Wii modding - new Wii's cannot be modded.

[spystyle]

Hello from Maine,

A while back I modded 3 Wii systems, it was pretty easy.

So yesterday I picked up a Wii because I had a leftover modchip (WiiKey). I took the system home and disassembled it, ready to perform the surgery, when to my surprise I saw the guts were different!

Yikes!

So I scoured the 'net until I found the right info, here is the skinny. At the time of this writing there are 3 versions of the Wii:

Version A DVD chip is marked "D2A" or "DMS". These are very easy to mod.

Version B DVD chip is marked "D2B". These can be modded but are much more difficult than the above.

Version C DVD chip is marked "D2C" and can not be modded at the time of this writing.

Here is the good news: Each Wii box and Wii console has the unit's serial number on it, so you can discover what the Wii version is without having to bring it home and disassemble it! Here is the chart:

North American Consoles (USA, Canada, and Mexico) have 3 prefixes LU1, LU3 and LU5. LU1 production seems to have stopped LU3s are still produced in small quantities and LU5s seem to provide most North American production.

LU1
LU10000xxxx - LU10580xxxx D2A/DMS/D2B without cut pins
LU10580xxxx - LU10613xxxx (gamble) Could have D2B or could have D2C
LU10613xxxx - [And Higher] Have D2C Chips

LU3
LU30000xxxx - LU31539xxxx D2A/DMS/D2B without cut pins
LU31539xxxx - LU31546xxxx (gamble) Could be safe could have cut pins
LU31546xxxx - LU31867xxxx Have D2B Chips with Cut pins
LU31867xxxx - LU31874xxxx (gamble) Could have D2B with cut pins or could have D2C
LU31874xxxx - [And Higher] Have D2C Chips

LU5
LU50000xxxx - LU51522xxxx D2A/DMS/D2B without cut pins
LU51522xxxx - LU51634xxxx (gamble) Could be safe could have cut pins
LU51634xxxx - LU52386xxxx Have D2B Chips with Cut pins
LU52386xxxx - LU52390xxxx (gamble) Could have D2B with cut pins or could have D2C
LU52390xxxx - [And Higher] Have D2C Chips

So I had this un-moddable Wii and was all upset. I printed out the above chart and put it in my pocket. I returned the "bad" Wii and found a "good" used Wii at a video game store. I simply carried that chart around with me until I found a winner.

Now I have a modded Wii and my daughter is so happy, but I hope that stupid remote doesn't go flying and knock me in the head.



Cheers,
Craig



WiiKey purchase:

http://tinyurl.com/2xrkol
http://tinyurl.com/26x4zw


Wii modding tutorials (excellent, with pictures, free registration required):
http://tinyurl.com/yrrn97





P.S. This thread is not to discuss weather or not you approve of modchips, it's about me giving other like minded modders a heads up.

[ChadTower]

Wow that's a craptactular soldering job.  That thing is going to come off the first time that person moves the console.

[spystyle]

Agreed, but it's incomplete. Two points still are not soldered. Also he used uninsulated wires.

I like the picture because it show the modchip and the "A" chipset.

[CheffoJeffo]

Courtesy link to previous (now butchered) thread on same subject:

http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=71557.0

spystyle -- If you want to selectively exclude opinions other than yours, perhaps you can apply for a position with the post police.    Until then, unless people break the rules, I think you have to accept that other people will think differently and may post in your precious threads.

Let's let the moderators do the moderating, shall we ?

EDIT: Might want to lock this now before anybody else chimes in ...

EDIT2: Too late.

[patrickl]

Why is this so important that you need to start another thread?

[spystyle]

Because I didn't like how the other one went South.

Please, let's try to focus and stay on topic.

This thread is a head's up for Wii modders.

All other content is off topic.

 

[hypernova]

I figured it would be common knowledge that new versions of any consoles eventually come out that are initially incapable of being modded.

[spystyle]

Yup, logically they would take steps to thwart modding, but it still warrants a detailed head's up.

[versapak]

Yup, logically they would take steps to thwart modding, but it still warrants a detailed head's up.

Exactly.

Thanks for the heads up.

Tis a bummer that I apparently waited to long to replace my broken Wii.


I highly doubt I'll be able to find one that can be modded in my area. Guess my wiikey will just sit there as decoration.

[spystyle]

Hopefully you can find a used one somewhere, using the serial number chart in the first post you can identity the "good ones" pretty easily.

