A fairly dreary, rubbish "rainbow," admittedly, but a rainbow of sorts. These 'chuks are all part of Nyko's new Kama range of wireless nunchuks, and are classified as gray, black, pink, and gold (the one on the right, apparently). They also happen to be limited edition, and that's probably why Nyko is happy to charge us $35 per nunchuk, a considerable mark-up on the $20 you'd pay for a standard wired Nunchuck (how passé!). The gray ones are up for sale now (there's 300 of them to go round), and the other colors will follow in the coming days (the black and gold are the rarest, numbering only 150).
Nyko already has a wireless nunchuck out on the market previously released a wireless Nunchuck adapter, so we don't doubt that these would also do the job nicely. However, unlike the adapter, this is a standalone wireless Nunchuck. No messy cords to bundle up. But $35 for a peripheral that will clash with our lovely white Wiimotes? We'll pass on this one.
[Update: Update: Corrected a few errors in the article. $35 is the standard price for all of Nyko's Kama wireless nunchucks: the limited edition Kama line of nunchucks cost the same as Nyko's standard Kama Wireless Nunchucks soon to be released.]
Do wires make your life a living hell? Okay, so probably not, but if you are a bit tired of playing games with your Wii Remote tethered to a nunchuk, then peripheral manufacturer Zappies has a solution for you: its new Nunchuk Wireless Kit.
"But Greenhough, you deluded oaf," I hear you cry, "Such a device is already available, thanks to Nyko's very fine Wireless Nunchuk." You're absolutely correct, dear reader, but here's the thing: according to Amazon, Nyko's own wireless wonder doesn't release in the UK until May 25th, where it will sell for around £26. Conversely, Zappies' device is available in Britain (and only Britain) right here, right now for a more reasonable £20.
It works in much the same way as Nyko's model, with a wireless receiver that snaps into the bottom of your Wii Remote, and wireless housing for your Nunchuk and its obtrusive cord. Oh, and you'll get 20 hours from 2 AAA batteries. The only thing it lacks? The Wii Fanboy seal of approval.
When I heard that Nyko was going to manufacture a wireless adapter for the nunchuk, I was pretty happy. Any chance I can take to eliminate needless wires in my life is something I definitely look to do. So when Nyko said they'd send me a wireless nunchuk adapter for review, I leaped at the opportunity.
So your Wii has built in wi-fi to connect to the internet, but that doesn't mean everyone is down for that. Many of the fine folk cruising these tubes that make up the interweb still do so through trusty wires, perhaps too scared to enter the domain of wireless solutions available. Are you one of these individuals that had to snatch up a LAN adapter to get online or are you down with the wi-fi?
We're not really in the market for a sensor bar, since ours Just Works and we've managed to conceal the little cord, but if we were interested in replacing it, we'd choose CYBER Gadget's 2Way Sensor Bar. It's the most versatile third-party sensor bar we've seen. It retails for around 2000 yen ($18).
The 2Way Sensor Bar can operate on 4 AA batteries when wireless play is desired, or it can be powered by the Wii's (or any) USB connection. Too bad it doesn't have internal batteries that could be charged over USB, or it would be perfect.
Unfortunately, the unobtrusive design of the original sensor bar has been replaced with a Wii-imitation white slab with some lights on it. We don't really mind the clock, because, hey, if you've got a thing sitting on top of your TV, it might as well make itself useful.
Christmas 2006 will always be remembered at Casa de Greenhough for this blogger's second Wiimote running out of juice just ten minutes into the family's first (and last) Wii Tennis session of the day, and for the tears that followed from younger relatives (okay, and me).
That minor black mark aside, the battery life of the trusty Wii Remote has always seemed quite respectable, but GamePro decided to get its science on and test exactly how quickly each home console sucks the life from batteries.
The results proved surprising, with the Wiimote (36 hours and 43 minutes from each set of batteries) almost bang in the middle of the PlayStation 3's Sixaxis (a piffling 18 hours and 41 minutes) and the Xbox 360 controller (56 hours and 56 minutes). As GamePro notes, the presence of so many extras (speakers, gyroscopes, etc.) make the Wiimote's performance all the more impressive.
We initially posted about Nyko's Cord-Free Wireless Adapter before any pictures were available. Now Nyko has officially, for reals, announced the product and sent along pictures, and we can only say "yikes." We wondered where they were going to hide the coiled-up cord and two AA batteries in a compact, self-contained unit. Turns out they didn't. The cord and battery case are just sort of stuck on the bottom of the unit. What you gain in wingspan, you lose in portability.
Those of you complaining that the Nunchuk was too small and light should be pleased, as should those who are furious at the corded Nunchuk but don't have the extra $20 to drop for the fully wireless model. Perhaps you just wanted a free-standing Nunchuk to set next to your charging Wiimotes.
Okay, we're making fun, but the truth is that even if the adapter is conspicuous, it seems to be out of the way, and a viable solution for making your Nunchuk wireless, as long as it doesn't add too much weight.
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.
You know what's better than rocking out in Guitar Hero? Rocking out wirelessly. Those of you who've purchased Guitar Hero III for the Wii, though, have sadly been forced to rock without wires by you lonesome (in person), unless you know someone (or know a guy who knows a guy) that also has a GHIII Wii bundle.
But, depending on how you interpret the vague term of "early 2008," you won't have to wait too long before being able to buy an official standalone wireless guitar in the U.S. We weren't given any more details on the matter, but we suppose that's better than being told nothing.
