Nintendo: We Could Be Stuck With the Wii for 8 More Years

The Xbox 360 is less than halfway done, and the PS3 is a "ten year" console. But what about Wii? Satoru Iwata says new hardware could come "three years from now, five years from now or eight years from now." More »

Men's Wii Pajamas Allow You to Sleep How You Live: Alone

Men's Wii pajamas: the business suit of the parents' basement set. In a perfect world, they'd only be available in XXXL. [Product Page via Nerd Approved] More »

Update

To settle the pipe vs. bong debate on the NES controller bong I posted a couple days ago, James, the genius behind it, sent a photo of its insides. It is in fact a bong (or at least a water pipe), you OCD potheads, so you can sleep easily. Check out the new photo in the original post.

Awesome Lego Mario Model Built Using NextEngine 3D Scanner

This is awesome. A Lego and 3D fanatic took a small Mario figurine, scanned it into a computer using the NextEngine 3D Scanner and used the data to create a near-perfect replica in Lego bricks, just much larger. Click the small picture for a much bigger version, and go check out the source to see the step-by-step process including screenshots of the 3D model he created. Awesome! [Luxology Forum]

Hillcrest Labs Sues Nintendo to Keep the Wii Out of America

Now this is interesting. Hillcrest Labs is suing Nintendo, trying to create an import ban on the Wii. They claim that Nintendo is infringing on a number of their patents relating to the Wiimote and the on-screen menu system on the Wii. The whole thing doesn't make a lot of sense to us, as we were under the impression that both Nintendo and Hillcrest Labs licensed their tech from Gyration. We're looking into this now, but I'm going to go out on a limb and say that an import ban on the Wii is pretty unlikely. Hit the jump for Hillcrest's full press release. Update: After the jump, a clarification on what Hillcrest is suing over from Gyration. More »

Analyst: New Nintendo Handheld to Launch by Year's End

Get ready for the rumor frenzy. According to EDGE, analyst Michael Pachter is telling investors that, with DS sales taking a dive in Japan and PSP on the rise, Nintendo may release a new handheld game console by year's end: More »

Nintendo Sues Piracy-Enabling R4 Cart, R4 Sales Predictably Skyrocket

Yesterday, Kotaku reported on Nintendo and 54 software makers filing an injunction to stop the sales of the R4 and similar devices in Japan. For the uninitiated, the R4 allows you to download DS games online and play them on your DS. Yes, DS piracy. And now said piracy is threatened! So what does that mean? R4 sales are through the roof. Hell, even I bought one yesterday. More »

Nintendo Preparing New Console While Counting 992 Million Dollars

Nintendo engineers are busily preparing new hardware, while trying not to break the concentration of Mario-in-Chief Satoru Iwata while he counts the $3.9 billion in sales and $992 million in profits they have made this quarter. "We are always preparing for the next hardware. We are under development," he declared. However, according to Chris Morris, he warned fans not to expect too much: More »

Nintendo Announces Wii Music: Look Out, Beamz!

Nintendo just announced Wii Music, a new music game that lets you use the Wiimote, Nunchuk and Balance Board to create music. Unlike Rock Band or Guitar Hero, this one isn't based on precise timing. Rather, it lets you basically hit buttons and swing the remote around to create original tunes. The Wii interprets your motions and button presses to make music for you. Essentially, this is like Beamz but instead of lasers, you use the Wiimote and Balance Board. Awesome? More »

Logitech Announces Wireless Keyboard for the Wii

If you use your Wii to surf the web because you really miss your WebTV and want to relive the frustrations of using the internet on your television, this new Logitech Cordless Keyboard for Wii was designed with you in mind. It broadcasts using 2.4 GHz wireless technology and works from up to 30 feet away. Designed with the Wii in mind, it comes with dedicated buttons for Zoom In/Out, Forward/Back, Quit and OK. If it was really designed with the Wii in mind, you'd be able to move forward and back by swinging the entire keyboard around, but alas, that feature isn't included. No word on a release date, but it'll set you back $50 when it drops. [Product Page via CrunchGear]

