Worklog Kawaii

[P2Mc28]

Forgive my ignorance, I just saw this lil' guy in my news feed and I had to know more, so I gotta ask: what do you use this for? What do you play on it and how? There doesn't appear to be a port for a sensor bar, which rules out Wiimotes? And I thought those were required for the Wii? Also, storage? Is all of this handled via the USBC + external devices? Is this a neat way of sidestepping some sort of complicated Gamecube issue and using a Wii to play Gamecube isos?

This is super cool and that alone kinda makes me want one, but the goal of a $55 price point makes it seem like this is also a kit vs a completed device I am purchasing, and I haven't even dug up a soldering iron to do the "easy" hd mod on one of my N64s yet lol (i.e. I have barely even achieved novice modder status, I mostly just buy things I consider neat + useful)

Regardless of whether or not I can personally utilize this thing, it definitely appears to be awesome. I love what enthusiastic people with the know-how can accomplish.

 

[skywalker75]

Does it still have the capacity to include Bluetooth? Also, someone could create a portable shell that the kawaii can power. A kawaiideck. Maybe even like a gameboy cartridge with a gboy style shell.

 

[Y2K]

Forgive my ignorance, I just saw this lil' guy in my news feed and I had to know more, so I gotta ask: what do you use this for? What do you play on it and how? There doesn't appear to be a port for a sensor bar, which rules out Wiimotes? And I thought those were required for the Wii? Also, storage? Is all of this handled via the USBC + external devices? Is this a neat way of sidestepping some sort of complicated Gamecube issue and using a Wii to play Gamecube isos?

This is super cool and that alone kinda makes me want one, but the goal of a $55 price point makes it seem like this is also a kit vs a completed device I am purchasing, and I haven't even dug up a soldering iron to do the "easy" hd mod on one of my N64s yet lol (i.e. I have barely even achieved novice modder status, I mostly just buy things I consider neat + useful)

Regardless of whether or not I can personally utilize this thing, it definitely appears to be awesome. I love what enthusiastic people with the know-how can accomplish.

I wouldn't say it's a practical device by any means, mostly just a cool ass project to push the limits of what we can do with the Wii. To answer your questions though:

1. Wiimotes are off the table seems like. I somehow doubt theres enough room for a Bluetooth relocation, plus this is basically a metal brick with nothing setup for Wi-Fi/Bluetooth antennas, so even if those relocations could fit, you'd have very poor signal reception or simply none at all, as 2.4GHz wireless signals do not pass through metals very well. In any case, RVLoader includes GC2Wiimote which lets you map wiimote inputs to GameCube controller inputs, so some Wii software should still be very playable.

2. Storage is handled via an internal SD card wired to the Wii via USB through a converter IC. Not sure if theres a way to access it externally at this time without disassembly. RVLoader handles game loading through USB so this is how GameCube and Wii software is loaded.

I wouldn't recommend building one if you're not already intimately familiar with soldering and the Wii, as this is gonna be a very challenging build even for the experts among us. Maybe someone in the community will offer commissions if you're still interested, but I would expect not or for them to be commissioned at a very high price given the difficulty.

Does it still have the capacity to include Bluetooth? Also, someone could create a portable shell that the kawaii can power. A kawaiideck. Maybe even like a gameboy cartridge with a gboy style shell.

We've been talking about this on the Discord and I'd love to see someone do it, it's such a cool idea to be able to dock Kawaii into different things to change up how you use it!

 

[PeanutPerry]

In order for us to get the cost of the CNC'd, anodized and laser marked shells to a reasonable amount we'll need a buy-in for the initial batch of at least 30 units. The more units purchased the cheaper it'll be per unit.

At this stage expect $55usd per unit which will include the shell in your selected colour, the screws, and shipping.

If you are interested fill out the linked form so we can get an idea on initial numbers:

Kawaii EOI Form

Definitely interested in getting one, it’s so cool how you could put enough hardware into that tiny thing to make a Wii

 

[Richard R]

Wow. In for one for sure.

 

[thedrew]

Wow, incredible! I'm really interested in the temps with being passively cooled!

 

[loopj]

Wow, incredible! I'm really interested in the temps with being passively cooled!

I was running multi-day load tests on a mildly undervolted board while testing Thundervolt with a puny passive cooling setup, and it was A-OK. Temps peaked at 55 degC.

 

[michael8035]

is the word kawaii recessed into the aluminum? or is it cut all the way through the shell? and will the 6 windows will have individual pieces of acrylic for the rgb leds?

 

[YveltalGriffin]

I'm really interested in the temps with being passively cooled!

Same here. I hope surface temps can be kept low enough that you can still touch/handle the unit while it's running. There are always the two nuclear options of:

• using a Hollywood-2 OMEGA
• running the Wii at GC clocks

is the word kawaii recessed into the aluminum? or is it cut all the way through the shell? and will the 6 windows will have individual pieces of acrylic for the rgb leds?

All of the graphics will be laser-etched into the anodized aluminum. Our machinist friend sent this pic showing how it'll look. Wesk's renders are true-to-life!

The acrylic window details haven't been worked out yet. Individual windows are a must to achieve a flush outer surface. But the windows might need to be a single machined piece (with 'spokes' connecting them) to allow for secure mounting to the rear shell. Bead blasting the acrylic to get a frosted look would be nice, too...

Translucent resin printing might be the answer.

 

[GarnetSunset]

oh most definitely not faint of heart or beginner friendly. But only 3 wires though, an absolutely inedible design

inedible hahaha

 

[Shank]

what do you use this for?

 

[marshallh]

Nice, very nice

 

[Benge]

Amazing work guys ! It's unbelievable how miniaturised the wii can be.
Can't wait to see the build

 

[Viilmo]

what do you use this for?

 

[Teatimetim]

This is awesome! Are you still accepting buy ins for the case?

 

[Mr Game & Cube]

This is awesome! Are you still accepting buy ins for the case?

They probably are, direct quote,

we'll need a buy-in for the initial batch of at least 30 units. The more units purchased the cheaper it'll be per unit.

So, they should be still available.

 

[Rand]

In order for us to get the cost of the CNC'd, anodized and laser marked shells to a reasonable amount we'll need a buy-in for the initial batch of at least 30 units. The more units purchased the cheaper it'll be per unit.

At this stage expect $55usd per unit which will include the shell in your selected colour, the screws, and shipping.

If you are interested fill out the linked form so we can get an idea on initial numbers:

Kawaii EOI Form

Unbelievable! What a beautiful, well thought out project, this is the peak of Wii design I love everything about it ❤

 

[PTL]

Genuis Brain + Love for the game= Kawaii

 

[Stitches]

Damn that EOI maxed out fast

 

[Wesk]

So an update for clarity; The EOI form went absolutely nuclear with responses. The form was pretty much just for our own metrics on if we could comfortably hit the initial batch purchase amount and things like the most popular colours. With the information gathered we've closed the EOI form.

It's clear we should have no issues getting the shells at a very good price.

Once we have finalised things with the manufacturer @YveltalGriffin and I will make an announcement when actual purchasing of the shell is available.