Wii Vs. Xbox 360

Going through the Wii vs. Xbox 360 comparison provided below will give you a rough idea as to which is better among the two. A must read, if you are contemplating the idea of buying a new gaming console.
In the world of gaming, nobody needs an introduction to names like the Nintendo, Microsoft or Sony - the three major companies that have locked horns for the title of the 'best gaming console'. Their hopes are riding high on their respective seventh generation gaming consoles - the Wii, Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3 (aka PS3). The competition between these three companies is becoming intense by the day, and that, in turn, has put the end user in the dilemma of trying to figure out which is the best gaming console among these three.

While going through Xbox 360 vs. PS3 vs. Wii comparison can help you get a broader perspective of the issue, comparing any two of these consoles is much more convenient. More importantly, it also makes the comparison simple enough for the end user to understand. With that in mind, we decided to compare Nintendo Wii and Microsoft Xbox 360 to find out which of these two is a better bet. Before we begin with Wii vs. Xbox 360 comparison, let's have a look at each of these consoles individually.

Nintendo Wii Vs. Microsoft Xbox 360

Nintendo Wii
Nintendo Wii The Wii is a seventh generation gaming console manufactured and marketed by the Japanese multinational corporation Nintendo Co., Ltd. Nintendo released Wii as a successor to its previous console, the Nintendo GameCube, on 19th November, 2006. The two distinct features that the Nintendo Wii game console boasts of are the Wii Remote and WiiConnect24. The Wii Remote is a wireless controller which has the ability to detect movement in three dimensions, owing to which it works as an apt handheld pointing device, and adds to your gaming experience. WiiConnect24, on the other hand, facilitates messaging and updates on the Internet when the console is in the standby mode. Nintendo has sold as many as 88.3 million units of Wii in the world (as of 1st October, 2011), and also has quite a few sales records to its credit.
Microsoft Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is a seventh-generation gaming console manufactured and marketed by Microsoft Corporation based in the United States. This console was launched by Microsoft on 12th May, 2005, as a successor to its first gaming console - Microsoft Xbox. The most prominent features of Microsoft Xbox 360 are the Xbox Live and Kinect. Xbox Live is a paid service which allows Xbox users compete online, download arcade games, TV shows, music, movies, etc. Microsoft Kinect, on the other hand, facilitates motion gaming, and has pitched Xbox 360 against Nintendo Wii. As of today, only the Xbox 360 S version of this gaming console (marketed as Xbox 360) is in production. While its previous versions such as Xbox 360 Core, Xbox 360 Pro, Xbox 360 Elite have all been discontinued. Microsoft has sold 57.6 million units of Xbox 360 (as of 30th September, 2011) all over the world. Xbox 360 S

Which is Better: Wii or Xbox 360

Even though the new Xbox 360 is considerably smaller than its predecessor, it doesn't come anywhere close to Nintendo Wii in terms of size. That brings us back to the Wii and Xbox 360 comparison, which can be broadly categorized into technical differences between the two consoles and performance of the two.

Technical Differences
While Nintendo Wii uses the IBM PowerPC-based 'Broadway' CPU, Xbox 360 has a 3.2 GHz PowerPC Tri-Core Xenon CPU to its credit. In terms of Graphics Processing Unit (GPU), the former has ATI 'Hollywood' graphics chip (which is believed to clock 243 MHz) on board, while the latter sports a 500 MHz ATI Xenos GPU. With a superior GPU, the Xbox 360 is no doubt better than the Wii in terms of graphics. As far as the Xbox 360 vs. Wii storage capacity comparison is concerned, the Xbox 360 has a definite edge with detachable hard drives of up to 250 GB capacity, removable memory cards of 512 MB capacity and on-board storage chips, over Nintendo Wii which is armed with a 512 MB Internal flash memory which can be extended to 32 GB using a SD card, SDHC card and the Nintendo GameCube Memory Card.

Performance Factor
As far as the performance is concerned, the superiority of Xbox 360 in terms of tech specs gives it an edge over the Nintendo console. The introduction of Microsoft Kinect has put Xbox 360 back into contention. While the Nintendo Wii (armed with Wii Remote) was considered the uncrowned king of motion gaming initially, the entry of Kinect motion gaming system has altered the scenario to a great extent. Certain tweaks have made Xbox 360 slim quieter than the Wii, or even original Xbox 360 for that matter. Then there is Xbox Live (only if you are ready to pay that extra subscription though) which gives you access to all the music and videos you want to download. Amazing technical specifications, superior graphics, motion gaming system and Xbox Live service together make gaming a delight on Microsoft's Xbox 360, and give this console a definite edge over Nintendo Wii in terms of performance.

The Price Factor
Price is yet another deciding factor when it comes to Xbox 360 vs. Wii comparison, and Nintendo's Wii emerges victorious in this aspect of comparison. While Xbox 360 250 GB console is priced at US$299, Nintendo Wii is priced at US$149. (At US$199, Microsoft has Xbox 360 4 GB console on offer.) With a difference of around US$150, Wii is no doubt tempting - especially for those who don't want to spend a huge sum on buying a game console. Wii games cost somewhere around US$10-20, while Xbox 360 games are a bit costlier in the range of US$50-70. That being said, one can't ignore the fact that Microsoft has a wider range of games to offer as compared to Nintendo.

So which is better, Wii or Xbox 360? Our verdict of the Wii vs. Xbox 360 comparison - Microsoft's Xbox 360 gaming console has a definite advantage over its Nintendo counterpart for several reasons mentioned above. If price is the deciding factor though, we would recommend you to go for Nintendo Wii game console or the 4 GB Xbox console.

PS: While Xbox 360, Wii and PS3, all are pitted against each other, the major competition for Xbox 360 comes from Sony's PlayStation 3. If you are not able to decide which one to opt for among these two, going through PS3 vs. Xbox 360 comparison will be of great help for you.
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Last Updated: 11/1/2011
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