Or wait for them to figure the C version out. When my daughter first got a PSP it was the "wrong version", but a couple months later there was a fix.

Good luck!
Craig

[Hoopz]

Ahigh is that you?   

 

[Frosty]

So, what kind of homebrew will that new modded Wii be running?

[Singapura]

There's no such thing as an unmoddable Wii. http://www.wiiloaded.com/wii-news-Modding-the-Unmoddable-Wii-a-10173

[pointdablame]

There's no such thing as an unmoddable Wii. http://www.wiiloaded.com/wii-news-Modding-the-Unmoddable-Wii-a-10173

That is the second version of the system, there is now a third.  The third IS currently unmoddable.

[ChadTower]

Key being currently, of course... they'll break that one.  They all get broken eventually and the Wii will be quick.  I think the industry learned a serious lesson from the "unbreakable" Xbox.  They hired some of the best security experts out there to design that scheme and one guy broke it in his spare time.

Of course, that one guy was an MIT doctoral candidate, but hey...   

[spystyle]

It's true, it seems that both "teams" are equally smart.

[ChadTower]

It's true, it seems that both "teams" are equally smart.

It's not even close.  You've got a handful of experts on the manufacturer's side and you've got every other expert in the world on the hackers' side.  Manufacturers have no chance of winning that battle and sooner or later they're going to find a different method than brute force security.

[spystyle]

Agreed, but I wrote "equally smart" not "equally numbered"

It's a good point though, they are outnumbered :)

[northerngames]

are the solder points missing now?

or has the whole area been removed and now a blank board in that area?

[spystyle]

http://forums.maxconsole.net/showthread.php?p=592113#post592113

Some solder points are missing, and the chip which the solder points lead to is completely different inside.

Each solder point leads to a "leg" on the chip. So if they simply removed the solder points we could simply solder directly to the "legs"

But this chip is completely different, though it looks the same. Before anyone can mod the "C version" they will have to discover the pinout of that chip and wire the WiiKey accordingly.

That chip is h3ll small! Soldering to a leg is nearly impossible for all but the elite. But I've read about a trick to solder tiny tiny things:

Using a regular soldering iron, and trying to solder to a tiny tiny leg without bridging to the surrounding legs, is super difficult. A small glob of solder would bridge 3 legs and cause the system to fail. But what I read about was simple and smart:

Solder a tiny wire to the tiny leg, the solder glob will probably bridge 3 legs. Use a pair of needle nose pliers to hold a "wick" - it's made of braided copper, it sucks up solder when heated. Heat the wick with the soldering iron, hold the wick to the glob, it will suck up all the solder - but it will not suck up the solder that is connecting the tiny wire to the tiny leg because the wire is blocking the wick.

That's how you do "nano soldering" with a standard soldering iron!

I wish I could find the link to that tutorial...

[ChadTower]

Something that small would be done with brushed on paste and an SMD reflow iron.

[SNAAKE]

Ive soldered directly on the legs before..its not hard at all..all you do is give it a "touch" and use the thinest tip. and I used masking tape the cover the area so I dont mess anything up. I had a guy bring me 3 wiis to fix..apprently he messed up THREE times and realized he simply cant do this...

[spystyle]

Something that small would be done with brushed on paste and an SMD reflow iron.

Truly, but using the method I wrote about, you can solder tiny things with a $10 iron.

I think the high end irons go for about $200.

Try what I wrote, you'll say "duh" I should have thought of that!

That's what I said when I read it.

Still trying to re-find that tutorial....The Google Gods are not smiling on me this morning....

Ive soldered directly on the legs before..its not hard at all..all you do is give it a "touch" and use the thinest tip. and I used masking tape the cover the area so I dont mess anything up. I had a guy bring me 3 wiis to fix..apprently he messed up THREE times and realized he simply cant do this...

Groovy, you are a pro, check your mailbox in a week, I've elected you to mod my PS2!

As for that guy who messed up three times -

I had a catastrophic failure myself, I couldn't figure out why solder points were falling off the board and nothing was working. What I later discovered is that you can not use an extension cord with a 15 watt soldering iron - it won't get hot enough to work properly. That guy was probably using an extension cord on a 15 watt soldering iron.

Cheers,
Craig

[ChadTower]

I have tried that, actually... wouldn't want to do it on anything I couldn't afford to throw in the trash.

