According to a report on Nikkei, Nintendo partner manufacturers Mitsumi and Hosiden have suffered a drop in net profits of more than 50% due to waning demand. So steps are being taken to scale back Wii production appropriately.

But you have to wonder, after Nintendo went through multiple holiday seasons without enough Wiis on store shelves, did such hype solely help the system, or did Nintendo eventually lose sales that they'd never get back? [Nikkei via Kotaku]

Nintendo sold 5.75 million Wiis over the past six months, versus 10.1 million a year ago. Which is why Nintendo finally got around to cutting the price of the Wii—to move more units, even though that sliced into profits. (Interestingly, it shows Wii sales finally dipped below a million a month, if barely, and just how insanely profitable the Wii is for Nintendo.) If it makes Nintendo feel any better, the Xbox 360 is the only console that's actually seen growth this year, in the US, anyway, thanks to its own price cut.

So, um, next stop: Wiis in multiple colors. Hey, it's worked for Nintendo like a million times before. That, or you know, that Wii HD people are so fond of talking about. [WSJ

Of course, those pictures can't shared in order to protect they're source, and what's more, they're hearing that "Nintendo originally planned to bring the Netflix service to the Wii before the end of this year" but they're "also considering holding off on the Netflix service until they release their next generation Wii HD unit in early 2010." So, uh, just keeping your breath on that one. [Streaming Media via Engadget]

Perfect for your next Cosplay or Furry get-to-together, the mood cards will make the bushy tail wag about in pre-programmed ways. Alternatively, a Wii Nunchuck is used to shake things up with manual control.

Thank you, Wei-Chieh Tseng, I'm completely lost for words, and that doesn't happen often. [Nowhereelse via Engadget]

When you think about, it's amazing that the Wii has motored along for three years at $250. But it's clear that Nintendo has to do something. The 120GB PS3 Slim is $300, the 120GB Xbox 360 Elite is $250 with rebates, and 250GB bundles for both are strongly rumored to be around the corner.

My Wii just kind of sits in the corner all lonely these days. If you don't have one, is the new price enough to make you pick one up? Or will you just hold out until 2011 for the next-gen Wii with HD graphics? [Engadget]

The illustrations were done by John Foester for artist Angela Moramarco. More pics at her site. [Angela Moramarco via WiiNoob] Thanks Jamie!

The deal, according to ElectricPig, is as follows: If you never dropped those 500 Wii Points on access to the Internet Channel, you can now download it for free. If you for whatever reason had, you're entitled to free access to "a Virtual Console NES title worth 500 points," which, despite the vague phraseology, is pegged with an October release date. In other words, it's a specific game, instead of a simple 500-point credit, or at least a range of titles.

To be fair, they didn't have to give users anything, and no matter how marginally useful the browser is, whenever it was free—like at launch—it felt like a nice value add. [ElectricPig via Kotaku]

PlayOn's been around on the Xbox and PS3 since last year, as well as on all kinds of DLNA-compliant TVs—it's essentially a super-compatible web interface for video services that don't work on certain platforms—and we knew it was headed Wii-ward from the start. This is a step, and a sign that the service will actually materialize sometime soon, but it probably won't include a specific, formal release date. [PlayOn]

-PlayOn support for Nintendo's Wii in Beta.
-This is the first time PlayOn is able to control the user interface (and we spent significant time designing it)
-It is available for a free 14-day full-featured trial at www.playon.tv; after that it is a one-time $39.99 fee to purchase a license
-It is the same software that supports the PS3 and XBOX360, so if you already have a license or active trial, it will work on your Wii as well
-PlayOn uses the "Internet Channel" on the Wii
-How it works: You can find the PlayOn Media Server(s) by opening the "Internet Channel" web browser on the Wii, pressing the "WWW" button, and entering the web address playon.tv — We recommend you add this page to your Wii Browser "Favorites" to make it easy to return to. To upgrade your Nintendo Wii with the "Internet Channel" web browser, visit http://www.nintendo.com/consumer/systems/wii/en_na/channelsInternet.jsp#downloadOpera
-We are very proud to offer Wii support as it has been one of the most requested features from our users and shows our commitment to expanding consumer access to PlayOn
-PlayOn offers the broadest selection of premium content available from Internet – to – TV providers (Hulu, Netflix, CBS, ESPN, CNN, Amazon VOD, You Tube) and our selection of niche content is growing daily via our open plugin architecture:

