How Good Can A Cheap Wii2HDMI Adapter Actually Be in 2022?

In this episode, we take a look to see How Good Can A Cheap Wii2HDMI Adapter Actually Be in 2022?

Thanks to @GameDad for the awesome hoodie, follow him at https://www.youtube.com/c/GameDadShow

Chapters:
00:00 - Introduction
3:09 - Installation
5:25 - Comparison with RetroTink 5x set to 480P Output
7:24 - Super Mario Galaxy
9:31 - Donkey Kong Country Returns
11:03 - Mario Kart Wii
12:18 - Warioland: Shake It
14:15 - Wii Sports
17:46 - Conclusion

Cheap. Adjective:
Low in price; worth more than its cost.
Also
Inexpensive because of inferior quality.

In 2022, playing games in HD isn't just the desire, it's pretty much the rule. The average (as in not hardcore) gamer isn't going to want to keep around a CRT for nostalgia and authenticity; they have a 200" 8K behemoth they want to play Minecraft on for... reasons. When it was released, the Nintendo Wii was a sales juggernaut, it destroyed everything else in its generation. One of the major shortcomings of the Wii, for all its strengths, was the fact that Nintendo did not equip it with an HDMI port. While they would address this with the Wii U, the Wii itself was locked at 480P with Component video cables being the best option for video quality. While I currently use the RetroTink 5x for my day-to-day Wii gameplay, I knew that there are cheap Wii2HDMI adapters that promise amazing results, by and large, they left a lot to be desired. I had recorded some footage comparing the Wii2HDMI to the EonGaming GCHD back in the day for Gamecube days, but I never ended up producing that episode. In 2022, with the Wii collectivity continuing to grow, I decided to revisit the topic and see how bad a $6 Wii2HDMI adapter from Amazon could be.

Again, the adapter you see here was only $6, which immediately lead me to think again that these were garbage. Simple in its design, you simply plug the adapter into the AV Output of the Wii, connect an HDMI cable to the other port on the adapter, and play. The manufacturer claims this outputs 1080P, which if so, that's amazing. Now, the technology that this adapter is based upon is similar to those AV2Wii adapters, which introduce a ton of lag, latency, and don't produce accurate graphics. If you can't tell, going into this, I was not expecting much.

Upon firing up the system with the Wii2HDMI adapter I was downright shocked. I didn't expect proper sound, color, or reaction time, but I have to say that I was blown away at how not bad the image looked! Like, colors looked really good, if a little on the bright side. The controls felt responsive, not laggy at all. The sound was also pretty accurate as well! For $6 I was shocked!

Why it RoX:
- While this adapter was only $6, commonly under $10
- Plug & Play
- Decent audio and video quality
- Performs better than AV2HDMI Composite adapters

What could be improved:
- Colors are a bit oversaturated
- Does have some fuzziness and jaggies
- No scanline option

Should You Buy One?
Now, this isn't perfect, but for the target audience, it's not terrible either. For many, component video cables aren't an option as more and more Televisions have been removing those to reduce cost. My preferred method of connecting my Wii to my television is via official component video cables to my RetroTink 5x, upscaled to 1080P. While these adapters claim that they are 1080P, it's a very poor quality 1080P. Compare the graphics at 480P from my RetroTink5x to the Wii2HDMI adapter and the RetroTink looks better in many ways. But, again, for under $10, for the casual enthusiast, this is not terrible, but there's definitely room for improvement.

#Nintendo #NintendoWii #Wii2HDMI

The footage used in this review are used under the Fair Use laws, referenced below:

https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/17/107

Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 106 and 106A, the fair use of a copyrighted work, including such use by reproduction in copies or phonorecords or by any other means specified by that section, for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright. In determining whether the use made of a work in any particular case is a fair use the factors to be considered shall include—

(1) the purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes;
(2) the nature of the copyrighted work;
(3) the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole; and
(4) the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work.

The fact that a work is unpublished shall not itself bar a finding of fair use if such finding is made upon consideration of all the above factors.
(Pub. L. 94–553, title I, § 101, Oct. 19, 1976, 90 Stat. 2546; Pub. L. 101–650, title VI, § 607, Dec. 1, 1990, 104 Stat. 5132; Pub. L. 102–492, Oct. 24, 1992, 106 Stat. 3145.)