Wii Mini

Not to be confused with MINI, the IOS replacement for the Wii by fail0verflow

The Wii Mini is a variant of the Wii, released by Nintendo in 2012.

Differences

The Wii Mini has several differences from a standard Wii.

• Features that were removed:
  • Front SD Card slot
  • GameCube Controller and Memory Card ports
  • Internal WiFi Card
  • Ability to use component video
  • Ability to connect to the internet
  • Ability to read GameCube discs.
• Features that were changed:
  • Unit is now marginally smaller
  • Top-loading optical drive rather than a slot-loading one
  • Only one USB port instead of 2

Limitations

These limitations fall into various distinct classes.

• Limitations imposed only by official software:
  • No internet connection ability (it still has a perfectly functional USB port, in which you can connect a USB Ethernet adapter)
• Limitations imposed by lack of onboard connectors:
  • No front SD Slot nor WiFi board connector (though the SDHCIs still exist in Hollywood, and they can be soldered back on)
• Limitations imposed by hardware:
  • No ability to output component video (I believe they changed the AVE-RVL^[check])
  • No ability to read GameCube discs (no support in the optical drive)

Linux support

Wii-Linux can run on the Wii Mini, by loading NPLL via the Homebrew Channel from USB Mass Storage, which in turn loads the kernel from USB Mass Storage, which in turn boots the rootfs from USB Mass Storage.