Boy, that Guitar Hero franchise really sucks, huh? If there were ever a set of games that were a complete and utter waste of time, it's these. Luckily, Guitar Hero III changes everything.
No, wait. We have that all wrong. Guitar Hero is unconditionally awesome, and we can expect nothing less from the latest and soon to be greatest version -- especially when we're playing it on the Wii. 1UP recently took a look at all three next-gen versions of Guitar Hero III and reported back improvements across the board, particularly in regard to the guitar peripheral. From buttons to accelerometer, the guitars seem to have gotten a major overhaul, and longtime fans of the series will find their frustrations with past versions fading away. The Wii controller offers up a tiny bonus, as well; the Wii remote speaker outputs, as as 1UP's Garnett Lee accurately puts it, "the ugly guitar string twang" that sounds when players miss a note. Not only is that more accurate -- such sounds should come from your guitar, after all -- but in multiplayer situations, when you're strumming along with no problems and your buddy can't seem to find his butt from the strum bar, you're less likely to be distracted by his mistakes.
All in all, it seems that Guitar Hero III is taking the franchise to a whole new level and getting closer to simulating actual guitar play without involving actual guitars.
One of our problems with Nintendo's official Classic Controller is how it has to be plugged into the Wiimote to be used. It's not that big of a deal, but sometimes the cord can become a nuisance. Thankfully, third-party manufacturer (and ridiculously-named company) Thrustmaster have devised the wireless solution you see above. Sure, it may not be much to look at, but at least there aren't any wires.
To connect the controller to the Wii, you'll have to plug an adapter into one of the GameCube ports on top of the console. We suspect that won't be an issue with most of you, as we're certain you (like us) already have a few WaveBird adapters plugged in up there. And, to add even more appeal to the thing, it'll only retail for $19.99, the same cost as Nintendo's official solution.
We'll have to wait until the thing releases to see, but we're pretty sure that Nintendo's controller will end up winning in the end based on feel alone. That thing looks bulky.
Having already made a name for himself with system mods for the Wii like the internal GameCube memory card and the internal Wavebird receiver, hardware hacker foobar2k shifted his attention to the Wii remote for his latest creation: a USB Wii sensor bar.
There have been other homemade USB Wii sensor bars that take advantage of the remote's "pointing" functionality, but this project wins points for stuffing all of the LEDs and wiring into a pen case. If that doesn't sound classy enough for you, he also secured the bar to his monitor with Blu Tack and branded it by scrawling "Wii" on the casing, off-center.
Foobar2k has instructions and a photo guide at his site for creating your own USB Wii sensor bar with cheap and accessible materials. Let us know if you can think of any ways to make the setup even more ghetto than it already is.
Seeing games like Streets of Rage and Gunstar Heroes released on the Virtual Console has been a dream come true for Genesis enthusiasts, but there's something inauthentic about playing these titles with controllers forged by Sega's former adversary. It's like getting back together with an old lover, only to find that there's something missing. You never close your eyes anymore when I kiss your lips. And there's no tenderness like before in your fingertips. You're trying hard not to show it. But baby, baby I know it...
Daniel Hearn refused to let his relationship with the Mega Drive slip away, hacking an old three-button pad to work with the Nintendo Wii wirelessly. Using similar NES/SNES controller mods as inspiration, he pieced this together with PIC microcontrollers, an iPod mini replacement battery, and other electronic junk.
The detailed guide and wiring instructions that Daniel posted are far beyond our limited abilites, but if you don't mind applying a bit of Weird Science to win your love back, this definitely looks worth trying!
Nintendo including wireless capabilities seemed like a boon for many ... similar add-ons for other systems can cost upwards of a hundred dollars. Still, for those not quite on the send-information-zipping-on-airwaves bandwagon, the lack of an ethernet port on the system meant either buying a router or one of Nintendo's silly USB dongles. Even if wireless is available, many users prefer the stability of a wired network anyway, and those USB ports on the back of the Wii have as of yet been unused. Until...
Through some sort of electronic melding procedure, an unofficial ethernet-to-USB adapter (KINAMAX USB 2.0 to RJ45 Fast Ethernet 10/100 Base-T Network Adapter, found for sale at NewEgg here for $20) seems to send all the necessary 1's and 0's to the Wii. Why this adapter works and others not, we have no idea. Still, it's best not to look a gift horse in the mouth; if you wanted a wired connection, you've got one. Check after the break for a video demonstration.
What's even easier than making your own wireless sensor bar? Ordering one. After all, even slinging some candles around takes more effort than a quick flex of your credit card.
We know there's a demand for all things wireless, but will this work well enough to justify a purchase? Unfortunately, we can't give you an answer on that, nor even provide details on the manufacturers, as details are vague even on the Wireless Sensor Bar site, though we've seen a little self-promotion from these people, whoever they are (check the comments).
Do wires make your life a living hell? Okay, so probably not, but if you are a bit tired of playing games with your Wii Remote tethered to a nunchuk, then peripheral manufacturer Zappies has a solution for you: its new Nunchuk Wireless Kit.
You know what's better than rocking out in Guitar Hero? Rocking out wirelessly. Those of you who've purchased Guitar Hero III for the Wii, though, have sadly been forced to rock without wires by you lonesome (in person), unless you know someone (or know a guy who knows a guy) that also has a GHIII Wii bundle.
