1) Playstation 3
For £299 you can get the most powerful gaming system out there, unbelievable graphics and some of the best games around. Not only that, but you get a full High Definition system capable of playing Blu Ray discs. I get the impression that the PS3 is more of a guy’s console, and I can’t imagine any young boy being dissapointed at getting one of these instead of a Wii under the tree. Girls might be a different matter, but even then there is a plethora of games out there.

Amazon has the best PS3 deals around:

2) Xbox 360
The 360 has sold more than the PS3 largely due to the difference in price. It is also a dedicated gaming machine without some of the HD/Blu Ray frills the PS3 has. One of its biggest benefits is the range of games it has, with some of the biggest and best out there such as Halo. Microsoft is making a big push behind the Xbox so expect the great games to continue. Another console that any young boy (or man!) would love to own.

Again Amazon has some of the best prices around for the Xbox 360 console:

3) Nintendo DS Lite
If a portable gaming unit is an option, you can’t get much better than the Nintendo DS Lite. For less than a hundred quid you get a great selection of fun games, much as you do with the Wii. A number of games are found on both platforms, such as the popular Brain Academy.

Fo those of you who have a Wii, whether it is for yourself, your partner or even for your kids! - you may be wondering what extras you need on top of the console and it’s package contents.

Let’s review what you got first of all (assuming you did get the standard package)

• The console (yay, well done on finding one!)
• Wii Sports - 6 great games that give you a good grounding in learning to play your Wii
• A Wiimote - the main controller that acts as your remote for menu selections etc
• A nunchuck - the secondary controller used for playing some games.

That is easily enough to make playing your Wii on Xmas day (or before if like me you couldn’t wait that long!). But to get the most out of it, you could do with a few additional items.

Accessories

1) First item on the agenda should be an additional Wiimote controller, and an additional nunchuck controller. The Wiimote is actually quite hard to find (along with the console), but the link given here will indicate whether Amazon have stock or how much the marketplace has them for.

However, as an alternative to buying the Wiimote separately, especially for £35+ from Amazon Marketplace, you might want to look out for the Wii Play game instead, which comes with an extra Wiimote as part of the package. Wii Play is another great way to start with your Wii, learning the controls and playing a number of fun games.

Again, Wii Play is out of stock in many places, but 24Studio and PC World currently have stock available, and Amazon does from time to time (check below).

2) Remote charging stand. You’ll soon realise that your remote uses batteries, and although it doesn’t go through them stupidly quickly, it will soon require new ones. I’d recommend getting some rechargable batteries and this remote charging stand.

3) Not really necessary, but there are some skins available for your console and controllers that will add a bit of colour to that otherwise white gaming device.

Games

In my next post I’ll cover which are the must have games for you and the kids.

1. Argos.co.uk - Wii Play or Remote

If you know of any others let us know by leaving a comment below!

Great saving on a fantastic game!
Have you heard of Guitar Hero? If not check it out - it’s one of the most fun games available on the Wii. It’s quite expensive at £70, but you do get a wireless guitar/controller for your money.
Just for you, I have tracked down a great offer, saving you £10! Order now while stocks last at this price..
Guitar Hero 3 plus wireless guitar - SAVE £10!

It seems that the tide may have turned - look at all the places that have bundles in stock currently! Amazon seems to still be the best place to get just the console - check regularly as they have stock most days currently.

Current/recent stock =

1. Amazon UK -have periods of stock each day currently - worth checking regularly.
2. Argos.co.uk have various bundles in stock.
3. Comet have various bundles in stock.
4. Currys have various bundles in stock.
5. Dixons have various bundles in stock.
6. GameStation have various bundles in stock.
7. Game UK have various bundles in stock.
8. HMV haven’t noticed any stock recently.
9. Littlewoods haven’t noticed any stock recently.
10. PC World have various bundles in stock.
11. Pixmania have have basic Wii consoles in stock for £250.
12. Play.com haven’t noticed any stock recently.
13. Simply Games have various bundles in stock.
14. Tesco haven’t noticed any stock recently.
15. Wilkinson Plus don’t have stock very often, but when they do the console is just £169!
16. Woolworths site says that they won’t have stock until January.

Amazon Germany have blocked people from the UK from purchasing Wii Consoles. Sorry to all of those coming to this page in the hope of finding a way to place their order there …

Read the comments below for the latest updates on sites that currently have stock, or check back here regularly and if a good place turns up I’ll post it right here. Good luck everyone and hope you get that Wii for Xmas.

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Argos - out of stock
Woolworths - out of stock
HMV - out of stock
Game - out of stock
Toys R Us - out of stock
Everywhere else - out of stock!

And my girlfriend really wants a Wii console this Christmas.  She’s so excited about playing Wii Sports etc!

Luckily there are places you can get a Wii console, in stock, right now. This site will keep you up to date on a daily basis with the best place to get your console. If you find the retailer listed doesn’t have stock anymore, please do post a comment to let everyone know and I will make best efforts to locate an alternative.