[Green Giant]

Ive soldered directly on the legs before..its not hard at all..all you do is give it a "touch" and use the thinest tip. and I used masking tape the cover the area so I dont mess anything up. I had a guy bring me 3 wiis to fix..apprently he messed up THREE times and realized he simply cant do this...

I had to do the same thing on mine when I broke off one of the solder pads.  I have to disagree with you in that it wasn't that easy.  I guess if you have really steady hands it is.  I managed to get a single strand from a stranded wire on there, and then I coated the thing with a hot glue gun.  Stuff works great and there is no change of bridging or losing the tiny connection.  If you have a razor blade on hand, you can run it between the legs to ensure no bridging occured and you are good to go.

As for unmoddable, I am sure someone will make something similar to the solder free dms4 snap on bios chip to attach to the legs.  This won't last.  If they really want to discourage modding, they should friction weld the case together, that would suck for modding.

[spystyle]

...If they really want to discourage modding, they should friction weld the case together, that would suck for modding.

They could release a console which the entire board is dipped in molten plastic, the hard "carbon-fiber" type. But then they themselves wouldn't be able to repair a system.

It would be a trade-off and determined hackers would probably made a "boot-disk" style mod for it.

I have tried that, actually... wouldn't want to do it on anything I couldn't afford to throw in the trash.

You didn't like it? I thought it was so cool... It seems flawless.

[ChadTower]

Have you actually tried it, though?  It sounds great conceptually... it doesn't really account for the fact that solder wicks to heat, and so that solder that you say is "blocked by the tiny wire" is just going to wick around it and up to the heat source. 

[shardian]

Have you actually tried it, though?  It sounds great conceptually... it doesn't really account for the fact that solder wicks to heat, and so that solder that you say is "blocked by the tiny wire" is just going to wick around it and up to the heat source. 

I think the basic theory is that you pull up the wick before that last bit is sucked up. It seems you would end up with a crappy joint alot of the time though.

[ChadTower]

When you're talking about one strand of a stranded wire, with no mechanical connection, pretty much any joint is going to be crappy.

[spystyle]

Have you actually tried it, though?  It sounds great conceptually... it doesn't really account for the fact that solder wicks to heat, and so that solder that you say is "blocked by the tiny wire" is just going to wick around it and up to the heat source. 

Hey I found that tutorial I based my theory on:
http://members.lycos.nl/anthonyvh/index.php?page=smd

and no, I have not yet tried it but I'm convinced it will work, I think if the wick is applied gently and quickly, like a light touch, it will not suck the solder out from under the wire.

When you're talking about one strand of a stranded wire, with no mechanical connection, pretty much any joint is going to be crappy.

I use solid wire

..It seems you would end up with a crappy joint alot of the time though.

Maybe... Still, a "crappy" joint with hot glue on it would suffice...

I don't know, I'm not EE and I don't feel like spending $200 on soldering equipment. I will take "good enough" for $10 instead.

Cheers,
Craig
 

[ChadTower]

You can BYO SMD hot air reflow iron for about $20 in parts that reportedly works very, very well.  Use a single handed desoldering iron with the red bulb, take the bulb off, and put a cheap aquarium air compressor to route air through the hollow iron.

[spystyle]

http://tinyurl.com/hfzj3

Interesting!

[ChadTower]

The ones I've seen take the red bulb off entirely but that's the same concept.  Haven't tried it myself.

[spystyle]

I was thinking the same thing, why not remove the bulb? Also, couldn't they have done the tip in a cooler way?

But it's a start.

I guess for that to apply to soldering tiny wires to a tiny chip leg - a person would tin the tiny wire, flux the tiny leg, then place the wire on the leg and blow hot air onto it to bond them. I'll have to try that.

Cheers,
Craig

[ChadTower]

They'd use solder paste instead, most likely.

[Green Giant]

When you're talking about one strand of a stranded wire, with no mechanical connection, pretty much any joint is going to be crappy.

I use solid wire

I am talking about connecting to the tiny legs off the chip on the board.  I don't have solid wire that small, what gauge do you use?  Hell, I could barely distinguish between the legs with my eyes.

As for the single strand on there, the connection works great.  All the hot glue encases it in plastic making it shock proof.  I have moved the thing several times in whatever bag I have laying around, and still works great.

[spystyle]

I have crazy small wire!

http://tinyurl.com/288re3

30 gauge is so very small, you have to see it to believe it.

