Is WiiConnect24 damaging your system?
by David Hinkle 
{ Jul 16th 2007 at 5:30PM }
Apparently, many a gamer are stating that leaving their Wii console connected to Nintendo's WiiConnect24 service is damaging the system. Now, we aren't ones to say "we told you so," but ... we told you so. Perhaps our Wii is still very much alive and kicking because of our paranoia? Or maybe these folks just had bad consoles to begin with? Whatever it is, the ones reporting these issues of damaged pixels showing up on their TV (due to overheated GPUs) all have one thing in common: leaving the console in Standby mode.
Are any of you having issues?
[Via VG Chartz]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Nushio @ Jul 16th 2007 5:36PM
Got mine in Decemeber. Been on standby/WiiConnect 24 every minute its not in use. Its yet to be a problem. I'll turn off WC24 just to be safe though......
Patrick @ Jul 16th 2007 5:37PM
I stopped using WiiConnect24 after I read that it used so much power while in stanby. I mean, I know it's not a lot, but I pay my own electricity bill so the cheaper I can make it the better.
There's NO REASON for anyone to leave WiiConnect24 on. Getting Wii-mail is pointless so far, and if an update comes out, you'll learn about it here at wiifanboy.
If the Wii was busy curing cancer or some other disease, ala PS3, than you'd have a reason to keep it on, but until then, just turn it off. Or leave it in the real standby mode, w/o WiiConnect24.
Mr Khan @ Jul 16th 2007 5:39PM
Things get damn hot back there, but i too have had no troubles thus far
Jayenkai @ Jul 16th 2007 5:45PM
Much like Nushio, I too have had mine on standby since launch with no noticable side-effects.
You are, at the very least, keeping the system well ventilated, right?
stjohnob @ Jul 16th 2007 5:49PM
Well....that explains it. I've had mine for about 2 months now. I tried different cables, inputs, and TV's. There are red/green/black/yellow lines that go vertically in the menus and get worse during game play.
I do have WiiConnect24 on, but maybe now I'll have to rethink that.
That is once I get a new one or mine repaired :(
Reality @ Jul 16th 2007 5:53PM
I'm going to leave mine on standby for now. At least until the warranty goes out then I'll turn it off.
Migizi @ Jul 16th 2007 6:03PM
I have not had an issue but then again my house never gets above 72 degrees in the summer or 70 in the winter.
Nushio @ Jul 16th 2007 5:59PM
Nein, Jayenkai. And my house is an oven.
Its simply on its stand. Thats all the venting its getting.
nick.bonanno @ Jul 16th 2007 6:13PM
What the hell now people are reporting about this. And no its not wii connect 24 is un proper heating.
AzaMcWazza @ Jul 16th 2007 6:23PM
I've had my console on since launch, no problems at all. Of course I could have saved some cash cause WiiConnect24 is a s useful as tits on a bull.
Michiel @ Jul 16th 2007 7:55PM
mine is working but when it is on online standby it get hot. its probably but i try not to put it on online standby. i think i am going to buy an eithernet adepter for this reason.
vidGuy @ Jul 16th 2007 6:27PM
Got mine on launch day. It's been either ON or in STANDBY (WiiConnect24) for all seven months+. No problems. I've only had 1 disc read error (it was a scratched copy of WiiSports) and 1 Internet Connect error that was quickly fixed. No problems at all. Mine's barely warm to the touch, even.
wcs @ Jul 16th 2007 9:09PM
To all you who say they have no problems, I recommend that you go out and rent RE4 just to make sure. Because NONE of my other games (Zelda, Wii Sports, Paper Mario, etc.) showed this pixel issue until RE4. I think the nature of RE4's graphics just make it much more apparent.
I sent mine out and got it fixed and now RE4 looks great.
Go do this sanity-check before your warranty runs out.
Probot @ Jul 16th 2007 6:46PM
Had mine since launch, WiiConnect24 on and always left on standby. No problems here.
And these anecdotal reports aren't very convincing. When you here about the 360 overheating, it simply stops working. It seems unlikely that an overheated system would simply work differently. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think people have some defect and are just looking at the wrong problem.
Ibrahim @ Jul 16th 2007 6:47PM
Umm, that's an odd conclusion considering that WiiConnect24 is on by default on all Wiis. Saying that it is the common thread in all those problems is like saying that because all computers with viruses have a keyboard, the keyboard is to blame.
Matt @ Jul 16th 2007 8:17PM
WC24 since...the day I got it. (Which was Black Friday, AKA less than a week after launch.) I have yet to see a problem. I leave it on to e-mail my friends from school who have Wiis but don't check their e-mail often enough...the blue glow means they'll definitely check, haha...
