Use the Wii Component Cable to Get the Best Graphics from Your Wii



Wii component cableThe Wii Component Cable is a high quality audiovisual (AV) cable that connects your Wii console to your TV.

The Wii console comes packaged with a standard AV cable. The graphics are really good with this standard cable, but if you want to squeeze the best graphics out of your Wii you'll need to upgrade to a component cable.

The standard Wii AV cable only has 3 wires. One wire (yellow) carries the picture signal. The other two wires (red and white) carry the audio (or sound) signals.

Having only 1 video wire means that all the colours that make up a colour picture on the TV screen have to squeeze through the wire at the same time. This causes the picture signal to lose quality by the time it gets to the TV screen.

The Wii Component Cable has 5 wires. Instead of only one yellow wire to carry the entire picture signal, there are 3 video wires. Having 3 separate video wires for each colour prevents the picture loss caused by the 3 different colours trying to squeeze down the one yellow wire in the standard AV cable. With a component cable, each picture colour travels freely down its own wire. This results in a clearer, sharper picture on your TV.

The other 2 wires on the component cable (making up the 5 wires in total) carry the audio (sound) signals.

You can use a component cable with any flat screen television – LCD or plasma – as these all have inputs for component cables.

If you have an older television though, you'll need to check that it has component cable inputs. If it does, you'll see 5 different coloured holes all in a row. These holes will be coloured Red, Blue, Green, Red, and White.

If you own a High Definition TV (either LCD or plasma) then it's definitely worth spending a little bit extra for the component cable and enjoying the sharper, clearer graphics. They're not very expensive and the difference in picture quality is worth the money.

If you own an older TV that does have component cable inputs, then I would also recommend buying the component cable because you will notice an improvement in the picture quality, even on the older TV.

Wii component cableAll of the good online retailers stock component cables and they're reasonably priced. Like most of the accessories for the Wii, you can either buy the original Nintendo Component Cable or a good third party cable for a cheaper price.

A popular third party cable with great reviews is the Wii Madcatz Component Cable. It's a good quality cable, gives a crisp, clear picture, and comes at a good price.


From the Wii Component Cable to the Wii Balance Board, you can find all the accessories you need in the Wii Accessories section


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