The Wii Console

Design: Featuring a compact design that makes it a natural addition to any television setup, the Wii console is white in color and can be displayed either vertically or horizontally.

Size: The system is roughly the size of three DVD cases stacked on top of each other. In other words, the Wii is wee, and can be tucked just about anywhere near your television.

Network: The Wii console communicates wirelessly with the Internet via WiFi. Wii also can communicate wirelessly with the Nintendo DS.

CPU/GPU: PowerPC CPU (code-named "Broadway"), made with a 90nm SOI CMOS process, jointly developed with and manufactured by IBM; GPU developed with ATI.

Media: A single self-loading media bay plays single- or double-layered 12-cm optical discs for the Wii console, as well as 8-cm Nintendo GameCube discs.

Compatibility: The Wii is backward-compatible to all Nintendo GameCube games and includes four ports for controllers and two slots for memory cards.

The Wii Remote

To make gaming as accessible to people of all ages and all abilities, Nintendo created a controller that was as inviting as it was sophisticated. The Wii Remote fuses the familiarity of a remote control with the sophistication of motion-sensing technology to come up with an input device for the ages.

Sporting the size of a traditional remote control, the wireless Wii Remote is a multifunctional device that is limited only by the game designer’s imagination. In a tennis game, it serves as your racket you swing with your arm. In a driving game, it serves as your steering wheel. For first-person shooters, the remote acts as your weapon that you point at an enemy. The list of potential uses goes on and on.

Using Bluetooth technology, the wireless Wii Remote sends your actions to the Wii console from as far as 30 feet away. As a pointing device, the remote can send a signal from as far as 15 feet away. Up to four Wii Remote can be connected at once, making for great multiplayer fun.

In addition to its pointing and motion-sensing abilities, the Wii Remote also includes a speaker, rumble feature and expansion port for additional input devices, such as the Nunchuk controller.

The Nunchuk™

Contoured to comfortably fit a player’s hand, the Nunchuk builds on the simplicity of the Wii Remote and goes an extra step to meet the needs of gamers. The Nunchuk connects to the Wii Remote at its expansion port and is used in conjunction with the Wii Remote.

The Nunchuk contains the same motion-sensing technology enabled in the Wii Remote, but also includes an analog stick to assist in character movement. In several games, players will use the analog stick of the Nunchuk to move their characters and the Wii Remote to perform a specific action, whether that’s throwing a pass in football or aiming a ranged weapon in an action game.

Along with the analog stick, the motion-sensing Nunchuk also contains two buttons positioned for quick access. Because the Wii Remote and Nunchuk are only relatively dependent on each other, players are free to hold them in whichever hand is most comfortable. The ambidextrous nature of the Wii controllers grants accessibility seldom seen in game controllers. In the same way the karaoke brought people off the couches of their living room to sing songs, so too will the Nunchuk get players more involved in their games.

The Wii Menu

The Wii console will revolutionize how people play games. But more importantly, it will entice new players into the world of video games by offering a variety of entertainment, information and communication channels that add value to the console and make it a device that the entire family can enjoy. The Wii Menu and its interactive channel guide will be the first screen shown on the television, enabling it to easily integrate into people’s everyday lives.

Mii™ Channel
Fun 3-D caricatured portraits of users, or Miis, created in this channel can be used on characters across a variety of Wii software. In addition to storing Miis on the Wii, several Miis can be stored in a user’s Wii Remote and taken to a friend’s house to play on another Wii console. Each member of the family can have his or her Wii Remote personalized with their own Mii.

Photo Channel
This channel allows users to retrieve digital pictures from an SD memory card inserted into the Wii console and display them on their television screen. Users also can manipulate the photos in a variety of fun and creative ways, such as zooming into details or creating mosaics, puzzles or slide shows. Users can even add an MP3 tune from their SD memory card to their slide shows. It provides a fun and easy outlet for people to edit and show off their digital pictures.

Wii Message Board
Forget scrawled notes tacked to the refrigerator door. Users can leave messages for other family members on a calendar-based message board. They also can use WiiConnect24 to send messages to people outside the home as well. Even better, people can send photos to other Wii users and trade messages with cell phones users. When connected to the Internet, the WiiConnect24 service allows for incoming messages targeted at software, notifying
players about a new map or weapon for a game. Games can constantly be updated, thereby extending their playability.

Disc Channel
This channel allows users to play either Wii game discs or any of the entire library of Nintendo GameCube discs.

Forecast Channel
Users can access free local weather forecasts after turning on the Wii console. When connected to the Internet,
the WiiConnect24 service automatically updates local weather information.

News Channel
Users can access the most up-to-date breaking news from around the world, organized into a variety of topical categories. When connected to the Internet, the WiiConnect24 service automatically updates this channel.

Wii Shop Channel
This is where users go to download video game content, including classic video games originally played on the NES, SNES, N64, Sega Genesis and even the NEC TurboGrafx platforms (subject to availability). Here the users may buy Wii Points with a credit card or redeem a Wii Points Card purchased at retail to add points to their account, then redeem points to download these Virtual Console games (when available).

Virtual Console™ Games
After users download Virtual Console games from the Wii Shop Channel, each game will appear in the Wii Menu as its own Virtual Console Channel. To play the game, users simply select the game’s channel.

Internet Channel
The Internet Channel can dramatically change the relationship between a user’s home, the television, and
the Internet. Users download the Opera browser using Wii Points. Then, they can surf the Internet right from
the comfort of their couch. They can do quick research while watching a television program (“What was that
actor’s name again?”), or book travel plans and shop during commercials. The service is compatible with Adobe Flash.

Classic Controller

The Classic Controller is needed to play Virtual Console games and is sold separately. The thin, traditionally shaped peripheral plugs directly into the Wii remote, and it combines the best features of the SNES and N64 controllers

The Sensor Bar

Using Bluetooth technology, the wireless Wii Remote sends your actions to the Wii console from as far as 30 feet away. As a pointing device, the controller can send a signal from as far as 15 feet away. Up to four Wii Remotes can be connected at once, making for some great multiplayer fun!

WiiConnect 24

The Wii console can communicate with the Internet even when the power is turned off. The WiiConnect24 service delivers a new surprise or game update, even if the system is idle. When you turn your Wii on each day, you'll never know what to expect!

Wii Sports

Bundled with the Wii console, Wii Sports offers five distinct sports experiences: Tennis, Golf, Baseball, Bowling and Boxing.

Nintendo Gamecube Compatibility

The Wii is backward-compatible to all Nintendo GameCube games and includes four ports for controllers and two slots for memory cards.