Wii (not Wii U) and Netflix - HD available?

[Turbonium]

Google is giving me some mixed reports, so I'd figure I'd ask my fellow nerds on here:

Can the original Wii stream Netflix content in HD (1080p) with more recent firmware updates?

 

[mmntech]

The Wii can't output in HD. It caps out at 480p for both games and video content. It's okay if you want something for streaming to an older analogue TV, but there are better and cheaper options for HDTVs.

If you're looking for a cheap 1080p streaming device for Netflix, I'd look at a Chromecast or Roku Streaming Stick. They're $39 and $59 respectively.

Only thing about Chromecast is it requires a computer, tablet, or smartphone to work. The Roku stick is a stand alone device.

 

[Arkaign]

Those are good suggestions. If you have a few extra bucks, the Kindle Fire TV is amazing as well, and a bit more robust/speedy. Improvements/support seem excellent from my experience, and the voice recognition is great (some nifty little games as well). The processing power is better in the Kindle vs. other similar devices I've seen.

Pros : faster, more things you can do with it, Quad-Core and 2GB of ram! (vs. Single or Dual-core and 512mb or less in typical other devices), yadda. Oh, and has minecraft lol.

Cons : $99, lacks HBO go, bigger than a stick.

 

[mmntech]

OP is from Canada and the Fire TV isn't available here yet, because Amazon. They're always really slow to roll out stuff like that internationally, if ever. We still don't have the MP3 store, or Instant Video.

For $40, the Chromecast is pretty great. I use it mainly for Netflix. It's slowly getting better app support too. Though I assume it's probably A LOT better on Android than iOS. The only real downside is that you do need a tablet, phone, or computer to fling content to it. So it's not a stand alone device.

There's rumours that Apple is going to finally roll out an App Store enabled Apple TV. They really have to at this point. They pioneered the off-the-shelf streaming box but they're very late to the party with a great deal of features. They do already have robust media support via iTunes Store. If it stays at $100, it may be the one to get. Especially if you're already invested in the iDevice ecosystem.

Another alternative is the Wii U, which plays Wii games, outputs in HD, and has pretty decent media support. Nintendo still has that deal for the refurb 32GB model for $200.

 

[Narse]

I purchased one of these just because I want to use my receiver to switch sources and not have to switch the TV to another port. Says it upscales to 1080 but I am not holding my breath for great quality.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[poofyhairguy]

I purchased one of these just because I want to use my receiver to switch sources and not have to switch the TV to another port. Says it upscales to 1080 but I am not holding my breath for great quality.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Those usually work (they are basically just a component converter) but the issue is that Netflix will never send a stream better than 480p to a Wii.

 

[mmntech]

I purchased one of these just because I want to use my receiver to switch sources and not have to switch the TV to another port. Says it upscales to 1080 but I am not holding my breath for great quality.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Since the dongle is unpowered, I'm guessing it's just a straight pass through. Most HDTVs do their upconverting in set so you'd never notice.

The Wii does make for a good streaming box for older TVs since they are so cheap these days. I should really hook my parents' up to the old TV in their basement for the summer. They never play with it anymore so it would at least get some use.