List of Wii modchips

Wii modchips are electronic devices that modify or disable the built-in restrictions of the Wii. At present, all modchips operate by modifying the Wii’s DVD drive physically. As a result, they are often referred to as drive chips. Most modchips are capable of circumventing region coding and copy protection, which allows users to play games created in different regions and load burned discs. This opens up the opportunity for the use of third-party homebrew software and questionably legal backup copies, as well. Development of many of the homebrew applications began on the GameCube and, with the Wii’s legacy support for the GameCube, continue to work on the Wii.

oftware Modding

While often associated with physically modifying the hardware of a device, modding can also be achieved with software. Released in early 2008, Datel’s Freeloader for the Wii was capable of circumventing region restrictions. Its release was met with skepticism in the modding community, as many "soft" mods in the past were defeated when the manufacturer released new firmware for the device. In June of 2008, Nintendo’s 3.3 firmware successfully prevented Datel’s method of "soft" modding.

Wireless modding

There are available chip-clips for some of the listed D2C modding solutions below(Argon Wii, D2CKey/D2Pro, Wasabi). These simplify the installation process and prevent inexperienced users from spoiling the console board due to improper soldering. Frequently called solderless modding, this is technically incorrect since soldering will still be required. The number and location of solder points on the drive chip is "automatically" accounted for through the use of chip-clips, and such clips extend the range of future possible solutions. [ [http://www.wii-clip.com/ wii-clip for WIIKEY,D2CKEY,D2CPRO,ARGON,D2PRO, WASABI and DMS,D2A,D2B,D2C for wii console.] ]

Issues

There have been reports of bricking (damaging the physical hardware) of a small number of Wii consoles after the installation of firmware update 3.0 [http://www.engadget.com/2007/08/07/wii-update-provides-minor-menu-changes-could-brick-modded-conso/] , released on 7 August 2007, in which Nintendo warned explicitly that modded consoles could be rendered inoperable after installation [http://gamesgadgets.wordpress.com/2007/08/09/wii-firmware-30-update-may-brick-modded-wiis/] .

Due to later hardware revisions, most older modchips do not support newly manufactured Wii systems with a D2C drive chipset or newer. As of February 2008, only a handful of modchips support the D2C or newer drive chipsets, and all require a more difficult installation than older modchips. The current modchips with D2C support are the D2CKey, D2Pro, Argon, and Infectus. The Wasabi chip is capable of modifying consoles of all drive chipsets. [http://www.engadget.com/2007/02/06/wii-modchips-hit-a-snag-wont-work-with-some-recent-wiis/]

As of May 2008, Nintendo has released a new batch of Wii systems with drive chipsets (D2C2) that look identical to D2C drives but require updated chips for support. [ [http://wiinewz.com/forums/nintendo-news/68266-un-moddable-wii-s-in-the-wild.html Un-Moddable Wii's In The Wild - WiiNewz Forums] ] . As of early June 2008, D2C2 compatible modchips include Argon, Infectus, D2Pro, Wasabi 2, and D2sun2.

List of modchips

References