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Nov 23, 06:03 AM

Hidden Costs of the Wii

I think a lot of people will be surprised of the additional costs of owning a Wii, despite its relatively low $250 price tag.

Some of the costs:

Extra controllers: $60 each, $180 if you want a full set.

Virtual console: $20 for the classic controller to play virtual console games. NES Games – $5, SNES Games – $8, N64 – $10. The Wiimote isn’t really well suited for some game genres out there, so I predict that a lot of new games will start requiring you to have the classic controller anyway, even if you don’t want to play VC games.

Additional channels: while none are available yet, it looks like Nintendo is going to charge you to subscribe to different channels (such as the Internet channel to surf the net). The Wii Shop channel says it’s coming, no date or pricing specified.

Batteries: The Wiimote does not have a rechargeable battery pack – you’ll need to provide your own double A’s. Mine haven’t run out yet, but with the Wii’s heavy use of rumble this might add up over time.

Nintendo WiFi USB Connector: $30 – if you don’t have a wireless network at home, you will need one of these to connect your Wii to the internet. Or you can buy a wireless router, which would be ~$70. You could also wait for the Wii ethernet kit, which doesn’t look like it’s going to be released for a while.

SD Card: If you want more than the 512MB of internal memory that the Wii has, you’re going to need to buy an additional flash SD card. The Wii-branded 1GB SanDisk ones are $40.

new TV: $XXXX. Well, only if you destroy it in a lively game of Wii Sports.

Games: $50 a pop.

As you can see, the costs can really add up. How much you pay is directly related to the kind of experience you want to get out of the Wii.

Note: If you need a SD card for your Wii, you might want to pick one up this Friday, where a lot of retailers are discounting them to draw customers in.

-Jon

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