All Entries in the "Gaming on Fios" Category

Dec. 15, 2006

 

Nintendo is offering to replace the original version of the wrist straps for the Wii Remote with a newer version. They  have received some reports that when consumers swing the Wii Remote with the original version of the wrist-strap using excessive force and accidentally let go, the cord connecting the controller to the wrist strap can break, potentially causing the Wii Remote to strike bystanders or objects.

 

Nintendo will allow customers to exchange the old straps, which have a 0.024 inch diameter, for a beefed up strap that has a diameter of 0.04 inch, company spokesman Yasuhiro Minagawa said. The worldwide exchange is expected to cost the company several million dollars.

 

“People tended to get a bit excited, especially while playing Wii sports, and in some cases the control would come loose from their hands,” Minagawa said. “The new strap will be almost twice as thick.”

The control wand is one of the unique features of the Wii, which Nintendo introduced as its counterchallenge in a fierce competition with Sony Corp.’s PlayStation 3 and Microsoft Corp.’s Xbox 360.Nintendo is hoping the easy-to-control wand will appeal to a wider crowd of players — not just young men.

Customers can exchange the straps through their local Nintendo service centers, Minagawa said.

But the offbeat stories of Wii controllers going ballistic haven’t hurt sales.The market research company NPD Group estimated that U.S. consumers bought 476,000 Wiis in the two weeks following its Nov. 17 launch. That beat Sony Corp.’s PlayStation 3 console, which sold just under 200,000 units amid widespread shortages.

Nintendo has delivered more machines so far to consumers than Sony has, partly because of Sony’s production problems.

 

Because Wii consoles shipped starting in early December already utilized the newer version of the strap, you will need to determine which version of the strap you have before ordering a replacement. To determine if you need the newer version of the strap, or to place an order for a replacement, click here.

 

 

 

Separately Friday, Nintendo also said it would replace 200,000 AC adapters for its DS and DS Lite consoles in Japan. Nintendo said the move would not affect adapters overseas, and officials expected only a small impact on earnings.