Wiimote strap breaks, controller destroys TV
By Ryan Block 
posted Nov 20th 2006 4:16AM
posted Nov 20th 2006 4:16AM
[Thanks, Sando]
Update: We spoke with Jon Leonard, the guy whose TV is now cracked worse than a Mad mag knockoff. He insisted to us there was zero foul play going on here and that he's not out to get Nintendo to replace his TV, nor is he ready to pursue legal options. Just that his pal got carried away bowling and the strap broke under somewhat normal circumstances. (We asked if they were spinning it around or anything of the like and he said no, it was all normal, non-abusive use.) Nintendo hasn't contacted him yet -- we assume they're just about now shuffling into the office up there in Washington -- but we'll keep you posted.
Typically you're supposed to actually hold on to controllers.
Besides, there's no reason to be swinging that hard anyways.
1st. hell yea... but that is ridiculous. I might pull that stunt and get a new tv...
Even if it is a stunt... he doesn't need a new TV. Just a new screen. Cost is about $100 and you can install it yourself. Any parent with a 2 year old can tell you that.
what a ****ing idiot.
I took my strap off. :shrug:
No way the strap would break there and like that. Looks like they were just being dumba$$es and didn't use the strap.
Mine broke just like that right there, and my little sis was using her strap, i can take pictures if people want?
And your degree in textile or mechanical engineering is from ....?
Actually, my little sis (shes 12) and I were playing Wii sports (bowling) and the exact same thing happened, the strap broke and the wiimote flew across the room...luckily it hit my computer tower and did no damage as opposed to the tv. I think that strap may have been defective...worth calling nintendo just so they can keep track?
yes please do. Im getting a Wii soon, and like all Wii users, I want to be compensated from Nintendo should an accident happen (im thinking more along the lines of a replacement Wiimote). plus- the sooner they hear about these instances the sooner they'll fix it.
somewhere in IGN's website have a report of this happening ... it looks exactly the same ... I also thought that this could be fake but seeing an actual video of it gave me a different perspective
I dont understand how the strap can break, the strap is loose around your wrist, you have to hold the wiimote so the strap is slack, the only way this could happen is if you were flinging the remote about by the strip which doesnt happen if you have it firm in your hand.
Am i missing something?
yes you are missing something beacause it happened to me too. Playing baseball. When you have slippery hands and it slips with strap a little loose, it produces much more stress than if it was already tight. A lot of them have been breaking
you moron,think.the strap is there incase the wiimote slipped from your hand so it doesnt fly,wic in this case,the strap brok when the wii mote slipped from the users hand.the wii mote slips easily if your hand sweats
I bet the TV was broken before hand and this is a scheme to get a new TV.
Why would the controller fly out of anyone's hand??? Get a grip people!!!
I wanna see that video of the strap breaking. Until then I refuse to believe that strap wasn't cut by scissors.
I dunno looks kinda fake.
How hard do you have to be flinging that thing for it to break your TV? I think this is a hoax.
It's so obvious he cut the strap....
You see the strap string AND the strap insert area at the bottom of the Wiimote broken. This is not possible, either the string breaks of the bit holding the string breaks!
Not so fast my friend. The strap could have broke then the plastic piece holding it could have broken on impact with the TV. While your theory is very logical, that they both couldn't break, there is an equally logical theory that says they could.
This could still be true.
whatever man, my DS strap broke the same way, it found it's way under the (car) seat and i pulled it by the strap (the only thing i could grab), and it broke, this guy could have just let go accidentally, and thus having the strap slip though his hands
Sorry typo:
This is not possible, either the string breaks OR the bit holding the string breaks!
That strap is obviously cut, look at the fraying.
The fact that's he cut it towards the side and not where the pressure would be makes it doubly so.
How hard do you have to be flinging to let go anyways?
fake!
I am calling cut. Everyone was talking about the possibility of this exact thing happening.
1. Strap clearly cut.
2. Wouldn't mind seeing what damage on the remote that cracked glass.
3. Interesting "small white smudge" caused by the Wiimote on glass NOT where the crack is, how many times did they hit the TV with it?
4. Somethingawful.
Ive been waiting for this. When I first saw the controller and the nunchuck feature I saw the potential for a crack TV or entry into America Funniest Videos.
Happened last night at a friends house. Took my Wii over and during tennis the remote took off after the string broke. He was doing an "upstroke" so it flew up in the air, hit the wall pretty hard, and then flew into the other room. The 56 inch TV is safe (thankfully cause it wasn't mine) and the remote is still working like a champ!
I'm glad the remote is so sturdy and can take a beating like that - not happy the straps break so easy.
I am calling fake. Everyone was talking about the possibility of this exact thing happening.
1. Strap clearly cut.
2. Wouldn't mind seeing what damage on the remote that cracked glass.
3. Interesting "small white smudge" caused by the Wiimote on glass NOT where the crack is, how many times did they hit the TV with it?
