Topic: REVIEWS: Nyko Wii Charge Station

[NWR_Neal]

Dock your Wii Remotes with Nyko's handy rechargeable battery packs!
 <a href=/reviewArt.cfm?artid=16710>http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/reviewArt.cfm?artid=16710[/url]

 The Nyko Wii Charge Station, consisting of two Wii Remote battery packs and a docking station, attempts to solve a few problems for Wii owners. The first and most obvious is that it adds a rechargeable battery pack to the Wii Remote. It also offers a docking station that puts the Wii Remotes on display as they charge. Despite being a third party product, the Nyko Wii Charge Station does both of these things very well.    <P>
The battery packs themselves are a pair of Nyko-branded NiMH rechargeable batteries that plug into the battery compartment of each Wii Remote. The battery covers serve a dual purpose, adding nice grips to the Wii Remotes while also serving as the connectors for the battery packs. This connector is used to charge the Wii Remote when it is seated in the docking station.    <P>
The docking station is the same shade of white as the Wii console and fits in well next to or around the system. Since all you need is a regular outlet for the docking station, it is easily moved around the room but can also be situated in one spot without difficulty. It might only hold two controllers, but you can buy more battery packs in a variety of colors to use in the Charge Station. The battery life of the packs is pretty good; Nyko advertises that you can get up to 25 hours of playtime out of a full charge, and while that number might not be completely correct, it is not far off either.    <P>
The Nyko Wii Charge Station does its job well, but it is not perfect. It tends to overheat every now and then, causing the battery packs to get really hot.  Fortunately this is easily fixed by simply removing the pack and putting it back in. The wrist strap on the controller also gets in the way of the connector when it charges. While it is almost understandable and seemingly unavoidable to work around the strap, it does get annoying after a while. Finally, because of the thick grip on the back of the battery cover, a Nyko-charged Wii Remote will have trouble fitting into some Wii peripherals.    <P>
In spite of these few shortcomings; the Nyko Wii Charge Station is a pretty solid and convenient package. It solves the battery problem for Wii Remotes and looks fine while doing so. If you want to have Wii-specific battery chargers, this is a very good solution.<BR><BR>Pros:<BR>        <li>20+ hours of playtime off of a full charge</li>  <li>Rubber grip is comfortable</li>  <li>Easy to set up</li><BR><BR>        Cons:<BR>        <li>Occasionally overheats</li><BR><BR>                <B>Appearance:  9.0</B><BR>        The station is similar to the Wii's color scheme and gives your Wii Remotes a nice place to hang out when they're not in use.<BR><BR>                <B>Comfort:  9.0</B><BR>        The grips on the back of the battery cover are more comfortable than the normal grips.<BR><BR>                <B>Quality:  8.0</B><BR>        The Charge Station is a very practical device that fits in with the Wii and does its job well.<BR><BR>                       <B>Value:  9.0</B><BR>        For $35 you get two battery packs and a docking station made specifically for your Wii.<BR><BR>  <P>
       <B>Construction:  8.0</B><BR>        Despite some occasional overheating, the Nyko Wii Charge Station is soundly made.<BR><BR>  <P>
       <B>Final:  8.0</B><BR>        While not perfect, the Nyko Wii Charge Station is a very solid product that does what it intends to do and does it correctly.      <P>

[mastro]

Am I the only one that thinks it is easier to just get NiHm battery's that take like 5min to charge. I am actually glad Nintendo went the way they did concening battery's as I never have to think about charging and just change batterys when old ones are dead.

[Jonnyboy117]

I use rechargeable Energizers.  They last forever and recharge in a couple of hours.  The charger is really small; I just leave it plugged into an inconspicuous outlet.

[D_Average]

You still have the wrist straps on??

[NWR_Neal]

You still have the wrist straps on??

Yea. I find them handy most of the time.
Also, I don't want my TV getting destroyed by an errant Boom Blox throw.

[Flames_of_chaos]

I pretty much do what Jonny does, rechargable energizers considering that I use them on my Wii remotes, balance board, 360 controller, wireless keyboard and digital camera I think rechargable AAs are much much better than proprietary battery packs that are generally over priced.

