Game It Or Flip It?: Goodwill Wii, Part 1

Hello all you blog readers! MvM is here, and finally back to blogging! And today's post is part of the geekier side of 'MvM's World' ;).

So this installment of G.I.F.I (I like to pronounce that as jiffy lol), is going to take a look at my newest little project: Fixing up a Wii I purchased at a local Goodwill, with the hopes of re-selling it (Flip It!) for a profit. For part 1, I'm just going to focus on what was purchased, for how much, and its current condition.

So I walk into my local Goodwill and see this bundled pile, covered in tape and plastic. While I do indeed already have a lovely modded Wii, I couldn't resist the urge to buy this one and tinker with it. It looked to be a bit rough around the edges, and I do love a good challenge. Plus the idea of modding a second Wii console got me all excited! That's just the geek in me lol. So $80 later, I took my prize home. Of course my intention isn't to just have fun fixing this thing up but to also sell it off for at least a small profit. So let's see what I have here......

Well, everything I need seems to be here. I just wish Goodwill didn't have to use so many damn price stickers. Ugh, I think we get the price was $79.99 guys.

She's in pretty good shape! Needs some serious cleaning, which will include disassembly and dusting out with a can of compressed air. Nothing my purchase at Harbor Frieght for $6.50 can't handle......

Every bit I could need is here. Taking this Wii apart shouldn't be a problem at all. So I guess the next big question, is does this Wii work as is? Why yes she does :)

As you can see, the console loads to the menu just fine. And there's nothing on it! No games, or files. It's wiped! That of course is great and will make modding of the console so much easier!

There were however, a few Mii's left on the console......

Those however, can and will be deleted.

The only real issue I have with this purchase so far is the god awful charger dock it came with.

Seriously. It's a piece of shit! And a quick search on Amazon shows this thing retailed for a whopping $7. I can tell. It takes a full 12 hours to charge the Wii motes (I timed it), then once charged, they last about 3 hours. Then? That's right, another 12 hour charge. Ugh, fuck that. That won't work. I will just stick with regular batteries. Only one problem. See the picture above, of the charger? Notice the battery covers? They are the rechargeable covers. Whoever owned this originally must have tossed out the default covers. So how can I use batteries? Good thing I travel to Battle Creek, MI. so often ;)

If anyone had original battery covers for Wii motes, it's Disc Traders in Battle Creek. They have everything! $1.99 for each cover. Sweet!

And they fit perfectly :)

There's now just one last thing I need to be able to mod this Wii. An SD card. Luckily, GameStop had one I needed for $6.99.

It was used however, so I decided to load it up in the Wii and see if it still worked.

Not only did it work, but it was completely clean. Again, makes for an easy mod. :)

So now with everything covered, we can finally move on to the cleaning up of this console, and prep for modding! And that my friends, continues in part 2. Coming soon......

For now, here's the current investment:

Wii: $79.99

Battery covers: $1.99 x 2

SD Card $6.99

Total Investment So Far (Inc. Tax): $96.42

Game On!

- MvM