Nyko Cord-Free Wireless Adaptor for the Wii Nunchuk

What sucks worse than getting smoked in Mario Kart? How about getting smoked in Mario Kart because the cord on your Wii nunchuck got tangled up worse than Wario’s mustache?

Ah, look it’s Nyko coming to the rescue! What have they got there? Why it’s a wireless adapter for the Wii Nunchuck. Welletsee wellestee welletsee, let’s check it out.

The adapter comes in two parts: a small receiver that snaps into the port on the bottom of the Wiimote, and a nunchuck housing with a flat base that houses a pair of AAA batteries. The nunchuck snaps into the housing with a click, and the cord wraps around the battery base and plugs in to the port on the front. The resulting free-standing peripheral looks surprisingly cool, and takes up less space when not in use.

While gaming, the adapter functions flawlessly. Press the pairing button on top of the battery compartment, and a pair of flashing blue LEDs let you know the controller is active. The LED’s though are unnecessarily bright and can be annoying, especially when gaming in low light. We tested the adapter with a host of different games and noticed no noticeable lag. And while the battery compartment adds some weight, it’s not enough make the nunchuck feel unbalanced. But for small hands, the added girth created by the nunchuck housing could make deft manipulation of the thumb joystick more difficult.

What sucks worse than getting smoked in Mario Kart? How about getting smoked in Mario Kart because the cord on your Wii nunchuck got tangled up worse than Wario’s mustache?

Ah, look it’s Nyko coming to the rescue! What have they got there? Why it’s a wireless adapter for the Wii Nunchuck. Welletsee wellestee welletsee, let’s check it out.

The adapter comes in two parts: a small receiver that snaps into the port on the bottom of the Wiimote, and a nunchuck housing with a flat base that houses a pair of AAA batteries. The nunchuck snaps into the housing with a click, and the cord wraps around the battery base and plugs in to the port on the front. The resulting free-standing peripheral looks surprisingly cool, and takes up less space when not in use.

While gaming, the adapter functions flawlessly. Press the pairing button on top of the battery compartment, and a pair of flashing blue LEDs let you know the controller is active. The LED’s though are unnecessarily bright and can be annoying, especially when gaming in low light. We tested the adapter with a host of different games and noticed no noticeable lag. And while the battery compartment adds some weight, it’s not enough make the nunchuck feel unbalanced. But for small hands, the added girth created by the nunchuck housing could make deft manipulation of the thumb joystick more difficult.

Battery life is superb. Nyko claims 60 hours, and they ain’t lying. We’ve been playing on the same set of AAAs for weeks now. The small receiver that attaches to the Wiimote, however, is a power hog, significantly shortening battery life, and creating false power readings. Several times during Super Mario Galaxy, the low battery indicator popped up on-screen, even though the Wiimote’s batteries were fresh. Estimating the amount of Wiimote power drain was made more difficult by the false readings, but the wireless receiver seems to sap battery life by about a quarter to a third. Still, if you’re using rechargeables, the battery drain isn’t as much of an issue.

If you play a lot of Wii Sports, $20 is a small price to pay to keep the nunchuck cable from smacking you in the face, or other parts of your anatomy. And if you’re a fan of Mario Kart, then, well, blaming your loss on the tangled cord is no longer an excuse. In fact, if you're getting smoked while using one of these, it's probably because you just plain suck. —Matt Safford

WIRED Flawless functionality and simple setup means you’ll forget you’re using a wireless adapter. Stellar battery life keeps nunchuck going strong for up to 60 hours. Battery pack also functions as a nunchuck stand.

TIRED Receiver dongle significantly saps Wiimote batteries. Added nunchuck girth may make boss battles harder for those with small hands.

$20, nyko.com