4. Somethingawful.
Lol, I wouldnt give him a new TV, Nintendo need somesortof disclaimer for that there 'Mote though.. "Nintendo do not take responsibility for sny damage cause by sed WiiMote"
Though that mustve been some serious Wiilocity behind that 'Mote for it to do that damage..
actually i'm 50/50 on this cause the same thing happened to the guys at ign.
http://media.wii.ign.com/articles/745/745202/vids_1.html
if you dont want to watch, the guys were talking about how they brought non-gamers into the room for some wii time. apparently some girl got really excited and as she was swinging her arm around the strap broke off and the controller slammed into the wall causing a small crack as well.
this probably happened to the guys, he might not be telling the whole story as its probably embarrasing to really say, "yea i went into the bowling stance and totally threw that crap as hard as i could, which led to the strap breaking and screwing over my tv."
Weird. You don't let go of the controller when you bowl.
Fake. Fake. Fake. Is that what the string would look like if it snapped? It's woven nylon thread. And it would more likely pull out of the plastic where it's glued or however its attached. If this is a ploy to get a new TV, I'm glad this guy broke his TV, however he did it. Lame. Giving the Wii a bad name in it's early hours of life.
It happened to IGN too: http://media.wii.ign.com/articles/745/745202/vid_1742357.html
Ok, this has got to be option on, because, well, not that I own a Wii... yet..... but if I remember looking at the drawings and photots of the controller, you pretty much would need to be playing with each hand on a portion of the remote and a tether connects the two. I mean, really, what are the chances of the strap breaking and the remote becoming untethered from the other portion in your other hand?
These guys didn't want a Wii so much as a new 60" tube... ridiculous
haha, i wouldn't camp out for a wii just to get a new t.v.
I don't know if it's a fake. It seems legit from the original site. But I'll definitely reinforce the strap somehow.
As a matter of fact, I can imagine many people breaking stuff in their house with the Wiimote after seeing how my wife handled it.
In 15 minutes, she managed to hit my wiimote while playing tennis (I stood still and she was jumping around for some reason...) Then I decided to just hide in a corner to avoid collision and she'd still somehow hit the floor lamp...
Man.. I might need to invest in a large tempered glass to protect my new HDTV...
From what I've read of Wii Bowling, it sounds to me like people are releasing the whole controller instead of just the button when they're bowling, putting unnecessary strain on the wrist strap. I'm sure the strap was only designed to hold the remote in case of accidents, but it doesn't bode well for its durability if it's breaking already, even under misuse.
Perhaps Nintendo never realised that people would use it that way (as I'm sure testers were under instruction from Nintendo staff as to how to use the controller), and this is a design flaw soon to be remedied, probably with a tougher strap.
If I ever do get a Wii, I think I might just drop a blob of epoxy resin into the strap holder on the Wiimote just to give it a bit of reinforcement.
I call bullshit. That guy is an old member of the Something Awful forums (from 2001). Don't you guys realize that Something Awful is a parody site and the original home of Jeff K?
Ugh.
I call shenanigans on this.
Ever broken a TV? Was throwing out old computer screens once and sometimes they didn't break when I tossed them into the dumpter. Those tubes are tough! Would have to hit it AWFULLY hard with a (plastic!) game controller to get a monstrous crack like that in a TV. It even took a chunk out of the middle!
If you're playing with your Wii and you get sweaty palms then take a breather - hit the little + or home button and go take a cold shower. I can imgine dropping the controller but I thought about it and decided to get a better grip.
happenned to ign too
http://media.wii.ign.com/articles/745/745202/vid_1742357.html
I'm waiting for a Japanese Wii then- also I will get another strap to use, looks like. I've had straps on my phone where I can swing it around and around and it won't break like that (on the other hand, I'm embarrassed to admit this, but my PSP strap and PSP broke in this way- it's a blessing in disguise though as I would never have gotten a DS Lite otherwise).
Ok, but what i'm not hearing is if the Wiimote is still functioning.
Somebody call Mythbusters, stat!
The problem isn't the remote, it's the guy using it..
I guess he was only holding the strap, and not the Wiimote at the same time.
What an idiot.
First of all, I've never heard of anyone ever "taking a break" when their palms get sweaty playing a video game.
Second, as a league bowler, I can completely understand how someone would unconsciously let go of a controller just as you would let go of a bowling ball. You are just conditioned to do so. Out of the thousands of people who probably play this game, it would not be unusual for even a few to exhibit this behavior.
Next, you get a nice clean edge when you cut a cord. It frays when it breaks.
Finally, it is not inconceivable that Nintendo did not test the controller for this. Add to that the fact that this issue may be brought on by people wearing bracelets, watches, etc. that may be wearing prematurely on the straps.
I guess you've never seen a cut cord that has been tightly woven. Outward appearances make it look fraid. Not saying this couldn't happen but it still could be a fake.
Fibers that have been stretched to breaking or similarly stressed are clearly different from fibers that have been cut when analyzed under a microscope, or even if you look closely and understand what it is you're dealing with.
(Hint, stressed fibers don't all break along a nice even line like that.)
Doh.
The real question is.....
Did he get a strike in the game ?
