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Where are Wii?

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the not-under-my-tree dept.

WirePosted writes "Santa is in trouble, it looks like supplying the Christmas need for a Nintendo Wii game console is in jeopardy as stocks wither under constant and heavy demand. Conspiracy believers suggest this is an orchestrated move on behalf of Nintendo." Since this happens to be what I want for Christmas, I hope they work it out, or my loving wife has already found one.

7 of 440 comments (clear)

  1. Couple Thoughts by stoolpigeon · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Two things jump out at me in this article. The first is that this once again proves that Gartner is worse than useless. The second is that they left out one element. Take a look at Amazon or over at ebay. There are literaly thousands of Wiis that have been purchased by people for no other reason than turning around and selling them above retail. This has been going on for quite a while, though the prices have really spiked in recent weeks. I think they were averaging around $350 on Amazon for quite a while, as opposed to the over $500 now. And the number for sale there has greatly increased. I think some people may end up still holding them after the holidays though, because part of the appeal of the wii is the price. If I'm going to drop $600 on a console - I might as well get a 360 with some games or a PS3 that can play all those PS2 games out there.

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    It's hard to believe that's how Micronians are made. Why don't we see it right now by having you both kiss one another?
    1. Re:Couple Thoughts by antifoidulus · · Score: 5, Informative

      I think some people may end up still holding them after the holidays though

      Yeah, but most of them won't be out any significant amounts of money though, because they will simply return them the day after Christmas. Last year I went to Best Buy the day after Christmas because my mom bought me the wrong Simpsons season on DVD, so I had to wait in the return line. I noticed that almost everyone in front of me was returning ps3s. I bet that most of them were people who bought the ps3 to try to sell for a few grand on ebay, and when they didn't sell they went straight to best buy to recoup their $600. So most of the resellers probably consider it a no-risk investment on their part.

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      Monstar L
    2. Re:Couple Thoughts by stoolpigeon · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Wont you be doing the same on the other platforms though? and from what I've seen wii games are a bit cheaper than the other two. I agree with you about the innovative game play - but if the console alone started at $600 or more, it wouldn't be selling like it is. Nintendo really found a sweet spot teaming up that new style of play with a great price point.

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      It's hard to believe that's how Micronians are made. Why don't we see it right now by having you both kiss one another?
    3. Re:Couple Thoughts by billcopc · · Score: 5, Interesting

      I'd suggest these stores instate a "no returns" policy on gaming consoles, or tack on a fat restocking fee (like 30%), at least during the holiday season - anything to deter the bottom-feeders who are openly abusing the store's (supposed) goodwill return policy.

      I tried a little experiment last week, I posted a (fake) Wii for sale on a local board. Within minutes I had a dozen replies offering $400-450 (retail price is ~$300 Canadian tax-in). Using their email addys, I looked them up on the sale boards and realized they were all resellers tacking on another $100 and re-flipping Wiis.

      At that point I was EXTREMELY tempted to lure them to a remote area and beat them senseless with a Colecovision.

      Sure, Christmas is little more than a sales event (sorry, Jesus freaks!), but this is just outright hateful greed.

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      -Billco, Fnarg.com
  2. Plenty of Wiis here by Troed · · Score: 5, Informative

    There are lots of Wiis in stock in shops in Sweden. Where do you want them sent?

    (Seriously, I have no idea what Nintendo is up to, but claiming there's a severe shortage of PAL Wiis in the UK with lots of PAL Wiis available in other countries - only the plug on the AC adapter differs - doesn't sound right. Add a firmware flash and then the same hardware would become NTSC ... )

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    it's in my head
  3. Where are Wii? Well, Ii'm iin Saiint Louiis by Bushido+Hacks · · Score: 5, Funny

    Ii'm iin Saiint Louiis. Slashdot iis iin Dexter, Miichiigan. And the capiital of the Uniited States iis iin Washiington, DC.

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    The Rapture is NOT an exit strategy.
  4. Re:Where are Wii? Well, Ii'm iin Saiint Louiis by StringBlade · · Score: 5, Funny

    Don't you mean Saiint Lou-wii?

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    ...and that's the way the cookie crumbles.