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186 of 190 found the following review helpful:
Worth it for me: makes a small but noticeable improvement. Will it work for you? Apr 21, 2009
By Mark Colan
"duke-of-url"
Summary: made a small but noticeable improvement for me, and worth the small investment
For this to work for you:
1) you need a TV capable of displaying the 480p resolution using component video inputs (three jacks that look like stereo jacks but usually marked blue, green, red). Most LCD and Plasma TVs should be able to do that. Possibly some older high-end sets will.
2) you need to switch the TV input to use the component inputs
3) you need to change the Wii Settings to use 480p after completing 1 and 2.
4) your TV probably has stereo input jacks, which will help avoid a problem discussed below.
My Sony Bravia LCD TV meets these requirements, and I care about small details and subtle improvement, so for me paying seven dollars with shipping was definitely worth the modest improvement. If I bought the official Nintendo-made component cable for thirty dollars plus tax, I'm not sure the improvement would be with the money.
With this cable, the picture looks slightly more sharp, crisp, vivid, which I like. The ugly "jaggies" are more clearly ugly, as expected. (Jaggies are staircase edges for diagonal lines and circles that are mostly visible in low-resolution graphics where smooth tones / anti-aliasing is not used to hide them.) The Wii already has jaggies with the standard cable, but they are sharper and thus more obvious with the component cable cable.
Another change (for me) is that the picture appears a bit brighter. The colors are vivid, as before, and a bit lighter, especially the whites. You could get a similar effect with the standard cable by adjusting your TV's controls, and if you don't like the brightness with the component cable, you could tone it down the same way.
Using either the standard or component cable, you will get the same actual graphics resolution (480 lines), which is all the current Wii can do. You will not get HD (which is 720 or 1080 lines). Still, progressive scan (480p) does look a bit sharper and more vivid than interlaced scan (480i), and that is the main reason for getting this cable.
My cable is new, so I can't say how it will last (will update if it fails), but it seems very well made and I expect no problems. I bought it in April 2009 from eForCity. Quality may vary, judging by some of the other reviews I found for the same product page. I see no reason to buy the considerably more expensive Nintendo-made cable unless you cannot otherwise find a quality generic cable.
The cable I received is close to six feet long (have not measured). Some cables are "extra long" at eight feet. I prefer a shorter cable so I don't have to coil it up, because that can cause video distortion problems.
POTENTIAL WIRING PROBLEM. In addition to the component picture plugs (3), there are also two (stereo) audio plugs. You can plug these into your TV, and run a cable from your TV audio output to your amplifier like I did, or use the TV speakers. The audio connectors are meant to be plugged into the TV near the component video inputs; they won't reach much past that. If you want to connect directly to your amplifier, you will need a stereo extension cable (female on one end, male on the other) or a stereo female-female adapter and an extra cable.
My four-star rating means this cable does exactly what it should do very well, with no particular benefits over similar products, and I'm totally satisfied. I reserve five stars for products that excel the others or exceed my expectations.
92 of 96 found the following review helpful:
 Super deal, super product Jan 24, 2008
By ChrisB.
I had a pair of Monster Wii cables before my dog chewed through them. I decided to give these inexpensive cables a try and they delivered the EXACT same picture on my LCD HDTV. There was NO DIFFERENCE between the two. Save some cash and get these. I highly recommend them.
45 of 48 found the following review helpful:
Wii HD Cord Nov 21, 2007
By Lisa M. Roller
I have my Wii connected to a 52" 1080P LCD TV. Although the Wii does not put out an actual HD signal, The picture quality with this cord is very good.
16 of 17 found the following review helpful:
MUST HAVE UPGRADE Jan 03, 2007
By H. Cantas
"Herc"
I finally got my component cable and Zelda looks amazing in 480P. This is a must have for all Wii owners with a TV that supports 480P.
21 of 24 found the following review helpful:
Huge Difference compared to Component! Mar 31, 2007
By Esteban Morales
I must say, if you own a Plasma or LCD with at least 42" size, you should buy this product, you woudn't beleive the difference it makes, the colors look more real, the rendered images look very crisp and sharp, just remember to change from 480i to 480p in you Wii configuration, enjoy!
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