A few weeks ago I thought it might be cool to get my daughters a Wii for Christmas. In my defense...nothing, really, other than I'm not all that smart. They, however, are and greatly suspect what I've been up to lately. Since I still think we'd really like having one I was considering a "promissory" present and getting one when they're available for less than double the retail cost.

What I was hoping you kind people could answer for me are the following questions:

Do they actually exist or is at all some gigantic internet social experiment?
Are they ever in stock? Anywhere?
Are they ever available anyplace at less than double the retail cost? Any chance that might occur before July?
If not, who do I have to sleep with to get one?

Thanks in advance for any answer although keep in mind I already know I'm an idiot.

ETA: You guys are awesome!

ETA2 We got one! Thanks a bunch for all the tips.

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(Post a new comment)

	coreopsis 2007-12-10 06:15 pm UTC (link)
	We picked one up at Target a couple months ago because they had just happened to have some in stock while we were there. My advice for finding one locally is to ask the stores of your choice when they get their shipments in and check back on that day and hope you can get in before they are sold out. (Reply to this)(Thread)

(no subject) - coreopsis, 2007-12-10 06:17 pm UTC

(no subject) - missdaisy, 2007-12-10 06:23 pm UTC

peachespig 2007-12-10 06:22 pm UTC (link)

They exist. I got one back in the spring because I happened to walk into Best Buy fifteen minutes after they put them on sale. Another five minutes and I probably would have been out of luck. They weren't even selling them in the video game section — they just built a little tower on the floor near the cash registers and watched them disappear. It was list price. If you don't want to pay ridiculous prices on eBay, I think luck and a knowledge of when your stores get shipments and when they make them available are your best hopes. And if you do give a promissory note until January, things might get a lot better. Much less chance of being killed by your fellow shoppers in that case, too. (Reply to this)(Thread)

(no subject) - peachespig, 2007-12-10 06:23 pm UTC

(no subject) - missdaisy, 2007-12-10 06:28 pm UTC

wtf 2007-12-10 06:23 pm UTC (link)

I work at a smallish, strip-mall GameStop. We get crap shipments, seriously. We tell people we don't know when we're getting them in, which is 90% true; we usually hear we may get them in about 24 hours in advance, but since (a) it's not definite and (b) we fear mobs, we don't tell anyone. We get our shipments in at around 1pm, and we get maybe 3-6 Wiis at a time. So, with that said, here's my advice: 1) Mall GameStops get more Wiis than freestanding ones. 2) Big box stores (Target, Best Buy, etc) get more than GameStops (and you'd better believe this pisses off GameStop). 3) If there is an ad for Wii in a store's Sunday circular, there is a very good chance that they'll be holding some for when the ad goes into effect. Camp out. 4)www.consolewatch.com and www.itrackr.com have supposedly gotten good results, but I haven't used them. I would not buy them off eBay because it only encourages the damned flippers. :/ (Reply to this)(Thread)

(no subject) - missdaisy, 2007-12-10 06:30 pm UTC

(no subject) - missdaisy, 2007-12-10 06:33 pm UTC

	scifantasy 2007-12-10 06:28 pm UTC (link)
	http://wiitracker.com/ is a website for tracking online Wii sales. Right now, and I'm not too surprised with the Christmas rush, it's pretty much showing red lights only... Good luck. (Reply to this)(Thread)

(no subject) - missdaisy, 2007-12-10 06:34 pm UTC

black_spot 2007-12-10 06:54 pm UTC (link)

Gosh! I really feel for you. I got mine last Christmas, and it was a nail-biting experience until a week before Christmas. I was late in pre-ordering at HMV on line and first it was yes, then no, then yes, then maybe, and then finally yes. There was a time I was preparing to wrap an empty box with an I.O.U. from Santa. Good luck, they are really so much fun to play. I mean KOing all three kids on Christmas Day and retiring undefeated was a memory to treasure. (Reply to this)(Thread)

(no subject) - missdaisy, 2007-12-10 07:22 pm UTC

	memoriamvictus 2007-12-10 07:13 pm UTC (link)
	Both Target and Toys R Us seem to get shipments (or at least, put their stock on sale) on Sunday mornings, if you're inclined to get up early and camp for an hour or two. (Reply to this)(Thread)

(no subject) - missdaisy, 2007-12-10 07:16 pm UTC

	sticks 2007-12-10 07:45 pm UTC (link)
	My mom camped overnight to get one for my brother last year, buuuuut she had the benefits of uber-survival gear from her backpacking days. (Reply to this)(Thread)