Virtual Maestro is Like Guitar Hero, Just Without the Guitars and Rock Music

You might think you're pretty awesome playing One on expert in Guitar Hero 3, but could you conduct an entire orchestra? My guess: probably. And you'll be able to test my hypothesis with Virtual Maestro, a Wii game created by a couple of professors. More »

PS3 Sucks Up Five Times as Much Energy as a Fridge, Ten Times as Much as a Wii

Compared to basically every other appliance you have plugged in at home, the Playstation 3 sucks up more juice. That's according to a new study by Australian consumer agency Choice, which found that when a PS3 is running, it sucks up five times more energy than a refrigerator. If you leave it on all the time for something like Folding@Home, you're looking at an energy cost of nearly $250 a year. More »

Hacked Wii Balance Board Surfs Google Earth

From a technical standpoint, what's going on here isn't all the mind-blowing. A group of German students are using the Wii Balance Board (from Wii Fit) as an input to navigate Google Earth. But what is notable is that the board was programmed to allow users to surf Earth ala unconventionally transparent marketing ploy super heroes. Unfortunately, the turning sensation more closely resembles FPS strafing. But Man must first walk before he can surf—and surf before he can surf the cosmos.

The Nintendo DS and Xbox 360 ALMOST Hooked Up

Many of our readers may not necessarily be all that interested in a title called Viva Pinata: Trouble In Paradise. We get that. But did you know that the game almost got the Xbox 360 and Nintendo DS working together? Blasphemy! No, just a simple trick, actually. More »

How Would You Kill This DS?

If you came across this Nintendo DS resold by King Deco, the question isn't if you would kill it but how. My plan would involve a hazmat suit, the jaws of life and that big pool of molten steel from Terminator 2. But enough about me. How would you kill this Nintendo DS? [King Deco via ShinyShiny]

PlayStation 3 Surpasses Xbox 360 In Europe

With 5 million PS3s sold on the continent, Sony has announced that they've overtaken the 360 in Europe. And not only that, but Sony has been outselling Microsoft in the market since October. More »

Nintendo to Produce 30% More Wiis

According to some intel gathered by our brothers from another alien mother at Kotaku, rumor has it that Nintendo is ramping up Wii production to 2.4 million units/month (compared to the 1.8 million units/month currently produced). It's a number that should allow Nintendo to sell more of their popular console while balancing the big Re-shhhhhh that's going on in America at the moment. We'll continue this conversation when, uhhh, things are going even better. [kotaku]

DIY Wii Wheel Leaves Little to be Desired

Why fork over more money to Nintendo for a second Mario Kart Wii Wheel when you can just make one yourself? Sound difficult? It's not, as long as you know how to tape a controller to a sauce pot lid. For some reason we didn't spot a similar prototype among Nintendo's 30 original designs. Which just goes to show you, multitudes of white plastic don't always make something better. (But it sure helps to put a price tag on the thing.) [mod via kotaku]

Hotel Rent Wiis For $50+ HOURLY

The Westin chain of hotels has recently announced that they'll be offering Wii rentals in their 150 locations. How much will they charge? We're not sure yet. But if Manhattan's Le Parker Meridien is any indication, it will be a lot. They charge $50 an hour just to rent the $250 machine. And if you want the full experience projected onto a wall with a personal trainer, look to pay $120 an hour. I think that I speak for everyone here when I say, if I pay someone $120 to play Wii Sports with me, the service had better induce some serious tennis elbow on their part. [usatoday via kotaku]

Are Consoles on the Short Track to Extinction?

Former Xbox Europe exec Sandy Duncan recently declared that consoles were a dying breed, due to disappear in a mere 5 to 10 years. At first, it's a laughable remark. I mean, consoles are insanely popular moneymakers, why would they disappear? Sure, physical media will be gone by the next generation, but don't you need a standardized set of hardware and controllers for developers to create games for? More »

WiiMax Gun Gives Laser Sights, Takes Dignity

While Nintendo may have invented one of the most graceful products of the modern era in the Wiimote, such only makes it all the more tempting for third party manufacturers (as well as Nintendo its freaking self) to spoil the fun with extrapolation. Take the Wiimax, it turns your Wiimote into a coveted plastic machine gun or rifle—but it doesn't stop there, my friends. More »

12-Inch DS-Holding Mario Says "Mama Mia, You'll-a Never Get a Girlfriend!"

