Since I wrote my last article on the Wii Channels a little while back (the article can be found here) a few updates have arrived. I figured I ought to write about them. These few additions have actually made the Wii that much more entertaining. It also shows how Nintendo continues to work on bringing the family together.
Internet Channel
The Internet Channel is now out of Beta and is available on the Shopping Channel. It is currently free, but according to the Nintendo Wii website, it will only be free until the end of June. At that time there will be a charge of 500 Wii points to download the channel.
The channel has also been updated a bit. The scrolling is much smoother this time, and the cursor turns into an arrow telling you the direction and the speed you are scrolling. Also, there is a new feature that allows control over navigation bar. It can now be hidden automatically, or at the discretion of the user. The zoom function has also been perfected, allowing for a better experience while surfing.
Everybody Votes Channel
Although it seems pointless, this is a very addicting channel. This is the first channel that allows the use of the Miis, other than the Mii channel of course.
The players are presented with poll questions and two answers. Then the voting begins. Vote for the answer that bets suits you by dragging your Mii to the respective answer. Once all the voters are in, the answers are submitted. The most fun comes next, you get to vote, or predict, what you think is the popular choice, regardless of your own choice. This prediction is what creates the competition, since the channel keeps track of all votes and predictions, and gives you a level of accuracy.
There are 3 questions at a time, and they stay up for about a week. There's a new question every other day. There's one question on the international poll, and it also lasts a week. To keep it interesting, they allow the submission of one question per day per console to the question pool. I am still waiting to see one of my questions to show up.
Enjoy
We play the Wii every day, even if it's just to vote, or see the results on any given poll. It is by far the best console I have owned, especially since it brings the family together.
