I aimed to find out why, just as soon as I set the date and time. Apparently, the News Channel is real particular about that. After clicking OK, it started downloading files. I was puzzled by the icon of a cat. It seemed to be there for no particular reason. The background music helped to pass the short delay. Plus, the cat’s head would turn to face the mouse. I’m easily amused but I’m not often impressed. Yet, I was pleased by the presentation of the content. Articles are selectable through a slick interface. The design is obviously modern, but there is a traditional newspaper look and feel. Articles don’t just load, they make a paper swooshing sound.
Reading about the PS3 on a Nintendo system was amusing. That feeling coincided with my overall impression of the News Channel. While it is nifty to read news from my TV, I don’t know what real purpose this serves. If I got word of breaking news, I wouldn’t scramble to my Wii. I just can’t picture someone saying, “Terrorists have attacked the Staten Island Ferry. Quick, turn on the Nintendo!” I would go to my traditional sources of news – TV or Internet. That’s what’s so ironic. The News Channel combines both of those mediums. You’re using a television and the Internet, but it just doesn’t seem as serious. Viewing news on the Wii is much like the Forecast Channel. It’s more about novelty and convenience. It’s nice to have news articles on the Wii, but that’s not why I bought a new Nintendo.
The globe is a perfect example of novelty. It’s cool and colorful, but do I really need to have New York highlighted on a map? No, but this is a great way to teach kids geography. The Wii is definitely the feel-good console for parents. Here is a video game system that encourages exercise and reading.
The Slide Show is real close to being a cool screensaver, but I’d worry about the white headline bar causing burn-in and the Slide Show doesn’t loop. (I actually waited for all of the news articles to cycle.) If your Wii is set to standard (4:3) mode, then you might enjoy reading articles through the slideshow mode. In this view, articles will open in full-screen. If you have a widescreen (16:9) display, then you’ll enjoy the default article view. The screen splits vertically, to display the articles on the left and the globe on the right. You can easily change the size of the text with the plus (+) and minus (-) buttons.
Of the three information channels, the Forecast Channel is still my favorite. It’s the most useful. It’s nice to check the weather after a quick game of Street Fighter II. While the Wii is adorable, and even though I enjoy viewing articles from my TV, it’s just easier to read news from a desktop computer. I’ve also gotten into the habit of reading news from my mobile phone. While the Wii News Channel is technologically impressive, it is of dubious practically.