(no subject) - missdaisy, 2007-12-10 07:49 pm UTC

(no subject) - sticks, 2007-12-10 07:54 pm UTC

	nekoneko 2007-12-10 07:48 pm UTC (link)
	It definitely seems like the huge stores around here get theirs in on Sundays. I managed to find mine one day when out shopping with my mother in Wal-Mart, noticed that there were Wii boxes in the video game section, and asked if they actually had Wiis. (Gamestop/EB Games puts up empty boxes no matter what, because they're filthy whores.) Best of luck! (Reply to this)(Thread)

(no subject) - missdaisy, 2007-12-10 09:53 pm UTC

chash 2007-12-10 08:29 pm UTC (link)

I'd definitely recommend just asking people at the stores when they get their shipments in--my local Gamestop was very helpful about it and told me to basically call ahead on the day when they got their shipments, then rush to the store if they were getting them in. I'd also suggest trying places like Wal-Mart which sell a variety of things in addition to Wiis, because in my experience those were being less heavily camped. Also, you might get lucky like I did and have the guy working there offer to sketchily sell you his Wii for cheap, but that was mostly just blind luck. (Reply to this)(Thread)

(no subject) - missdaisy, 2007-12-10 09:54 pm UTC

julesnoctambule 2007-12-10 08:30 pm UTC (link)

If you do have to make it a post-Christmas purchase, maybe you could give it a happy spin by making a day out of it? You and the girls go to the store, pick it out, maybe choose a special game or two then have an afternoon of playing -- then it's more that just another blur of present-opening memories. Worked like a charm for us, my mom and the Barbie Dream House when I was a kid. (Reply to this)(Thread)

(no subject) - missdaisy, 2007-12-10 09:56 pm UTC

(no subject) - julesnoctambule, 2007-12-11 02:36 am UTC

	iwanttobeasleep 2007-12-10 08:37 pm UTC (link)
	Everyone has given you really good advice, so I can just say: Good luck! But be prepared not to get one, Nintendo is pulling their advertising because they won't be able to meet demand at all. (Reply to this)(Thread)

(no subject) - missdaisy, 2007-12-10 10:00 pm UTC

(no subject) - krazycat, 2007-12-10 10:08 pm UTC

(no subject) - iwanttobeasleep, 2007-12-10 10:19 pm UTC

rogue 2007-12-10 08:47 pm UTC (link)

My friend works at Cotsco, and says they sometimes get them - they never know how many, or when, but they DO get them, and no one ever knows until they magically appear, so no one gets any ahead warning, even the employees. So maybe pop in there every so often as well? Good luck! It's going to be a battle. But I have to say, they're worth it. I don't have one, but a friend does, and they're really fun to play with friends. (Reply to this)(Thread)

(no subject) - missdaisy, 2007-12-10 10:02 pm UTC

wolfsamurai 2007-12-10 08:54 pm UTC (link)

Another suggestion is to let your friends and family know that you're looking for one and to have them call you if they happen to see one while they're doing their own shopping. I didn't get my Wii this way (I just kept calling around until I got lucky), but I did help my cousin get his. I called him from the Best Buy I was getting my Wii at and he was down within 15 minutes to buy one of his own. If your friends/family are really good and flush with money, they'll buy it for you with the expectation of getting repaid, but that's very situational. (Reply to this)(Thread)

(no subject) - missdaisy, 2007-12-10 10:09 pm UTC

	puipui 2007-12-10 09:17 pm UTC (link)
	I saw one once in a Wal-Mart under lockup, but I'm still not convinced it was anything but an empty box. (Reply to this)(Thread)

(no subject) - missdaisy, 2007-12-10 10:10 pm UTC

(no subject) - puipui, 2007-12-10 10:23 pm UTC

rekall 2007-12-10 09:26 pm UTC (link)

Wal-Mart is my suggestion. The ones around here get them in all the time. Talk to some of the staff and find out when they get their stock in. Even if they don't know when a shipment of Wiis is coming in they can tell you what day the weekly truck arrives and roughly the time it arrives that day. Those are the days/times you want to get to the store because you never know when a couple of Wiis will be included in the shipment. I know last year when talking to staff of some stores (I got mine on launch day so I had no problem but I was curious for some stories they had of people trying to get them) they said they wouldn't be getting any Wiis in their latest shipment and when the truck arrived... Oops they'd get a few. So even if you get told "no Wiis for 4 weeks", keep checking the store when they get their shipment in because you never know. (Reply to this)(Thread)

(no subject) - missdaisy, 2007-12-10 10:11 pm UTC

rubedo 2007-12-10 09:54 pm UTC (link)

I stood out from around 6am - opening in New York's Nintendo World at the end of last December for mine (since I am crazy). Buuut everyone's given good advice already and what I would suggest has already been, so! I wish you good luck, and keep on trying and calling. And if you have friends who'd be willing to on a card and trust enough to expect payback, ask them to pick one up if they happen to luck out and see one. (Reply to this)(Thread)

