Nintendo Wii Fanboy

Nyko earned great acclaim at CES for their Wireless Nunchuck peripheral, which is like the Nunchuk, only wireless. A new GameStop product listing has shown up, indicating that Nyko already plans to expand their Nunchuk-emancipation product line, with a new item that will release two months before the Wireless Nunchuck.

There are no pictures, but the description of the "Wii Cord-Free Wireless Adaptor" states that the item "converts your wired Nunchuk attachment into a wireless peripheral" powered by two AAA batteries. The battery case is integrated into a "self-standing sleeve" that also tucks the Nunchuk's cord away. It sounds pretty bulky, but if the Wireless Nunchuck is any indication, they seem to know what they're doing -- with Nunchuks, anyway. The Cord-Free Wireless Adaptor is currently listed for a February 20 release, for $20.

The Wii is gloriously Wi-Fi enabled right out of the box, a lovely addition to the console. But, alas, not all of us are high tech money-throwers with advanced router setups in our third floor libraries. Well, we are (though it's in the fourth floor media-viewing room), but for everyone else, Nintendo has announced an Ethernet kit that will (presumably) take a standard ethernet cord and run it through one of the two USB slots on the back of the console.

Another option is the Nintendo Wi-Fi USB dongle, an option made available for DS users without a router. However, the limited availability and relatively high price have been a bit of a barrier, so it's nice to see that Nintendo is offering a hardwired option. Plus, wired speeds and connection stability are still generally superior to any wireless network, so some of us you rich boys might want to pick one up regardless.

[Thanks, Probot!]