The more complex consoles become, the more weirdy-beardy secret functions are squirreled away inside of them, and Nintendo's latest is no exception.
While most of the Wii's Easter Eggs are specific to certain games - there's a whole trove of 'em in Wii Sports alone - here's seven of the best for the console itself.
1. Email a chum's Wii
You'll need to have a record of those damnably unmemorable friend codes for anyone you want to mail, but once you do it's simple: just drop a message to w[friendcode]@wii.com. For instance, w1234567891011@wii.com.
2. Add a smooth, constant blue glow to your Wii
The blue lighting around the disc slot normally only glows when the Wii's got some sort of announcement for you, and disappears once you've read it. However, you can lend your lounge a sci-fi feel by making that tastefull glow permanent. Just email your own Wii - using the system in the tip above - but never read the ... More »
We whetted your appetite with 10 Xbox 360 tricks Microsoft won't tell you, now here are seven more handy tips to help you get the best out of your console.
1. System updates by disc
Not got your console online yet, or having trouble downloading the latest dashboard update? Try downloading it from a web-connected PC or Mac instead and burning it to a CD. Grab the latest (well, latest-ish - hopefully Microsoft will update the page soon) update from the XBox 360 System Updates page, burn it to disc, then pop that disc into the 360 and turn it on. You'll be prompted automatically as to whether you want to run the update.
2. The towel trick
Bit of a controversial one this, at least as long as you count "possibly burning your house down" as controversial. What it is is a short-term fix for the infamous red rings of death, the mournful LEDs that announce your 360 is deaded. There are various theories about why it works, but the... More »
Some of the coolest OS features are nowhere to be found in Windows XP or Vista. Here are 18 brilliant features that Microsoft should beg for, borrow, or steal--plus tips on how you can add many of them to your PC now.
Love it or hate it, Microsoft Windows is the world's most dominant operating system. But when you look at some of the hot features found in competitors such as Linux and Mac OS X, both XP and Vista can seem a little incomplete.
From intuitive interface features like Apple's application dock and Cover Flow to basic media capabilities such as ISO burning, Windows often falls short on built-in goodies. And some features that other operating systems offer by default-- such as 64-bit processing and business-networking tools--require a premium-version license in Windows.
We took a good look at a variety of OSs, from the Mac to Linux to PC-BSD and beyond, and we rounded up a list of our favorite features--few of which come standard in any ... More »
Despite Blu-ray's utterly devastating victory earlier this year, Sony may be in a spot of trouble. Seems the company has a bit of a problem manufacturing the discs (I swear I've heard that before), and since it's the the biggest producer of The Blu (that's how cool kids say Blu-ray), it could be the biggest obstacle to the format’s success.
Not that that really matters, since in five years we'll have a new format. Demand for The Blu is expected to JUMP this year to 48 million units; Sony only has the capacity to manufacture 38 million, and that's after an upgrade to its facilities.
And while I'm thoroughly post-disc (technically), I did have my eye on the PS3, more or less because I could use it as a Blu-ray player.
But then I heard the system doesn't output DTS-HD, so what's the point? :P
Just bought a Sony PlayStation 3? Then you've not maxed out the power of your new uber-console until you've downloaded the latest firmware and dabbled with the following techniques... Following on from our previous 10 PS3 tricks Sony doesn't tell you article, Digital Home brings you another batch of tips.
1) Customizing your PS3 Try out the downloadable examples of PS3's new Themes - the alternative desktops, menus and fonts for your PS3 that have been enabled since the recent 2.0 firmware update. Read on through this article for our tips on how to transfer them to your PS3. You can even make your own Themes. All you'll need is Sony's PC-only design software, which is available for free.
2) Make thousands of new PS3 Friends Taken a shine to someone you've played against online? They'll be in your Players Met menu. Or if you just want to make loads of new friends fast, then go to www.gamewith.us/ps3 and to find thousands of names to hi... More »
Beautifully rendered with an above-average plot, Bioware's new sci-fi epic for the Xbox 360 still turns out to be a disappointingly overhyped encore to Microsoft's main holiday act in gaming, Halo 3.
An Old-School Adventure Masquerading as a Role-Playing Game
If Halo 3 was Microsoft's star performance, BioWare's Mass Effect is this holiday season's encore. Mass Effect is probably the most anticipated role-playing game of the year by anyone who dug the company's Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic and/or Jade Empire. In any case, I expect the Xbox 360 to take the silver in hardware sales (though by a relatively narrow margin over Sony) and the gold by a handsome margin in holiday software sales.
Spanish gaming site MeriStation have published an interview with James Armstrong, who's CEO of Sony Spain. While chatting, Armstrong revealed that the new 40GB PS3 (hitting stores as you read this) will ship with updated firmware which will improve the PS3's DVD playback quality. I thought it was already pretty damn good, but hey, improvements are always swell.
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