Spent some time looking for a way to get the Wii on internet. First attempt: transform the laptop into a wireless access point. Should be do-able, right? Well, not enough nerd-points for that (although I do have enough nintendo stars by now :).
Second option: get a wireless router. Plenty of bonus stuff compared to getting an official Nintendo dongle — the thing is not just limited to supplying internet to nintendo-gear, which is cool for visitors. In the Netherlands, you can find a WiFi router for about 25 euro. In Luxembourg, you can find one for about 50 euro.
Okay, so either I wait ’till I am in the Netherlands again, or I wait ’till I am in the Netherlands again. I am willing to spend a bit more, but not that much more.
During my hunt for a WiFi router, I came across a Nintendo dongle for 30,-. Reasonable price, but limited. But the more I thought about it, the more sense it made. It’s small, compact — I will take a usb-stick with me when moving; dunno about a router. USB stick will fit, no matter what, routers… just don’t know.
So the next day, I happened to be in the neighborhood around closing time. I decided to check, and by cosmic coincidence I made it in time. Took the thing home, and installed it. That was not that easy, but it turned out not to be an official Nintendo dongle, but a WiFiMax by Big Ben. Cool thing is, that this gadget converts my laptop into an access point! So now I have my router — or at least enough of a router for my current purposes.
And I have plenty of Wii Points (virtually no more stars though, but they were deprecating come July, so that’s not too bad. At least they are put to good use!)