o Academic Earth
o Adultswim
o Cartoon Network
o Channel9
o Crackle
o Food Network
o GameTrailers.com
o HGTV
o Local Files
o NBA
o NFL
o Southpark Studios
o Spike TV
o Podcasts (OPML Player) — with dozens of available feeds!
o International channels: Danish DR and Spanish TVE
- PlayOn works on a broad range of devices, including the Playstation3, XBOX360, Nintendo Wii, Digeo's Moxi HD DVR, Verismo's VuNow Device and many DLNA-compliant devices
- You can see video demos of playon for the PS3 and XBOX360 at http://www.themediamall.com/playon/lp200907 (sorry - the Wii one isn't ready yet since we are still in Beta and hope to get feedback on the UI before it is set in stone!)

CTA Digital has just released an 8-in-1 pack for the Wii Sports Resort game for an MSRP of $40. As you can see from the image there is quite an assortment of water and land sports equipment. In all cases, the attachable handles have a compartment that fits the Wii remote control and an open ended handle to fit the Wii MotionPlus adapter. [CTA Digital]

I'll grant this: it's pretty neat what the OpenChord does, plugging into the Wiimote and convincing the console that it's a controller, and converting your finger presses into button inputs. It's a funny concept, and it's executed well. But somewhere around 40 seconds in, something happens that vindicates every feeling of unease and confusion anyone has every had about concept of rhythm gaming. For perhaps the first time ever, we hear what these games' mechanical fret-bashing translates too, in real musical terms.

To be fair to the OpenChord crew, who sell V1 kits so you can reenact this whole wretched scene in your own basement, they regret leaving the guitar plugged into an amp:

If you unplug the guitar, you don't really hear it, and if the slight sound is still too much, you can just tap the pick against the strings instead of a full strum...Yeah, what an embarrassing mistake!

Too late guys, the damage is done. Activision: SHUT IT DOWN. [OpenChord via Joystiq]

Its uses are limited—it exists solely to help train its user to throw a perfect serve height (A high, confident toss made 1 to 2 ft. inside the baseline allows the server to uncoil both upward and forward into the court, making contact at 1.5 times body height)—and it might not be terribly practical, but you have to admire the ingenuity. Preemptive sic:

I poped (ed note: this is my favorite new verb) open my wiimote soldered in a few wires to the minus key and then taped the wiimote to left arm (I am right handed).

Then I taped the other end of the wires to my thumb and wrapped a tennis ball in aluminum. So now when I had the ball in my hand it completed the circuit and pressed the button which registers the data in the software. I then toss the ball and when it leaves my hand it unpresses the button stopping the registry of the data from the accelerometer.

From here, our intrepid inventor is able to feed his data into a laptop to calculate his throw height and adjust accordingly. Clever. [Eyes on Tech—Thanks, Mans!]

Coming this fall, you'll have the opportunity to spend your hard-earned dollars on the official Star Wars Lightsaber and Clone Trooper Blaster accessories for the Nintendo Wii.

No word on pricing, but they probably won't be all that expensive. After all, they're just hunks of plastic you clip over your controllers. [Kotaku]

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When Dean Takahashi asked about the potential threat of free games, Iwata responded, "Because of this?" as he pulled out his iPhone.

Talking about the overlap between it and the DSi, he said, "The features of the iPhone and the DSi may overlap. But if we look at our differences, the areas of overlap are small. If, in the future, this overlap becomes bigger to the extent we should call it direct competition, I have to be more careful. I can't bring out the iPhone during an interview anymore. Today, I don't worry about it."

Man that's hardcore, like Bill Gates banning iPods from his house.