And yea, I don't intend to turn it off anytime soon. I leave it on top of a dresser, next to my TV. I can't imagine this being a big problem if you give it enough space...
dorian @ Jul 16th 2007 7:03PM
i've have mine since xmas and i've had black spots come up. I sent my out to nintendo and got it replaced. weather it was WC24 or not im not sure
Jackson Pritt @ Jul 16th 2007 7:08PM
Maybe instead of saying "I told you so!" you guys should be notifying Nintendo and starting an online petition to get them to come up with a solution to the problem.
When one of the MAIN FEATURES OF THE CONSOLE is apparently responsible for causing dramatic damage to the system there's clearly a faulty hardware system that Nintendo needs to address.
As a Wii owner I shouldn't have to choose between having to not use one of the features that sold me on the system or having my system get fried.
idioteraser @ Jul 16th 2007 7:22PM
People wiiconnect24 is not damaging the wii. All wiiconnect 24 is doing is causing a defective heatsink to reveal itself while under warranty. Repeat other wiis who have never been in standby mode have had their gpus overheat. Just being used will cause the defective heatsink to damage the gpu over time.
The wii failure rate is under 1%.
Nintendo is replacing all units the claims of wiiconnect24 damaging the system are nonsense. Repeat it's a defective heatsink. The system was designed for wiiconnect24 to be used. Nintendo is not Microsoft who rushes out a product using cheap shoddy part along with several design flaws.
Mr Khan @ Jul 16th 2007 7:23PM
I've heard that it's faulty graphics cards themselves, as opposed to WiiConnect24
And the reason the 360 overheating is a different reaction is because the overheating causes the internal structure of the motherboard to go out of alignment, while this seems to be damage to the Hollywood chip itself
nintendofan @ Jul 16th 2007 7:26PM
You people should research what happens when a pc graphic cards overheats due to a defective heatsink. Also overclocking can cause the graphic card to overheat hence why certain companies are making special heatsinks when they overclock a card.
Chicago_Josh @ Jul 16th 2007 7:31PM
I've had mine since launch and, except for an 8 hour power outage a couple of weeks ago, it's always on standby.
theLoneYoshi @ Jul 16th 2007 7:29PM
As for my Wii, I turned off standby after i realized it added a dollar every month to the electricity bill, and I pay my own bills with roommates, so I'm also going the cheaper route.
Plus, my Wii was one of those that got pretty hot on standby. It was hotter on standby than while on, ironically...
Kristian @ Jul 16th 2007 7:33PM
I had to return mine because leaving it on, melted on of the plastic parts that rotated the disc which made a small buzzing sound when disc would be inserted.
icicle0424 @ Jul 16th 2007 7:45PM
My wii stays in standby when not in use... I had to unplug it once because I was getting new carpet in the living room, but other than that, yeah...
I do see some weird green stuff on the screen, but only when I play RE4, never at any other time... My wiimotes unsync about once a week though, but if I unplug and plug the wii back in, they work again... is that some kinda problem?
carl @ Jul 16th 2007 8:04PM
I've noticed since day one what appears to be dead pixels on VC games, but they're not always present. Only on "load" screens between levels at times. (i.e. the quarter second black screen between level 1-1 and 1-2 in SMB) When I read from a disc, I never notice this problem, nor do I notice it with the web browser.
The only other problem I had was that I experienced a little lag with ... get this SMB2 of all games!
Havana @ Jul 16th 2007 8:19PM
Left my WiiConnect24 on. Receive my ups shipping labels for repair today. Sigh...
idioteraser @ Jul 16th 2007 8:52PM
Resident Evil 4 is very graphics intense so it will cause the defective graphic card to reveal itself earlier then other games. You will need to call Nintendo.
As for unsyncing wiimotes are you doing the hardware sync which is the button on the console and wiimote or in the wii menu which is a temp software sync?
Once again defective heatsink due to a manufactorign error not wiiconnect24 that causes the overheating of the graphics card among other things. Heatsinks are passive they are not the fan. The fan assists however if the heatsink itself is defective then it doesn't matter if you add liquid cooling or put it in a freezer the electronic device will overheat in time.
Lee @ Jul 16th 2007 9:32PM
@ 19 "Plus, my Wii was one of those that got pretty hot on standby. It was hotter on standby than while on, ironically..."
Yeah, I noticed the same thing just after I bought the console, I always turn my Wii off manually to get the red light rather than orange standby. I find by setting Wii connect 24 to "OFF" it messes too much with the net connections when online so a manual switch-off is the way to go.
@28, how exactly do you notice the defect while playing RE4 then? I mean it's quite a grainy game in terms of graphics so I would've thought it would be difficult to spot pixel errors :-/
smook @ Jul 16th 2007 9:39PM
It's working from day one! All is good. Always on stand-by. Great system.
