It's a videogame console...

It's a video game console...

And the Playstation 2 was also a video game console.... your point is?

The point is, Nintendo is a company that doesn't like to lose money on their consoles. The Wii is extremely profitable and including a DVD player probably would have added to their overhead. I can't speak for their marketing strategy in the rest of the world but the U.S. is a capitalist society and Nintendo is just trying to make a profit. Besides, it doesn't slow down their sales numbers by not including a DVD player so they really have no incentive to. But don't get me wrong, I would love it if my Wii could play DVDs, I could get rid of one of my boxes and it wouldn't consume as much power.

You're exactly right. Nintendo would have to pay a licensing fee for every Wii sold to include DVD support.

I love it when people say I'm exactly right, I'm showing this to my wife.

Damn, you have to stop being so damn awesome that often!

What happened to that thing about the laser motor's lifespan if made to run backwards. (in>out).

I don't understand all the sarcastic responses, either.

Every videogame system since god knows when has been able to play at LEAST audio CDs, if not DVDs.

The Wii can't play either.

Seems a bit skimpy, to me.

Then read this thread again. Let me reiterate:

The Wii isn't other gaming consoles. The Wii is the Wii. Other gaming consoles cost a lot more than the Wii. The Wii doesn't play CDs or DVDs. The Wii was never advertised as being able to play CDs or DVDs. Nintendo has never said the Wii will ever be able to play CDs or DVDs. If you bought the Wii in order to play CDs or DVDs, you were delusional, went on bad information, or wishful thinking... regardless, shame on you. If you haven't bought the Wii yet, and need it to do those things, then don't buy a Wii. No one is making you.

The Wii doesn't play CDs nor DVDs and probably never will. Deal with it.

the wii can play DVD's if you add a mod chip ... this has been proven before

And it will toast bread if you spend a few more mins with a soldering iron.

We're not talking about what it's technically able to do. This distinction has already been covered before in this thread. We're talking about what it can do as as far as supported features out of the box.

People are bitching and moaning that the Wii can't do something Nintendo never said it could or would ever be able to do, which is lame. Buy a $30 DVD player.

I'm not bitching, I was just wondering, and wanted some info, which I got, but everyone is so quick to assume the rest of us know exactly whats going on all the time. I simply thought that DVD/CD function was pretty generic, and as the PS2 and other systems aren't exactly made or advertised for watching DVDs, they still support that function. Either way you put it, regardless if Wii will ever have DVD function, I still think they should have included it. The arguement that it wasn't "advertised as a DVD player" is weak... a lot of things aren't advertised for their every option. You buy a TV to watch stuff, but you would feel a little jipped if it didn't come with volume control or a remote right? If it can read dual layer games, why can't it read DVDs? And instead of bitchy smart ass responses, how about some good information? It seems like everyone just waits for someone to make a mistake so they can chew them out and boast their e-peen around.

I know it seems like everyone is acting like jerks, but that's the nature of the internet. Everything sounds harsher when written.

I think everyone would agree, the Wii could definitely have included a DVD player but they didn't. All the responses are not a defense of Nintendo's decision, rather they are attempting to explain the Nintendo's thinking. Anyways, I thought a lot of the responses were cleaver, hilarious and definitely not directed at anyone.

Hey, I hear the Xbox 360s will fry eggs, there's a deal for you guys that want extra egg-frying functionality in your next-gen game console!

>_>

I also have used tampons that can also be used for stuffing down people's throats! Anyways, thanks for the info. I bet that DVD function will appear on the Wii Shop channel. Sneaky bastards.

Nintendo has assured us that they won't have anything to make current Wii's play DVDs. Who knows. The hardware is all there, as to whether the licensing could be done per download after the fact, that's for lawyers.

However, there's bound to be a Wii update (say, new colors) and DVD functionality is a possible perk for it.

On the other side, Wii homebrew is making fast progress ever since the Twilight Princess hack. I'd be amazed if we didn't have a Wii mode DVD player with its own channel by end of summertime. Amazed.

This is what I've been saying for a while now.

I predict a "Wii 2.0" that will have one or more of the following features:

• More internal memory
• DVD/CD playback
• Colors
• Wireless nunchuck (not tethered to Wii remote)

There have been very few video game systems able to play audio CDs. Even in the current "generation" at least 3 come to mind that don't (Wii, DS, and PSP). An unmodded Nintendo console has NEVER been able to play an audio CD or DVD. Furthermore, only one video game system ever played audio CDs but didn't use CD or DVD as a game medium: the Sega Dreamcast. That CD functionality had a lot to do with its downfall since people could play pirated copies of games from CDs instead of dealing with GD-ROMs.

Technically speaking, the Wii's hardware is capable after a mod chip of playing a DVD, but it's not that simple. At the very least, the laser motor now operates backwards of what it's designed for when playing DVDs. What does that do to the longevity of the hardware? I don't know the answer to that question and I'd wager Nintendo doesn't either. Until they spend the resources to find out, you won't see a DVD player tacked on.