So if he couldn't use a Mac or Windows PC, what kind of computer would he use then? Linux? [VentureBeat]

Last year, Mark said the thrill of 1:1 motion it delivered was "greater than maybe any experience I've had on the Wii aside from Super Mario Galaxy."

This year, I tried the three games NIntendo was showcasing with Wii MotionPlus at its booth to see how far it's come and, this close to the final product, whether it's really worth it: Wii Sports Resort, EA's Tiger Woods PGA 10 and Grand Slam Tennis. The former two come with a MotionPlus dongle bundled in.

Grand Slam Tennis
"What the hell do I need MotionPlus for?" was my immediate reaction. It felt no more precise than Wii Sports Tennis—it simply let the game distinguish whether I was holding the racket on the left or side of my body, so I could swing backhand and forehand style (and it didn't do that so well). The abstraction level—the conceptual distance between my actions and what happened on the screen—also didn't feel great. It certainly wasn't 1:1. Not so hopeful!

EA's Tiger Woods PGA 10
Aha, here we go. Tiger Woods PGA 10 delivers more on the 1:1 front—as you twist the Wiimote left or right, so does the club on screen, which translates predictably in your shots. I kept cutting the ball way to the right, since I couldn't keep my swing entirely straight. But I felt completely in control—I knew it was my fault and it was mimicking my motions perfectly. Score.

Wii Sports Resort
No surprise, Nintendo's own software is where it shines, where the value of MotionPlus comes through the most.

What was surprising was where it mattered the most: In the dueling sword game, while my sword onscreen mapped perfectly to my motions with the remote (with ever so slightly perceptible lag) I destroyed my opponent with high speed wrist waggles, so in actually gameplay, MotionPlus seemingly offered nothing.

Then I got to archery. Holding the Wiimote vertically, it becomes the bow. The nunchuck is where you grip the string. So, you start with your arm out and bring the nunchuck up to the Wiimote. You press Z to virtually pinch the string, and pull the nunchuck back toward you, away from the remote, like you'd prime a real bow. Release Z, and the arrow fires. It's a really satisfying experience, one of the Wii games where the motions don't feel totally arbitrary. It depends on the MotionPlus to relay precisely where in space you're holding the remote, so you can aim. So you need MotionPlus—a definite win.

Finally, I played table tennis. It destroyed any doubts I had about MotionPlus. Everything was mapped precisely 1:1. If you twisted the remote left or right as you swung the paddle, the ball would respond when you smacked it with topspin or backspin. The physics, while simple, felt completely natural, along with everything else. It was fast, it was accurate, it was a blast. I felt like I was actually playing table tennis, more than I've felt like I was playing any other sport on the Wii.

This in part due to the scale of the game—replicating ping pong 1:1 is much easier than tennis, which takes place on a different scale. But the mastery of the simulation, the fluidness means you'll never go back to Wii Sport Tennis, which feels positively last-gen by comparison. Wii Sports Resort delivers on so much of the original promise of the Wii.

What it made clear, however, is that MotionPlus by itself doesn't necessarily guarantee the experience is going to be better, just because the remote tracking is that much more accurate. It's still totally up to the developer to make use of it in a way that's actually good—so while Red Steel 2, and maybe even the new Zelda will require MotionPlus, it doesn't mean they're necessarily going to have better motion controls or be better games. It just means they can be better. Way better, even, if the developer knows what they're doing.

But then again, if a bunch of games require the MotionPlus, it's not like you're going to have much of a choice anyway. [Giz@E3]

Dear lord. Eight years with no HD and a processor that won't allow the new Super Mario Bros. on Wii to feature online play?

On the HD front, Iwata says, "If we have an opportunity to make a new console, it will probably support HD because it is now common throughout the world. However, as far as the Wii is concerned, we have not found a significant reason to make it HD-compatible at this time. What is the significant meaning to the users? I don't think we should do it unless we find that reason."

Ashcraft notes that Japan stops analog broadcasting in 2011, so he's suspecting we'll actually see a new Nintendo console sometime before—so more like three years. [VentureBeat via Kotaku]