You could solder one to each leg very easily with this crazy stuff.

Cheers,
Craig

[SNAAKE]

^ thats what you are supposed to use for mods. it gets hotter than standard wire too..maybe because its so thin.

[abrannan]

I am talking about connecting to the tiny legs off the chip on the board.  I don't have solid wire that small, what gauge do you use?  Hell, I could barely distinguish between the legs with my eyes.

Radio Shack wrapping wire, 30 guage Kynar will run you under $3 for a spool.

Forget soldering to the pins, the D2B chips with the cut pins are a beast to Mod.  You have to file (or very carefully dremel) away the chip casing, and solder to the traces inside the chip itself.  I was able to do it using the above mentioned wire, and a 15-watt iron from RS.  No reflow iron, etc.

[spystyle]

IIR RS 30 gauge is uninsulated

[Green Giant]

I like my method, well not really like, but I am glad it worked.  I guess I don't have a steady hand, reason the trace came off in the first place.  I just tinned up the wire and tried to touch the lead for a sec.  Eventually it held pretty good and I think the hot glue is the way to go.  Even if you managed to attach one of those tiny 30awg wires to the leg, it doesn't have alot to hand on to.

Are yall sure 30 awg is small enough for attaching to one of those legs.  I think it would be to big.  I just ripped open an old phone cord for the wires to the traces on the board, but that wire was probably three legs wide compared to the Wii chip.

Forget soldering to the pins, the D2B chips with the cut pins are a beast to Mod.  You have to file (or very carefully dremel) away the chip casing, and solder to the traces inside the chip itself. 

I wish I knew about that when I tried it.  I initially thought I broke the thing, then I did some searching and someone suggested wiring to the D2B chip.  I did that and it was a beast to mod.  I only had to do one wire though, can't imagine all 5.

Just to clarify, I am talking about attaching a wire to this chip.  see below

[spystyle]

.

[abrannan]

IIR RS 30 gauge is uninsulated

Not the stuff I bought.  They had red insulated, blue insulated, and bare available at my local store.

[Hoopz]

Because I didn't like how the other one went South.
Please, let's try to focus and stay on topic.
This thread is a head's up for Wii modders.
All other content is off topic.

I thought you were talking about this chip:

 

[spystyle]

You didn't think that was funny?

I thought it was funny.

[abrannan]

You didn't think that was funny?

I thought it was funny.

The point being made is that it was offtopic, posted by you, who had previously lambasted folks for being offtopic.  Hence,  .  Whether or not it was funny (btw, it wasn't) is irrelevant.

[ChadTower]

Now look who has a chip on his shoulder.

[spystyle]

gosh, people are so uptight.

It was just a silly potato chip with Chinese written on it, it's not supposed to make people upset.

I give up on you guys.

[Hoopz]

What's the point of writing on a pringle?  I don't want to read jokes on the chips.  It just slows me down!

It's about as stupid as claiming someone is modding a wii for homebrew.   

[Green Giant]

gosh, people are so uptight.

It was just a silly potato chip with Chinese written on it, it's not supposed to make people upset.

I give up on you guys.

Its ok, I got the joke.

[Hoopz]

We all got the joke.  Good thing we got it too before it was deleted!   

[M37R01D]

D2C has been cracked and we will be doing them soon
also to the poster i like how u use my install pic for you topic starter

BTW to the 1st 2 reply posters

1. the chip isnt going to come loose, ppl have dropped these consoles from 5 ft high and no damage

2. the install isnt complete, he took a pic from my tutorial and that pic was abuot 1/2 way into the install.

3. why use insulated wires for something so short? u try stripping both ends on a wire that short

4. check some of my other installs and repairs and im sure u will think otherwise

[spystyle]

Craig,

I have read your posted on BYOAC in regards to the unhackable wii...I found this, thought you might find it a good read.

http://www.maxconsole.net/?mode=news&newsid=21266

Frank

[spystyle]

...also to the opening poster, I like how u use my install pic for you topic starter.

If you don't want people to Google up your tutorial pics, look up "no robots".

...ppl have dropped these consoles from 5 ft high and no damage

That's a little extreme isn't it? What ever happened to the good old "tug test" ?

Now the kids in this forum are going to be throwing their consoles around to test their soldering? I think it's a bad trend. 

3. why use insulated wires for something so short? u try stripping both ends on a wire that short

I agree, you don't need insulated wires for such a tiny distance.

