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Those consumers who don't want to upgrade from the Nintendo Wii to Wii U just yet but still want to get video streaming for their console are in luck. Amazon announced today that its Instant Video service is now available on the Wii.

"Amazon Instant Video is now playing on your Nintendo Wii," the video service wrote on its Web page. "Start watching over 140,000 movies and TV episodes today. Prime members can also watch thousands of these videos at no additional cost."

Is the Wii U having some trouble getting off the ground?

Research firm NPD Group yesterday announced U.S. game sales for December. And although the research firm won't reveal hardware unit sales on its own, Microsoft reported that for the 24th month in a row, it has held the No. 1 spot in the U.S. in console sales, with 1.4 million units sold. Nintendo, meanwhile, announced that its Wii U mustered 460,000 unit sales.

Historically, new consoles have generated massive demand, allowing them to beat out older competitors in unit sales. However, that's not … Read more

Nintendo President Satoru Iwata said in an interview published today that the Wii U's sales aren't bad.

"At the end of the Christmas season, it wasn't as though stores in the U.S. had no Wii U left in stock, as it was when Wii was first sold in that popular boom," Iwata told Reuters in an interview published today. "But sales are not bad, and I feel it's selling steadily."

There does appear to be a slightly different scenario playing out with the Wii U. When the Nintendo Wii launched in … Read more

Refurbishing is an art, as well as a craft. The whole point is to make a gadget feel pristine, even when it used to be owned by a cult leader, a scout leader or an exhibitionist.

Sadly, someone in a Colorado GameStop stopped refurbishing before the job was complete.

So much so that 5-year-old Braydon Giles opened his Xmas gift -- a Nintendo 3DS -- and discovered images of naked people doing less than pristine things. As Channel 9 News tells it, Braydon showed the 3DS to his brother Bryton. He wanted his help to remove these weird pictures.

Bryton … Read more

Nintendo TVii, the feature that could transform the new Wii U into a full-fledged entertainment box in the living room, is coming to the console tomorrow.

At that time, TVii will be made available in the U.S. and Canada, Nintendo announced today. The feature allows Wii U owners to access all of the programming in their home-entertainment setup, including content from their cable or satellite companies, and decide from the Wii U's GamePad what they want to watch. In addition, the GamePad can double as a remote, allowing users to control volume and change channels, among other features.… Read more

The Nintendo Wii is undoubtedly a tough act to follow. Its unprecedented success was something no one could have predicted, so for its follow up Nintendo certainly had its hands full. The company chose to go in the direction of dual screen gaming in the home by introducing the Wii U console that uses a unique tablet-esque GamePad controller to interact with games.

However, the Wii U's initial reception is almost nothing like its predecessor's. The Wii U's initial launch software offering was lackluster and a series of major updates have dampened that vital first impression. Even … Read more

Nintendo today released an image of what was its first GamePad prototype.

In the latest Iwata Asks feature, in which Nintendo President Satoru Iwata holds discussions with employees on a host of topics, the company shared what was the first prototype for the Wii U's GamePad.… Read more

Google's Street View application is making its way to the Nintendo Wii U starting next month.

Nintendo today announced the Street View app on its Twitter account. The company also posted a video on its Web page, showing Nintendo chief Satoru Iwata using the application with the GamePad.

Upon loading up Street View, users will be able to pan around its images by holding the GamePad and moving it around. Tapping on the display allows users to move back and forth. The Street View app can be used solely on the GamePad, but users can also look at the … Read more

The Wii U's massive update that runs after booting the hardware won't be bundled in the console for at least a few months.

Speaking to Gamasutra in an interview published today, Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime said that the out-of-the-box update will be pushed out over the Web for the next few months. After that, Nintendo will install it in its Wii U hardware before shipping consoles to store shelves.

When the Wii U launched last month, gamers were surprised to find that they needed to download a massive update delivering many of the features -- online … Read more