This foot-tall Mario statue is actually a DS holder, with his grip specially designed to hold your portable gaming device. It's the perfect way to make your bedroom look like a 1993 Toys R Us while also making sure your DS doesn't have to sully itself resting on any flat surfaces. How can you say no? [Product Page via 7 Gadgets]

Nyko Wireless Nunchuk Adapter Sucks Class From Wiis and Ninjas

Nyko's replacement wireless nunchuk controller may have raised the question, "do we really need a wireless nunchuk?" But their new wireless nunchuk adapter, a peripheral that uses the same Wiimote wireless nunchuk transmitter plug-in and replaces Nyko's sleek wireless nunchuk with your old, crappy wired nunchuk but using a massive dongle to wrap up the cable...is just tacky. More »

Cobalt Blue DS Arriving Next Month, Still Smoking Hot

Our favorite Japanese pseudo-citizen at Kotaku turns up some insider verbiage on that hot hot black-and-blue sex machine of a DS Lite that Circuit City pre-emptively had up for pre-order. The warehouse just started slapping the clamshells together, which in person, says the source, looks more "purplish blue" and "awesome." More »

Ultra-Rare Ultra 64 Prototype Controllers Fondled, Flipped and Jostled

While we're in the De Lorean back to 1996, we might as well revisit one of my favorite controllers ever: the N64's. (It just needs a better analog stick.) The poster does us one (two) better, tossing around a pair of real, now-rare prototype Ultra 64 controllers like a Halo 3 swag bag or something. Where's the outrage!? And just how did you feel about the trident back in the day? [YouTube via GoNintendo]

Earnings Roundup: Nintendo, AT&T and Nokia Make Mad Bank

It's the end of the quarter, which means it's raining earnings reports—companies tell investors (and the world) just how much coin they're swimming in (or bleeding out). Today, Nintendo revealed that the Wii is printing money twice as fast as last year; AT&T pulled in almost 3 million new subscribers; Nokia now commands 40 percent of the handset; and Netflix is doing pretty well, too. Big numbers are this-a-ways. More »

The Console Wars: 2007 Update

We don't keep you updated with every Wii sold like our friends at Kotaku, but the NPD's 2007 sales numbers have been released, so we thought that the occasion merited a rundown to fuel your fanboy flame wars. Here are the total consoles sold in the United States during 2007: More »

Hurray: Rainbow of Nintendo Wii Colors Finally on the Way?

This is a location print-up from the only classy big-box store, Target. Before Christmas, if an employee scanned a Wii, it'd just say "Wii Console." Now, it says "Wii White." Giddy fanboy deduction: Why go through the trouble of adding an additional color descriptor unless other colors were on the way? More »

Nintendo DS to Begin Full Game Downloads

We've long known the NIntendo DS to be a capable of downloading content like demos from kiosks, but "complete games" will soon be downloadable through the Wii, and then Wi-Fi transferable to the DS, according to Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime's interview with the NYT. But for the moment, only one game has been announced—Professor Layton. So we're left with more questions than answers. Will Nintendo open up their retro gaming Virtual Console to older Gamboy titles? But even more importantly, will Nintendo really let you download games without a catch? More »

Official Nintendo Fix for Malfunctioning Wiimotes: Smack It

Everyone knows that when all else fails, smacking a malfunctioning device might just solve the problem. It works with TVs, it works with computers and it works with just about anything. Well, sometimes. But would you expect that to be an official solution to malfunctioning gadgets? Because it's exactly what Nintendo support is telling people to do to wonky Wiimotes. More »

Nintendo DS Tops PS2 in Lifetime Sales (Japan)

Every once in a while when you study those weekly sales charts out of Japan you catch something interesting. And that happened when last week's numbers came out: the Nintendo DS has overtaken the PS2 in lifetime console sales in Japan. More »

The Wii Prints Money How Fast?

This Forbes article about Amazon's fat Christmas is mostly full of no-brainers (the Wii and MacBooks sold well) but it does have one worthwhile little statistic: When Amazon had Wiis in stock, they sold 17 of them a second. So don't feel bad if you ruined your child's Christmas, only people with Flash fingers stood a chance. [Forbes]