Cheers,
Craig

[danny_galaga]

Craig,

I have read your posted on BYOAC in regards to the unhackable wii...I found this, thought you might find it a good read.

http://www.maxconsole.net/?mode=news&newsid=21266

Frank

 

who thinks up this stuff? im in awe...

[spystyle]

What a nightmare!

30 wires, that tops the dreaded PS2 mod install (I dread it anyway)

If I soldered 30 wires to that chip I would not drop the console after

Cheers,
Craig

[M37R01D]

hehe ye athe 5ft drop wasnt on purpose it was an accident,
the IR wire ripped off, and the chip install was on a clipped pin D2B,
and if those can take a 5ft drop i dont see why the chip woul dmagiclly fall outta place

anyways, D2C chip installs coming soon YeY

i should have the prototype soon, and will post pics of the final install after

[patrickl]

...also to the opening poster, I like how u use my install pic for you topic starter.

If you don't want people to Google up your tutorial pics, look up "no robots".

I guess he doesn't appreciate the use of his images without even a direction or link to where you got it from.



That new D2C mod looks insane 

[spystyle]

Good point, I should have added a link. I didn't even think of that. Nor did I notice he had a bunch of tutorials, to me it was just a random pic that was context sensitive.

I search Google's images from here:
http://images.google.com/imghp?tab=wi

It could be said that without "no robots" all internet images are "public"

If you make a website, and don't want the images placed in forums, use "no robots", then Google will not index it.

http://tinyurl.com/k5789

You can also manually remove your site from Google and then add "no robots" to avoid future indexes.

[M37R01D]

no worries im not saying anything about using the picture, use as many as you would like, proper credit would be appreciated but not manditory.

i also have a few guides hosted on my site
www.metroidzmodz.com/guides.html

[patrickl]

If you make a website, and don't want the images placed in forums, use "no robots", then Google will not index it.

If you don't let Google (and other search sites) index your site then you basically get no (or far less) visitors.

Anyway ...

Is this picture of the D2C mod really the way they are going to do it in the future? Looks pretty complex. I wonder if that won't lead to a whole lot of broken Wii's 

[spystyle]

If you don't let Google (and other search sites) index your site then you basically get no (or far less) visitors.

It becomes "invite only", like from a link in his sig or only from a certain threads.

[psik0tik]

It's not unmoddable...it's just a challenge at the moment. Saying a console is unmoddable is like saying there will never be bacon flavored water....and there will be.

[patrickl]

Looks there is an option available already:

D2CKey.com

[ChadTower]

It's not unmoddable...it's just a challenge at the moment. Saying a console is unmoddable is like saying there will never be bacon flavored water....and there will be.

There is bacon flavored water... it's called grease.

[shardian]

It's not unmoddable...it's just a challenge at the moment. Saying a console is unmoddable is like saying there will never be bacon flavored water....and there will be.

There is bacon flavored water... it's called grease.

Go to one of those seedy looking pancake houses while on vacation. They serve bacon flavored water with a side of greasy fingerprints all the time!

[spystyle]

Hey! I just found a new Wii mod for A and B versions. It's in the likesness of a PSX mod!

http://www.mod-chip.bz/catalog/freewii-modchip-p-39.html

[SNAAKE]

^ welcome to last year...

[spystyle]

oops, I guess I shouldn't have posted that, but I am very nostalgic about PSX modchips!

I am that old!

I remember it like it was yesterday, back when 56K was wicked fast. I burned my PSX games on a 2X burner! All you needed was a computer and a soldering iron and you could have every game. Provided you ordered a modchip from Hong Kong. Those were the days :)

Modchips didn't have the social stigma back then, they were awe inspiring to all young men (even though videogames were bane of their girlfriends).

Cheers,
Craig

[M37R01D]

im in the process of a review, but here is one install pic




BTW
those pic chips can be made for about $0.50 a piece they are most likely just running the wiinja v2 hex or the wiifree code

[shmokes]

Sweet Jesus, that's beyond my soldering skills.  Bravo.

[spystyle]

+1

[M37R01D]

another ;-]


EDIT

here is another but an all top point install

[shardian]

dang dude, that is crazy. Major props for the SMD skills.

[knave]

Ok, maybee I'm not "with-it" but what do you gain out  of all that hard work?

Don't get me wrong...it's awesome. 

