Nintendo Wii Mod Chip - A Review And Comparison Of Wii Modchips

The Nintendo Wii has just barely hit retail stores, and already the homebrew scene is fast at work. Creating not only killer applications and homebrew games, but also developing (or at least helping develop) the worlds first Nintendo Wii mod chip(s). In this article I am going to discuss Nintendo Wii Mod Chips and give some of the features, pros and cons of the 3 different Nintendo Wii Mod Chips that have just recently been released.

The good news for Nintendo Wii gamers is that regardless of which Nintendo Wii mod chip you buy - you'll have all the basics with each one. You will be able to play all Nintendo Wii Backup games (on DVD-R or DVD+R discs) and can use 8cm or 12cm DVD discs. You will also be able to play all Gamecube Backup games, import games as well as Gamecube Homebrew games. It really gets down to installation of the Nintendo Wii Mod chip and the features and functions, and future upgrade options of each Wii mod chip.

What is even more surprising with these new Nintendo Wii Mod chips is the prices that they're being sold for. I remember quite clearly the days of the very first Playstation 2 mod chips, costing in excess of $90.00 US Dollars. It seems the Wii chips have opted instead for a lower entry price, in an effort to gain a greater piece of the Homebrew / Development / Modchip market. The prices range anywhere from $44.00 to just over $50.00, depending on the chip you decide to buy.

At present, there are actually 3 different Nintendo Wii Mod chips which will hit the market and online stores within the next week or so. While many online news sources seem to focus on just 2 of the 3 mod chips, perhaps because they're unaware that there is a third chip in the making, I'm going to cover all 3 of the mod chips in the hopes of enabling you, the gamer, to make the buying decision that's right for you. And after reading this article, I honestly believe that your decision will be based solely on price, and perhaps the option of an upgrade (or lack of) for the Wii Mod Chips.

Wiinja Nintendo Wii Mod Chip
The Wiinja Nintendo Wii Mod chip was actually the very first Wii chip to hit the market. While many online news sources seem to disregard this chip, it is still the very first and one of the easiest mod chips to install for the Nintendo Wii. Like the other mod chips for the Wii, the Wiinja will enable you to play all Wii and Gamecube Backup games, as well as Wii Import backup games, and original import games with just a single swap. Gamecube Import and Homebrew games are fully supported. While the other mod chips promise that their modchips, in time, will have their own custom OS to enable additional features, the Wiinja chip does not make this claim. In fact, they have stated that their chip is not meant to be upgraded. Stealth mode is still built in, even into this mod chip, and whether or not the lack of an upgrade feature is a deterrent is entirely up to you, the user. Often times many modchip manufacturers claim upgrade features, but then they lack the support for the upgrades, which tend to come out very rarely, if ever at all.

WiiKey Nintendo Wii Modchip
The manufacturer hype states the following: Unlock your Nintendo Wii with the worlds first truly upgradeable Nintendo Wii Mod Chip. The WiiKey for Nintendo Wii is made by the famous xenoGC team, responsible for the xenoGC Gamecube line of mod chips, and now, with their WiiKey, Wii owners can enjoy all the benefits of a team of great developers with a truly upgradeable Nintendo Wii Mod chip. The WiiKey comes ready to use, and offers an almost wireless installation. When they say almost wireless, what this essentially means is that there are Quick Solder pads for the chip. This method enables you, the gamer, to simply position the chip in the correct place on the Mother board of the Wii, in order to then apply a little bit of solder with a soldering iron. The WiiKey chip does however also require that you solder 4 wires to the specified places on the Wii motherboard. The WiiKey mod chip was the first chip that boasted full upgradeability through DVD-R discs to which you can burn / backup the new firmware updates, put The DVD in to your Nintendo Wii, and it will run and update the chip. Once again, the WiiKey also supports loading of both Wii and Gamecube backup games and import backup games. Original import games can be played as well, with a simple, single swap methos. Gamecube Homebrew games are also supported. Whether or not this mod chip will end up with it's own custom OS is something we'll just have to take a wait and see approach with. However, it offers everything you want, for a VERY reasonable price.

And finally, the last Nintendo Wii mod chip (often claimed to be the very FIRST Nintendo Wii Modchip) is the only chip in this round up that actually does not require any wires at all.

CycloWiz Nintendo Wii Mod Chips
The major advatange, or selling feature of the CycloWiz Nintendo Wii mod chip is in how it's installed. Unlike the other 2 mod chips in this round up, the CycloWiz actually does not require you to solder any wires to the Wii mainboard. In fact, much like the WiiKey, you'll simply use Quick Solder pads which are strategically placed in the design of the CycloWiz to enable you to simply position the chip on the Nintendo Wii Mainboard, and gently put some solder onto the points. This will make the required connections, and the chip will simply be installed, with absolutely no need figure out where wires are to be soldered or whether or not you've got the right type of wires, etc... The CycloWiz is also a fully upgradeable modchip, with promised firmware updates for the chip from the manufacturer. Again, I want to stress that firmware updates may not at all be required and perhaps may not come for some time. I myself do however like the idea that the chip will not be outdated should some new function or requirement become the norm.

