Youtube on the Wii

[Kelb_Panthera]

So as some of you know, my sole means of accessing the internet is my nintendo wii. This is more than sufficient for most of my internet needs, given that most of my browsing activity is right here in the playground and looking at webcomics and my video needs are -mostly- covered by netflix.

Sometimes though, a guy wants to watch some youtube videos. This leaves me with the choice between the XL version of youtube's website or the new youtube channel that debuted just a few days ago. Both options are more than a little frustrating.

The website has god-awful load times and the videos don't always load, but at least I can use my keyboard to tap in what I'm looking for relatively quickly. I also have to carefully adjust my zoom and position the video box just so, since trying to use full-screen causes unbearably low framerates.

The youtube channel, on the other hand, demands I input my search via the on-screen keyboard with my wii-mote. It has the same issue with videos not always loading, but it also seems to think my internet connection is being disrupted when this happens sometimes, necessitating that I reset the software and peck in my search all over again. It does have an advantage in a much smoother framerate and automatically adjusting to full-screen though.

I've made this thread partly to vent and partly to wonder aloud if anyone else understands this frustration. Any tips for how to make this less aggravating would also be welcome.

If anyone thinks it might be relevant at all, my connection's a hard-line directly from the cable modem to the wii via a LAN adapter.

[Gulddom]

Yeah the Wii has probably the worst youtube port yet, and the on screen keyboard is absolutely terrible.However at least you are not having to use wifi to load videos.The internet as a whole is bad too

[Sipex]

Oh jeez, that on screen keyboard, just...no. I realize it gets the job done (without forcing you to pay for something else) but it's still horrible.

That said, I haven't tried out the new channel, but the reports don't surprise me. Give it some time though, they might fix up those issues as time goes on.

[grimbold]

kind of off topic but
how does one even connect a keyboard to a wii?

[Kelb_Panthera]

There're a pair of USB ports on the back side. A wii can actually understand most USB keyboards, though there are a few manufactured for the wii in particular and at least one that's designed to interface with the wii-mote.

I'd've lost my mind long ago if I had to type out posts by hunt-and-pecking with the wii-mote.

[Karoht]

Non-Wii Solution:
Go to walmart or costco. Spend 300 bucks on a real computer, which will afford you many other improved functionalities, on top of solving this problem.

Wii Solution:
Wait for the Wii-U and hope it solves the problem.

[Kelb_Panthera]

Originally Posted by Karoht

Non-Wii Solution:
Go to walmart or costco. Spend 300 bucks on a real computer, which will afford you many other improved functionalities, on top of solving this problem.

Wii Solution:
Wait for the Wii-U and hope it solves the problem.

Do you have a solution that works without $300? If I had that to spend I'd've gotten past this little hiccup ages ago.

Incidentally, the wii-u launched here in the states last sunday. By all accounts it very well could solve this problem easily.

[Karoht]

Originally Posted by Kelb_Panthera

Do you have a solution that works without $300? If I had that to spend I'd've gotten past this little hiccup ages ago.

Incidentally, the wii-u launched here in the states last sunday. By all accounts it very well could solve this problem easily.

Do you own a smartphone?
If you have a Wii then it stands to reason you have wireless internet of some form.
Most smartphones can connect to wireless internet, and doing so does not affect the data plan of your phone.
Much better for youtube watching, added benefit of being mobile to anywhere in your house.

Speaking of wireless internet, if you have a smartphone that can connect to a wireless network, you can do just about everything for free on that network. Make calls, send and receive data and texts, it's pretty awesome.

[Kelb_Panthera]

I have neither a smartphone nor wireless internet. My wii is connected via lan-adapter to the cable modem with a 6ft ethernet cable. If it weren't I wouldn't have any internet at all.

I'm one seriously broke customer here.

I got the wii used for 70 bucks at a small electronics business that shut down less than a month after I made my purchase, earlier this year. Before that I had to drive 20 minutes to the public library to get on the internet and was limited to an hour a day. Naturally, the whole of that hour was generally spent looking for a job.

[Kelb_Panthera]

This just in: I no longer have a choice in the matter.

Youtube has taken down the XL version of the website and I now must use the youtube channel. The standard youtube site is just plain too big for the wii's RAM to do anything with.