GregZ @ Jul 16th 2007 9:56PM
I suffered from this exact issue some three months ago. Random green and red pixels would show up on the Wii menus, in Wii games, but NOT in Gamecube games. This leads me to think it has to do with the Wii's graphics processor (there IS a separate processor for gamecube playback, am I right?) My wiiconnect24 was left on since launch, for what it's worth.
I was never told what was wrong with my system, but Nintendo's service is fantastic and I had a new one in short order. NOA confirms once again they are the best.
Bob799 @ Jul 16th 2007 10:04PM
No problems on mine and ive had it for 5 months now. Id say ive had WC24 on for all except a week or so (plus my house is extremely warm, I live in Texas and sometimes I dont have air conditioning on)
Id have to agree with everyone else saying its not WC24 thats the problem
Jamesology @ Jul 16th 2007 10:08PM
I don't play with my Wii no more cuz I'm bored of it. But it could be the air quality or dust in your house. Cuz my Wii had never heat up nor did my PS3. But @ my buddy's house his 360 and PS3 always heats up cuz it very stuffy and dusty there. So it's "probably not your system," but your crappy air.
Valien @ Jul 16th 2007 10:16PM
Wii owner for about 2 months now. WC24 on 24/7. No problems here at all.
Oh, wanna save more electricity? Replace all your lightbulbs with CFL bulbs instead. You'll save enough over the course of a year to buy a few new games...
Gordon @ Jul 16th 2007 10:39PM
I've only noticed one pixel issue, in kirbys adventures this black rectangle blinks when you move across screen, is this normal and im just paranoid or is that an actual problem? It is very warm when on standby although I read in nintendo power that was not a problem.
Jeremy @ Jul 16th 2007 10:52PM
I have had mine since Feb. and connect 24 is always on. I have noticed that my Wii would get pretty hot when in standby but using the stand made it a bit cooler. Also go to your local EB or Gamestop they have a vertical stand for under 20.00 with a fan that will stay on even in standby if you are afraid of the over heating.
Hoffer @ Jul 16th 2007 11:01PM
I turned off the Wii connect thing as soon as I realized how worthless it was. That took about 2 weeks.
Rich @ Jul 16th 2007 11:38PM
Since I've had mine from launch, I've kept WiiConnect24 on and have had no problems. I own and play RE4 and see nothing wrong. Though I did check my Wii right now and the bottom of the unit (left side when propped up on its stand) is a little warm. I'm not gonna sweat it.
Andrew Herron @ Jul 17th 2007 12:20AM
I've had no issues with mine - sure it gets warm to the touch in standby mode but I use it in the vertical stand sitting out in the open, not tucked away lying flat near other sources of heat.
Plenty of ventilation ftw.
tiamat1990 @ Jul 17th 2007 12:21AM
No I've been turning it off every time. My first Wii broke. Lines started appearing all over the place then my games all started to look very pixelated. I called Nintendo of Australia and apparently it's a known issue with launch systems that has since been resolved. But I've been to paranoid with my 2nd Wii breaking so I turn it off to a red light. Anyway, WiiConnect 24 is useless. All it does is inform you of new stuff but doesn't actually do anything. I turn my Wii on almost everyday so no need for this.
nintendofan @ Jul 17th 2007 3:53AM
The kirby thing is normal. It happens on the NES version.
If the wii gpu is overheated you can notice it in RE4 when you look up at the sky. Easy to spot red and green pixels which is an artifact caused when a graphics card has been damaged. As I said numerous times defective heatsink not wiiconnect24. It's pretty much restricted to the launch units. All wiiconnect24 does is cause the defective heatsink issue to reveal itself faster since the system is being used for a longer period of time then if you had wiiconnect24 off.
Fred @ Jul 17th 2007 4:25PM
THis is absurd.
Assuming you got the terminology correct, it is impossible for a GPU to cause dead pixels.
Not only that, but it is also virtually impossible for a system in standby to overheat to the point of causing permanent damage. While it is true that heat is still generated, it is definitley not enough to cause anything to overheat.
Also, during the standby, the GPU is completely off - since there is no video output of any sort, it is, of course, off.
Now, once again, it is of course giving off heat during standby. Once again, it is not possible for it to generate enough heat, while in standby, to cause any sort of permanent damage.
Considering that it doesnt overheat while under load, of course, is a pretty good indication. Of course, it does have the help of a fan in that case, but there is only fan, and a small one at that.
In summary, this is all a bunch of panic-inducing idiocy. Leave your Wii's on standby. Strap on a pair.