To sum it all up, all of the Nintendo Wii Mod chips boast the features below. The only exception to this is the upgrade feature which is NOT available on the Wiinja chip. Take a look at the features, and decide for yourself which Wii mod Chip is right for you.
Fully upgradeable via DVD/disc (future proof, expect cool features to come)

Direct boot of Wii backups (like originals)

Direct boot of GC backups (like originals)

Boots different region GC games/backups

Boots different NTSC region Wii games/backups

Supports multi-disc games

Supports DVD-R and DVD+R

Built-in audio fix (for games using streaming audio)

Works in all Nintendo Wii consoles World Wide - USA, Pal and Japanese versions!

Now it's up to you to decide which Nintendo Wii mod Chip is right for you.
Steven Fields is a freelance video game and video game accessory reviewer for the popular video game news site Video Game News Bin at http://www.videogamebin.com - your source for the latest video game gossip, reviews, and news. For more information on the Wiinja Nintendo Wii Mod Chip, CycloWiz Nintendo Wii Mod Chips and the WiiKey Nintendo Wii Modchip please visit http://www.ps2cover.com

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Download Wii Games! Learn to Download and Burn Wii Games

The Wii from Nintendo is quickly climbing the ranks as one of the most popular gaming consoles ever. The fact that it is so interactive is drawing crowds of children and families alike. With its growing popularity more and more people are wondering where they can download Wii games. There are more options available to you than you might think. Some of them are really reliable options while others are for the most part a waste of time. Choosing where to download Wii games is often a tough decision with the choices that are available.

Many people are falling back on Google as their number one resource to download Wii games from. Unfortunately, most of the results that Google feeds you are either bad files or are infected with some type of virus. Other problems that people run into are games in the wrong format or they are in an unsupported download type. While Google is great for many things I would not recommend it as the best option.

I have read quite a bit about membership sites that charge a monthly subscription fee. In all honesty this option is a little pricey for my wallet. You agree to pay a monthly fee in order to download the games that you are looking for. You have to pay the fee weather you use the service that month or not. The upside is that these sites do provide a fairly large amount of content. I will review a couple of these sites a little later.

I've personally heard quite a few horror stories of people using torrent sites to download Wii games. The Fact of the matter is most people are downloading viruses and trojan horses instead of the games that they are looking for. Torrents used to be one of my favorite resources for downloading all kinds of media but over the years it has become a community filled with malicious users. Their only objective is to infect your computer with some type of harmful code. Torrents are a bad option in my opinion.

Personally, I have had my best experience with "Mega Sites." These sites allow you to download Wii games in a fast and efficient manner. The amount of games that you can download is unlimited and they even provide you with all of the software you need to use to download Wii games. The software is great but whats even better is you are provided with step by step instructions from download to transferring the games to your Wii. To me the service that these sites offer is invaluable.

I am an avid Wii fan and have been trying to find better ways to keep my Wii game collection up to date since I purchased the console just about a year ago. It is now my mission to help as many people as I can with the information that I have compiled. For a review of a couple of the best "mega sites" that I have found take the time to visit my blog. Simply follow this link Download Wii Games
I am an avid video game fan. For a complete review of Wii download mega sites please use the following link Download Wii Games

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Best Cheap Nintendo Wii Games For Christmas 2009 Holiday Shoppers

The Nintendo Wii has quickly become a household name. It's almost impossible to walk into a store without being bombarded with posters advertising the system. What the system doesn't have a lot of, though, is games. Not competitively priced games that are good for more than one play through. But there are some gems that people have been going on about for a while, and with Christmas swinging around, they're getting huge discounts in anticipation for the holiday rush. They may be a little past their prime, but the entertainment value is still unparalleled by these games that are far too nice to get crossed off of Santa's list:

1. Rayman: Raving Rabbids: At around $18, this classic was first released with the Wii and has still held strong because of a combination of hilarious characters, and tons of entertaining mini games that everyone in the family likes to get in on. The graphics aren't exactly top notch, but the fun to be had far overshadows technical limitations.

2. de Blob: An overlooked title from this past year, "de Blob" has a ton of cool features, and despite being a little offbeat, was a really great concept. Instead of running around shooting, the player advances through puzzles by "painting" scenery. There's still a lot of action when you run across some of the evil "INKT" corporation's goons, but, for the most part, you'll be a paint splattering machine coloring the dull monochromatic Chroma city. For $18, its a steal.

3. No More Heroes: A really derivative game by some standards, but at the same time great fun! The player takes on the role of geeky Travis Touchdown who buys a real live light saber and decides to become a mercenary. Between quips and extra missions, Travis slices up enemies and works his way through higher ranked mercenaries to become the top dog. The story is great fun and the extra missions make the $20 price tag far too kind of Ubisoft.

There are quite a few games out there for the Wii now, but above are the best ones you can find without shelling out $50. If you're looking for great fun and amusement with your Wii, they won't steer you wrong. At the very least you'll be able to give Wii Sports a rest.
To Find the Lowest Prices on the Best Wii Games, Visit the Wii Game Reviews Store Today at Wii-Game-Reviews.org!

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