy office's halls humming the catchy melodies we've picked up from the Wii's different channels, unintentionally mimicking the lives of our own Mii caricatures. There's something delightful about these minute-long loops that stay stuck in our heads like an attractive girl we saw in passing.
Electro-experimental group ROBOTOBOTS chopped up the music tracks and added its own flavor to the interface themes. The resulting three songs -- Breaking Points, Revolve Around Planets, and Built to Diistroy -- are just as fetching as the original tunes, albeit more complex and not as light-hearted. We wouldn't mind listening to these reinterpreted tracks in place of Nintendo's pieces, were it possible.
We're test-driving a new feature here at Wii Fanboy, but there's an essential element we lack, and that's your participation. See, we know that Miis are the hotness and no one can resist twisting the system to produce Admiral Ackbar, but we want to see what you have to offer. Who lives in your Mii Plaza? This is your chance to show off all your hard work. Just send pictures of your best Miis to mii at nintendowiifanboy dot com, and the best of the best will appear right here in the Mii Spotlight on Saturdays.
But don't just send any old Mii; everyone's seen the title character from V for Vendetta, and we've all seen Peter Griffin and the cast of The Office. Send us your creative Miis, or even just the Miis you made for yourself and your friends, perhaps along with a picture of the real deal. We want to see how good you are at making Miis.
After the jump, we've got a few examples from around these interwebs, as well as tools that may help in the creation process.
Many of you perhaps saw that spectacular glow on your Wii's disc slot and found yourself hypnotized, falling to your knees and drooling out of your mouth like you had just been witness to the Hypnotoad. Upon battling your way out of hypnosis and installing the system update and checking out the Shop Channel, you might've found that the final version of the Wii's Opera browser is available for download. Well, we did and we managed to take some pictures for you (it should be noted we have no way of taking direct feed snapshots, so they aren't the greatest images).
If you've been wondering what to do with all that space from Wii channels you don't use so often, you can stop -- you're about to start spending a lot more time clicking around the home screen. This latest enormous press conference unveiled an avalanche of channel-related content that will should satisfy even the pickiest of Nintendo fans.
Besides the disc channel, of course, what channel gets the most screen time on your Wii? Are you a Mii-maker, or do you prefer to browse from the comfort of the sofa when you're not gaming? Do you like to get into the voting, or are you constantly window shopping for new Virtual Console titles? 
Aeropause's Stephen Munn, reacting to a recent 
