Import Wii?

O

other

CAG Veteran
I live in Sweden and I'm thinking about importing a Wii from the States or from Canada. This is due to several reasons:
  • American games are released earlier, sometimes a lot earlier
  • The games are cheaper
  • Only American GameCube games support 480p (not all though)
  • Virtual Console
But there are some problems with importing. If it ever breaks down, I'm pretty much screwed? I've read about heat problems, so that has me a little worried. Another thing is that I would have to get a new power adapter (costs at least 350 SEK), or buy converter (which would take up extra space, and also costs money).

It seems that shipping a Wii over here is ridiculously expensive, so the Wii + shipping + customs + tax + power adapter/converter would cost more than just buying the Wii over here, but the games would be cheaper and available quicker. I guess my other alternative is to buy a Wii here and get a Freeloader to play the American GC games. Then I wait for a chip that truly makes the Wii region free, and get that (I can't solder though so I would have to pay someone ridiculous amounts of money to do it ;)). I suppose Virtual Console isn't all that important, since there are other ways (unless NoE begins to offer the American versions).

Have any of you imported a Wii, and if so, are you happy with your choice? What would you recommend me to do? Finally: if I do choose to import, where do you recommend buying it from?
 
I think there is already a chip that can make the Wii region free. I'm not sure if it would be any cheaper than importing. If you know some one is coming to visit they should be able to get an american wii through customs( just have it unpacked so it dosn't look like a presenst).
 
[quote name='itachiitachi']I think there is already a chip that can make the Wii region free. I'm not sure if it would be any cheaper than importing. If you know some one is coming to visit they should be able to get an american wii through customs( just have it unpacked so it dosn't look like a presenst).[/QUOTE]

All chips/patchers apparently use the same method for patching games, and they do not allow for full compatibility across regions (compatibility list). I think the compatibility would be the same with original games.

As to your other suggestion, unfortunately I don't know anybody who's going to travel to USA/Canada. But that would be the best option if I did!

Is there any need to worry about the Wii breaking down? (On the other hand, if I got a European Wii and put a chip in it, I wouldn't have any warranty either)

[quote name='help1']I would suggest freeloader. You are still under warranty then, i believe.[/QUOTE]

That is true, but the Freeloader only works with GameCube games. Maybe one that works with Wii games will come out in the future, but by the time that has happened we'll most likely see chips featuring it too. But I never owned a GC, so maybe there's enough games for it to keep me busy until a true region free solution is available? :)
 
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