But I mean moding an xbox I understand...Linux, hard drives media stuff...it opens all sorts of cool options.

But what do you get with the Wii?  DVD playback?  more memory?...access to USB harddrives? 

I'm tempted to mod mine just for fun but 30 wires?. 5 wires I could do. I think My wii is just the clipped pin version of the modable chip.

[Dervacumen]

At this point you don't get a lot from a modded Wii unless you want to run copies or imports.  DVD playback capable Wii's are coming anyway - you won't need a chip.

[ChadTower]

Of course, there's no guarantee they'll be any good at it.  Neither the Xbox nor the PS2 is all that great as a DVD player.

[spystyle]

The last NIB DVD player I bought was $25 (It was a Coby portable)

My point is, they are not expesnive, why even bother playing a DVD in a video game console?

Craig

[ChadTower]

# of inputs on a TV is one reason, I guess.  Less devices to stack as well.  Not everyone wants a giant stack of devices and ball of wires.

[spystyle]

That's a fine point. I have built custom shelves in my room and my daughters, with a ball of wires behind each one, and each has a switch box.

My room, 8 input switch box:

1. video from PC
2. Wii
3. GameCube
4. DVD
5. Satellite receiver
6. Xbox
7. PS2

My daughter's room, 6 input switch box:

1. Satellite receiver
2. DreamCast
3. PSX
4. DVD player / recorder
5. VHS
6. N64

We usually hang out in my room on the two computers which also sit on a custom desk. I have both a GameCube and a Wii in my room because most of our GameCube disks are multi-game and the Wii won't read them (yet). I suppose I could toss the DVD player and use the PS2 to play DVDs if I was inclined to.

Cheers,
Craig

[shmokes]

I know this doesn't apply to everyone, cos lots of people don't have surround sound.  But who the hell wants to watch DVDs on the Wii?  It doesn't support 5.1 discreet audio.  It doesn't upconvert.  It costs three times more than a modded Xbox.  Seriously, why?

I mean, if I had any time to play, sure, I wouldn't mind a modded Wii cos I'm unethical and it would allow me to pirate games.  And I can even see getting interested if homebrew opens up.  That could be cool.  But media center?  DVD playback?  Doesn't matter what the software can do.  The hardware is too limited.

[ChadTower]

I know this doesn't apply to everyone, cos lots of people don't have surround sound.  But who the hell wants to watch DVDs on the Wii?  It doesn't support 5.1 discreet audio.  It doesn't upconvert.  It costs three times more than a modded Xbox.  Seriously, why?

I've had three Xboxes... none of them were that good as DVD players.  Lots of skipping and pausing, prone to crashing sometimes when going from one DVD layer to the next.  Great with Xbox discs... not so great with movies.

Lots of people don't have a 5.1 setup to bother with... and few people have a 5.1 setup on every TV in their house.  I know a lot of people who set up their Wiis on a secondary older TV specifically because it's not an HD console and it saves them space on the big TV.

I'm not saying the Wii is any better as a DVD player, of course... but the Xbox is a fantastic streamer, not such a great disc player.

[knave]

The last NIB DVD player I bought was $25 (It was a Coby portable)

My point is, they are not expensive, why even bother playing a DVD in a video game console?

Craig

I for one would love it if my wii would play DVD's.  I don't use our main TV for games. they are in a separate room so even though DVD players are cheap Why should I spend even another $25 if my wii can do even a halfway decent job at playing movies for my kids. I'm sorry but Dora and other kids shows do not need Dolby anything.  

I don't have an xbox or a Ps2 but I hear of lots of folks who use them as DVD players. Especially a few friends with modded xboxes.  

I didn't buy the Wii to play movies but I like options.   I can't wait...

Until then we're just not watching anything on the Videogame TV.  (actually I have some portable units from the car that will work in a pinch.)

[shmokes]

I can't argue with that, I suppose.  I always think that my DVD drive is going out because it's so skippy and terrible with movies.  It always strikes me as strange because my Xbox was bought new and modded within weeks so the DVD-ROM has gotten VERY little use.  It's probably just fine and I just think it's dying cos I only ever use it as a DVD player (rarely -- I usually just rip DVDs and stream them).

Still . . . modding the Wii seems like a gigantic time and money and broken warranty investment for what it gives you right now, unless you're unscrupulous.  Just go buy a $40 Apex DVD player from Walmart.  It'll be even smaller than the Wii, cost for less all things considered.