And for those of you concerned with power drains, i suggest you leave your computer off, and sell all those pricey components. You should probably also stay away from dual core, as that does bump up the power drain quite significantly.
Oh, and if you have your Wii in an enclosed area, with no ventilation, and other hot components, like other consoles and amps and stuff, then its your fault, not the Wii's - its called "heat accumulation". I fear the safety of your console while it is on, more than while it is on standby.
And im dissapointed in Wii Fanboy to carry such a ludicrous story.
-Fred
Roos @ Jul 17th 2007 6:00AM
I had WiiConnect24 on from the start, but I am noticing some weird things lately, like controllers that won't connect anymore. I tried everything, rebooting, syncing, another controller, new batteries but only after pulling the powercable out my Wii they worked again.
Also I had some crashes and trouble starting up and rebooting my Wii.
I tried switching off WiiConnect24 but then the Everybody Votes channel won't allow me to connect to the internet. Is switching off the standby function good enough?
Mark @ Jul 17th 2007 6:11AM
I've had my Wii since launch, and since our household does not leave the internet on 24/7, I've always had WiiConnect24's standby off, only have WiiConnect24 on when the system is physically on. Haven't had problems with the menus and games, they're still working great from the day I bought it.
I only turn on the standby mode when I use Forecast and News Channels, after I use that, it's immediately off.
waynorama @ Jul 17th 2007 6:37AM
Got my system on day one but only noticed the pixles last week when I bought RE4 and now I notice the green blocks on every Wii game. I thought it was a crappy cable but Ninty says send her in. Actually, I'm glad I left WiiConnect on cuz I found the bad card before the warranty ran out! (I'm convinced it's a bad car- nothing to do with WiiConnect.)
burgerbat @ Jul 17th 2007 6:43AM
I used to leave WiiConnect24 on, but I realized it was de-stabilizing my router. It was knocking all connections out randomly. It made my 360 re-connect to Live about every five minutes. I wondered for a while if that was on purpose. Then I turned Connect24 off, and no more problems. Someone will say it's probably my router, and they're probably correct, but the Wii seems to be the likeliest culprit.
adora @ Jul 17th 2007 12:06PM
*IT IS NOT WII-CONNECT24 THAT IS THE PROBLEM*
*PLEASE READ*
I got my Wii at launch and did tons of experiments with them, so take this as you will. I was one of those people who bought the generic wired LAN adaptor that was discovered in the first few weeks of the Wii's life to be compatable (before Nintendo released their own or even the 3rd party "Wii" ones came out).
It's the Wi-Fi in general that makes the Wii hotter than heck on one side. But it's NOT Wii-Connect specifically. I have Wii Connect on, but through my wired connection my Wii is downright cool on one side, and slightly warm on the other (left side, where the Wi-Fi hardware is). If I go wireless, my Wii heats up considerably - I can easily tell the difference just by placing the back of my hand on the sides of the system.
Wi-Fi enabled stuff runs hot anyway, but Ninty has a big issue with it. For instance, the USB Wi-Fi Connector (that was originally available for making a Wi-Fi spot in your house for the DS, but now works on the Wii as well) gets UNCOMFORTABLY hot because of the model of base component they used (they really just rebranded old chips).
Anyway, I know not everyone has a wired living room like I do, but wired really is better for your Wii...it runs cooler, and wired will always be faster and better than wireless (no lost packets, etc.) no matter what they guys at Wal-Mart try to con you into. WiFi is for people that don't have wired; it's not better in any way performance wise, and it sounds like that's the issue people are having.
linkedtothepastry @ Jul 17th 2007 8:52AM
I've noticed these lines in RE4 as well. Even though my Wi-Fi dongle isn't connected (aka no data transfer) I left my Wii on standby for months when not playing. It gets hot, even when not receiving data. Now, I'm getting the dead pixels strings as well (in RE4 only; they are very noticeable). How much do repairs cost?
cygnusx1 @ Jul 17th 2007 8:51AM
For me it was Tiger Wood '07, And it was apparent immediately after I started playing that there were graphical errors. After that I borrowed Rayman Raving Rabbits with the same results. It definitely seems to have something to do with the overheating, and or, malfunction of the GPU. I have seen this one other time, however it was with a modded/overclocked ATI 9800 card. In that instance it was a result of a crippled GPU as well. I fully intend on getting this resolved with Nintendo's warranty before it expires.
nintendofan @ Jul 17th 2007 9:14AM
Number 48 Nintendo has a one year default warranty. They will repair the unit for free. If you have any game saves vc game purchases wii points in the machine you will have to tell them.
The only repairs not covered by warranty Nintendo charges for are cosmetic damages that don't affect your ability to play the unit.