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Help! I need a Wii!

A

avincent52

macrumors regular
Original poster
Nov 6, 2007
104
0
Good people.
As you probably know, Nintendo doesn't do business like Apple. With the iphone, you had to wait a little on launch day, but by the end of the week you could just walk up and buy one.
With the Wii game console, it's still only sporadically available a full year after its launch.
Since my neighbor stood on line *last* November, my 10-year son has been wanting one bad, and he's been making it difficult on Dad by actually *behaving.* His seven year old sister, too.

So does anyone here have
a) some connection to Nintendo, a retailer or some other way to get one without a hunt. (There would be a modest finders fee for a console only package or a sub $350 bundle at list price with receipt.)

b) Insider info about how to target the search. I've signed up for wiialerts and a few other things, so I'm looking for info about when and how stores actually receive Wiis and put them up for sale. FWIW, I'm in northern New Jersey.

If you can help me and my kids out, please e-mail me at CRYOQUIZ AT AOL DOT COM.
Thanks in advance
Allen St. John
 
There were plenty available over the summer. Xmas and this machine are never going to mix, last year I had a preorder down for months only to find they couldn't deliver till February. In January I went to Argos and they were getting about 6 or so in stock the following day, preorder was put down and I got one.

I doubt a Nintendo insider would be of much help. You probably need to find out when stores get deliveries, preferably the smaller shops. People did that around here, stores wouldn't sell all their stock off as preorders, but leave some open to regular shoppers. But there would be queues on the mornings they had deliveries.

It's getting harder to find one in Manchester now. I reckon by next week we'll be back to huge morning queues. Lasting until Feb or March.

Edit: oh, and beware scalpers. There are cheeky folk around who'll take advantage of you and try and get a few $100 extra.
 
Best thing to do is visit game forums and see when stores are releasing. You'll probably have to get up early and camp, but if you want it, you'll do that. That's what I did.

Check out cheapassgamer.com and read through the forum. Hope that helps.
 
Your best bet is to call your local game store and find out what day shipments come in. Wiis may not be on those shipments but you can at least try. Wiis are not completely unavailable and a hookup to Nintendo isn't necessary either.

You can also try Craigslist. I got mine there for $270, brand new with a receipt dated 5 days prior to the date I bought it off the kid. I don't care to know why he was selling only that the receipt was good and the Wii was sealed. In my case $270 is exactly what I'd pay out the door for the console plus tax so I lost nothing and I think since he bought it with store credit he gained back his own cash. Deal locally not over ebay though is my opinion.
 
Help for European ii buyers

With a little help from Google translator you should be able to order a Wii from Germany. As a UK buyer even with next-day shipping it only worked out £10 more than the UK RRP.
 
Wiis are really hard to find here - but you can find them. My best advice is to find your local stores and ask when they get shipments usually. Check the store fliers on Sunday to see which stores advertise Wiis. If they advertise Wiis, they almost definitely will have some in stock.

By the way, I've found iTrackr to work the best.
 
I almost didn't get my Wii, but luckily I have a relative who lives in Philadelphia who saw a Wii and knew it was my birthday soon, so that relative sent it to where I live. If it wasn't for that, I wouldn't have one.

Why is it still so hard to find? Is it because the demand is incredibly high, Nintendo isn't shipping enough to stores, isn't making enough or a combination of the three?
 
I live in Washington state...they are in Wal-Mart all the time for retail price...i was there this evening and they had 3 in stock
 
Well, iTeen, that's not that inconvenient for him, you're just across the country. ;)

I've got friends in Florida who claim there's a bunch there. I don't know how far you're willing to go for a Wii. You could try Amazon.com, though it's probably on some sort of backorder, considering Christmas.
 
I'd try iTrackr. Looks like it should work. I can tell you that if Target has them in the weekend Ad they will have some that Sunday. Just be sure to get there at 8am if you want to make sure you get one .
 
There is a wii for trade in the marketplace. I don't see why you can't offer the seller cash.
 
I live in the UK, and my local HMV has had an "out of stock" sign up every day since the Wii launched last year.
 
slowpoke said:
I live in the UK, and my local HMV has had an "out of stock" sign up every day since the Wii launched last year.
Click to expand...

You can buy them in Germany to UK/European spec, only difference is they've got a 2-pin plug on the end.

Arogs get a delivery at 8am every Wednesday, try and phone them between 8 and 9 but they are usually sold out. The only reliable place I've found in the UK is Game, find out the day of the delivery and wait in the shop for one.
 
If your willing to take the day off, go to the Nintendo store in Midtown Manhatten and stand in line. If your one of the first 80-100 people on line, your pretty much guaranteed to get a Wii.

A buddy of mine got there about an hour early last week and was number 20.

I'm not sure how it will be now that the Holiday rush is on...

I went to a local Toys-R-Us last week (before T-Day) and they had a bunch of them in stock. I doubt they have any after this weekend though.
 
Fuzzy14 said:
You can buy them in Germany to UK/European spec, only difference is they've got a 2-pin plug on the end.

Arogs get a delivery at 8am every Wednesday, try and phone them between 8 and 9 but they are usually sold out. The only reliable place I've found in the UK is Game, find out the day of the delivery and wait in the shop for one.
Click to expand...
Oh; I already have one - I camped out in at the aforementioned HMV in January. =P
 
Captain Brooks said:
Why is it still so hard to find? Is it because the demand is incredibly high, Nintendo isn't shipping enough to stores, isn't making enough or a combination of the three?
Click to expand...

Apparently they set some machines aside once the sold out status was lost over the Summer (here at least) so they can ship loads before Xmas so this wouldn't happen. Only they didn't last that long :D
It's like this because it's the fastest selling console in gaming history. Even more than the PS2.
 
Apparently they set some machines aside once the sold out status was lost over the Summer (here at least) so they can ship loads before Xmas so this wouldn't happen. Only they didn't last that long
Click to expand...

Pardon me if I'm being cynical, but *all* the Wiis, the full capacity of a big company churning out machines for a year, got sold out since last Friday?

I do think that Nintendo is holding a lot of machines back so that they can create an artificial supply problem, and get lots of free publicity about the Wii craze on all those news channels starved for real news.

Once people realize that there really are wiis out there, I think that most of the people who want wiis this season will be able to get them at or close to retail price.

I just want to get one now, at what I am convinced is the absolute peak of the demand, so that I can move on to other things, and that's why I'm willing to pay a modest premium.

best
Allen
 
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