[readnbead]

I had this charge station for 3 months or so before the charge became flakey. It will charge intermittently; I place the Wiimote onto the unit and the light will indicate it needs a charge--but I walk away and the light turns green indicating it is fully charged (after playing with the Wiimote for hours???) Or, no matter how hard I try, I can't get the contacts to contact, and it won't light up at all.

Very flakey, I've switched to simply using Energizer rechargeables with a spare set always charged and on-hand. They last for hours of play and stand-by time for weeks if nobody has played. I would be willing to try another charge station, but one that has a better contact with the Wiimote and does NOT let the strap get in the way, I found that to be a PITA!

[NWR_Lindy]

I have one of these charge stations, and like it mainly because it gives me a nice place to stash my WiiMotes.  Gets them out of the way.

[AV]

I use rechargeable Energizers.  They last forever and recharge in a couple of hours.  The charger is really small; I just leave it plugged into an inconspicuous outlet.

yeah me too. What does it mean you put a battery in the charger and they little light blinks. When not charging the light is off, when charging its on. So no clue what it means when it blinks.

[shammack]

I had this charge station for 3 months or so before the charge became flakey. It will charge intermittently; I place the Wiimote onto the unit and the light will indicate it needs a charge--but I walk away and the light turns green indicating it is fully charged (after playing with the Wiimote for hours???) Or, no matter how hard I try, I can't get the contacts to contact, and it won't light up at all.

I have the same problem.  I've also noticed that sometimes, even if it's been charging all night and the light is green, I can turn on the Wii and bring up the home menu and it will show the battery as only being like half full.  I'm not sure how accurate that indicator is either, though.

Even so, since I started using this charge station I've never had to think about the Wiimote batteries while I was playing.  I just keep the remotes in the charger when I'm not playing and I always have enough charge.  The only annoyance is making sure that the contacts connect properly, but that's still a lot less annoying than having to keep opening up the remotes and taking the batteries out.

[Jonnyboy117]

yeah me too. What does it mean you put a battery in the charger and they little light blinks. When not charging the light is off, when charging its on. So no clue what it means when it blinks.

I've never seen that.  Try searching online or contacting Energizer.

[vudu]

Finally, because of the thick grip on the back of the battery cover, a Nyko-charged Wii Remote will have trouble fitting into some Wii peripherals.

This seems like a pretty big problem.  If you can't use your remote in the Wii Zapper, Wii Wheel or Guitar Hero instruments I think it's a pretty horrible design choice.

[TheBlackCat]

This seems like a pretty big problem.  If you can't use your remote in the Wii Zapper, Wii Wheel or Guitar Hero instruments I think it's a pretty horrible design choice.

It actually fits into my Wii wheel just fine.  I don't have any other similar peripherals so I can't comment on them.  Also, the battery fits in really snugly so you can take the battery cover off if you really have to without worrying about it falling out or having any exposed electrical contacts (besides the 4 that are always there).

[D_Average]

You still have the wrist straps on??

Yea. I find them handy most of the time.
Also, I don't want my TV getting destroyed by an errant Boom Blox throw.

That makes sense, if I had that game I'd probably throw them back on.  For some odd reason though, most of my Wii games don't use much motion...kinda strange I guess.

As for the station, I bought this product a year ago, and definitely feel I got my money's worth.  No issues yet, and its a slick way to store the wiimotes.

[shammack]

This seems like a pretty big problem.  If you can't use your remote in the Wii Zapper, Wii Wheel or Guitar Hero instruments I think it's a pretty horrible design choice.

It actually fits into my Wii wheel just fine.  I don't have any other similar peripherals so I can't comment on them.

It fits into the GH3 guitar fine too.

[NWR_Lindy]

My remotes fit into the Wii Wheel just fine too.

[NWR_Neal]

This seems like a pretty big problem.  If you can't use your remote in the Wii Zapper, Wii Wheel or Guitar Hero instruments I think it's a pretty horrible design choice.

It actually fits into my Wii wheel just fine.  I don't have any other similar peripherals so I can't comment on them.  Also, the battery fits in really snugly so you can take the battery cover off if you really have to without worrying about it falling out or having any exposed electrical contacts (besides the 4 that are always there).

I never thought about that.
That actually would probably solve any potential problems with the grips.