(no subject) - missdaisy, 2007-12-10 10:16 pm UTC

(no subject) - rubedo, 2007-12-11 06:07 am UTC

	kijikun 2007-12-10 09:56 pm UTC (link)
	http://www.gamestop.com/search.asp?N=138+83 You can order them on line from gamestop (which is how I got mine) or from other places (amazon might have some). Gamestop is saying no Christmas deliver, though. (Reply to this)(Thread)

(no subject) - kijikun, 2007-12-10 09:57 pm UTC

(no subject) - missdaisy, 2007-12-10 10:17 pm UTC

(no subject) - kijikun, 2007-12-10 10:22 pm UTC

	iwanttobeasleep 2007-12-10 09:59 pm UTC (link)
	Oh, if you know anyone with a Sam's Club membership you might be able to get one there. They sometimes get shipments and generally get overlooked. (Reply to this)(Thread)

(no subject) - missdaisy, 2007-12-10 10:19 pm UTC

	qem_chibati 2007-12-10 10:01 pm UTC (link)
	http://games.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/12/09/1347256 They were talking about this on slashdot last night... The /actual/ advice they suggest include: Craig's list! Set up their RSS feeds and watch it. - since they tend to be below cost there unlike ebay. People in UK = purchasing in Europe article link http://binaryspiral.com/2007/12/01/how-to-get-a-wii-before-christmas (Reply to this)

hypno_jango 2007-12-10 10:19 pm UTC (link)

I'm an operator at a retail store and let me give you these helpful hints for the holiday. Shopping For Wiis During the Holiday Season 1) The best time to get them was in September/October. That's when I got mine and that's the only time I saw them in the case three days in a row. 2) If it's in the Sunday ad, we'll most likely have them in... but they sell out as soon as we open. If it's two hours after we open, don't call me... we're sold out. 3) Call or just show up as soon as we open (on non-Wii Sunday ad days) and you might get lucky. Note the "as soon as we open". 4) Seriously, stop calling me on the weekends if we've been open for two hours already. It's the holiday season. If you don't want to wake up early, it's not my fault little Billy and Suzy are going to be upset Santa didn't get them a Wii. (Reply to this)(Thread)

(no subject) - missdaisy, 2007-12-10 10:54 pm UTC

(no subject) - hypno_jango, 2007-12-10 11:16 pm UTC

	krazycat 2007-12-10 10:29 pm UTC (link)
	I hope you get one, I love mine to bits! Got it in August. (Reply to this)(Thread)

(no subject) - missdaisy, 2007-12-10 10:55 pm UTC

(no subject) - krazycat, 2007-12-10 11:54 pm UTC

	gloria_mundi 2007-12-10 10:51 pm UTC (link)
	I like the idea of the Wii being a gigantic social experiment. Think of the wank. THE WANK! It would be glorious (Reply to this)(Thread)

(no subject) - missdaisy, 2007-12-10 10:56 pm UTC

(no subject) - gloria_mundi, 2007-12-10 11:13 pm UTC

(no subject) - puipui, 2007-12-11 05:15 am UTC

meril 2007-12-10 11:02 pm UTC (link)

Summer really is the best time to get a Wii. Another tip for out-of-season Wii purchasing: Stores in or right outside non-major metro areas in the US will probably have Wiis when suburban stores won't. Also, downtown stores may have Wiis when suburban stores won't--a friend of mine scored his Wii at the Target in downtown Minneapolis when many other stores in the area sold out. I have similar anecdotal evidence regarding obtaining Wiis in the Netherlands (summer, game store in medium-sized city, going into store when it opened.) (Reply to this)(Thread)

(no subject) - missdaisy, 2007-12-11 02:39 am UTC

	keleri 2007-12-10 11:24 pm UTC (link)
	I managed to get mine off of Amazon.com in October or so because sales finally slowed down slightly; additionally, after I ordered it my friends were all like "WAHLL OMG TEH EB BY MAH HOUSE HAS LIEK TEN". I'm assuming those are all gone now that people are buying Christmas presents and so on. (Reply to this)(Thread)

(no subject) - missdaisy, 2007-12-11 02:46 am UTC

	ladysorka 2007-12-10 11:34 pm UTC (link)
	If you live anywhere near rural communities, you might want to try their local shops - my mom managed to find one for my sister this week at a game store in a 20,000 person town when she hadn't been able to find one anywhere else at all - and they apparently had more than one in. (Reply to this)(Thread)

(no subject) - missdaisy, 2007-12-11 02:49 am UTC

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