[ChadTower]

Yeah.  The xbox in my bedroom has very low use on it for a console.  I sometimes get frustrated enough using it as a movie player that I go downstairs and copy the DVD contents onto the hard drive so I can stream it, just to delete it when I'm done.  This xbox has a relatively good drive, too, plays games on most DVDR discs just fine.

[knave]

I guess in a way you are right...if all the mod gave me was DVD playback I would be better buying a cheapie Player.  But hopefully the mod itself would be fun and educational and somedat there might be a homebrew community that makes something interesting for it.  Wiimame anyone?

What I would want is a way to get the wii to play more internet video.  It needs some more plugins.

As for dvd's on the xbox my buddies moded xbox has always played dvd's fine...it's some games that won't run. (that's why he modded it in the first place.) And yes streaming video is cool.

[shardian]

If you want a system that has USEFUL homebrew, get a nintendo DS. It has a frikkin TI-85 emulator which is pretty damn cool. You can run opera browser on it, thus having a fully portable wi-fi internet machine. The DS organizer is pretty cool too.

Hell, I've seen an article where a guy modded a gameboy advance to be a frikkin spectral analyzer.

[ChadTower]

Do you have to mod the DS to get that homebrew running?

[shardian]

Do you have to mod the DS to get that homebrew running?

No.
Most of the homebrew works with just a slot 1 card. For Opera and other GB Advance homebrew, you have to get a slot 2 card. The GBadvance side is where the hardcore homebrew is at. I will eventually get my own DS, as my wife loves the one I got her WAY more than I really expected her too.

[shmokes]

Wow . . . I wish I knew that last January (assuming TI-85 isn't the only calculator it can emulate).  I took a Stats class and needed a TI-83.  A TI-86 or TI-89 would work too, so long as I could install the separate Stats package but I wonder if that would be possible on a version being emulated on the DS.  TI-83 is the bomb for stats, though.  If there was a TI-83 emulator available, and I had known about it, I would have a DS right now.  I could have justified it. 

[lcddream]

just pretend you bought it when you needed it...

 

[shmokes]

I'm too poor now.  If I really wanted a DS, and I could afford it, I'd just buy it.  I can't afford it now.  At the time, I wanted a DS more or less, but was so busy I figured I'd hardly ever play it and I was saving up for a study abroad case.  But I had to spend like $75 or something on a TI-83 calculator for a single class.  I ended up donating that to the library to be checked out by future students who couldn't afford to buy one, since I knew that I would never use it again after finishing my stats class.

But I couldn't buy one now no matter how I rationalized it in my head.  I just don't have the money any more.  I can hardly afford to by food these days. 

[SavannahLion]

Just noticed that Nintendo has a new update for the interface which adds USB keyboard support (ABOUT ---smurfing--- TIME!) some other tidbits. I believe it's up to 3.1?

In any case, did anyone else get the warning about v3.1 detecting "technical modifications to the Wii"?

I thought the current generation of Wii mod chips couldn't be detected by the Wii since they tap directly into the Wii's drive BIOS. Anyone know what's going on with that?

[Samstag]

In any case, did anyone else get the warning about v3.1 detecting "technical modifications to the Wii"?

I thought the current generation of Wii mod chips couldn't be detected by the Wii since they tap directly into the Wii's drive BIOS. Anyone know what's going on with that?

From memory, the warning was pretty vague and mentioned that if you've modified the Wii it might affect operation.  Basically just a heads up that if you have a mod you run some risk when updating.  Since the first update with this warning 3rd-party (ie: Datel) boot disks and modchip firmware update disks don't work anymore.  So they closed a hole in the disk validation, but this doesn't affect pirates at all.  It only affects people trying to run imported Gamecube games and Gamecube homebrew.

Ironic.  Now I need a modchip to run my NES emulator.

[ChadTower]

I thought the current generation of Wii mod chips couldn't be detected by the Wii since they tap directly into the Wii's drive BIOS. Anyone know what's going on with that?

First guess is a checksum of the bios... if you've changed it in any way whatsoever, the checksum would change, and would be detectable.  Second guess would be scanning the bios pointers against a known good BIOS image... if any of the instruction pointers differ, the bios is changed... third guess would be simply doing a functionality check on the specific pieces of the bios that they know have been changed in modded systems.  Nintendo security guys can buy modchips too.