Good Lord! I can see now that this will be the Wii's undoing. A bunch of retards that don't understand that you don't have to whip the controller around like a real bat/racquet/bowling ball. Which will lead to a bunch of other retards doing this intentionally to try to get something for nothing.
Does anybody know if its possible to plug the Wii into a computer monitor???
I got two 20" monitors one is DVI and the other one has a normal conection..
Also do you when Wii would it be launched in Europe?
It launches December 8th in Europe.
wii-diots!
The controller seemed to work better when I didn't whip it around like an moron.
Yeah, while my friend and I were playing last night, I was worried we were going to break the TV as we inched closer and closer to it as we were boxing...
Wiilocity! Heh. Corny, but funny.
The strap definitely looks cut. And even if it's not, and it really broke by accident, it's just a freak accident, can't blame Nintendo. And people wonder why I wash my hands before playing video games... Something about having greasy hands on my controller weirds me out a bit. Or maybe these guys were working up a sweat with their virtual bowling. :)
I don't own a Wii yet, my budget's being saved for the next round of PS3's, but I have to wonder... is it really necessary to swing that hard with the remote in order to play the game? And how much heft/mass does the remote really have? Maybe we should contact Mythbusters on this one!
For the record the controller is actually extremely light... light to the point where it was uncomfortable to hold out of the box until i put the batteries in... and it requires almost no force to use... anyone putting as much effort as in the trailers to use the controller is a tool... all it needs is the slightest movements...
LOOK at the IGN video. It clearly breaks at the gray part of the string. (the thin part that connects the white nylon to the controler) It does NOT break at the white nylon thread.
This is a huge difference. This story is fake.
not true - my strap broke at the same place.
You pay 250 or more for a system that you KNOW has this potential (the remote leaving your hand in the heat of the moment), and you still act like an idiot? Fake story. I don't feel sorry for these guys at all. Anyone who lets go of this controller is just ignorant.
Maybe they should put some rubber grip on the bottom of it. The strap seems fine.
if you whip the controller with force that could launch it across the room while letting go of it you deserve a cracked tv... the things not a bloody yo yo
I find this hard to believe. My straps are really sturdy and we were getting really into some Wii sports last night. No problems at all.
I did have to keep reminding my friends to use the strap though.
carrie in the house, folks... somebody's got telekenesis with their wiimote. "no, mama, no!" pretty soon we'll hear of wiimotes attacking as hunter drones - like the one in dune.
seriously, i have a hard time feeling too much sympathy even if this is real. on the off chance that it is, there had to be some serious horseplay or negligence involved. when something bad happens, the last person people want to blame is themselves, even when it IS their own fault. i hope nintendo has a disclaimer somewhere in their user agreement.
what's the answer? does nintendo have to include titanium bracelets? i can see the headlines: "nintendo raises price of wii to $5000.00. cites neccesity to include bracelet made of carbon nanotubes manufactured on space shuttle."
the string is meant as an extra precaution against casual dropping or light accidental flinging. it's not a failsafe device. this is a remote control people, not a space elevator.
tom :-)
I think it's real. The strap broke when it brushed up against the guy's 1986 AMF local bowling league gold-painted 2nd place championship bracelet with an embossed image of Mr. T on the clasp.
My brother's friend was playing Tennis and tried to go Andy Roddick on the serve. It slipped out of his hands, the strap broke and then the controller slammed straight into the ground. He tied the broken ends back together and I decided to order an extra strap when I placed my order for the component cables. This is the real deal.
-Jason
-Nintendo Order-
Dear Jason,
Your order #********, has been received.
You will receive another e-mail once your order has been processed.
You have ordered:
============================================================================
62606 Wii Component Video Cable (1 @ $29.95 = $29.95)
62622 Wii Remote Wrist Strap (1 @ $1.00 = $1.00)
Total cost of items purchased: $30.95
Total Applicable Taxes: $0.00
Total Shipping and Handling costs: $5.00
============================================================================
Grand Total for order: $35.95
I call fakesies... they weren't using the strap and then cut it. The odds of it fraying and breaking there in under 36 hours are practically nil. I could see it if one end of the strap had come loose from the 'crimp' on the end, but not this way.
LOL. I knew this was gonna happen.
i believe the last poster, and despite my former silly comments i do have sympathy for the people that this may happen too. i hope they get a new TV from nintendo and also that this doesn't turn into bad PR for a wonderful system. (please, sony, don't sink even lower and encourage bad press for Nintendo...)
i do think people are getting out of hand with the wiimotes and that is truly the problem. nintendo is partly (though inadvertently) to blame because of their stylized ads showing such animated movements. maybe they can do the new ads with more subtle, elegant motions. nintendo probably just assumed that people were smart enough to understand that they shouldn't be acting like six year olds with the wiimotes(although i must admit that i, too, occcasionally find joy in acting like a silly six year old.)
the truth is that when it comes to the deadly combo of "not always so bright" + "sue-happy" that we see so much in the united states, you have to pander to the lowest common denominator and seriously watch your ass.
This is a job for Carbon nanotubes!
i so wish that was true. i think that would be halrious to see. i would have been in tears :)
But i live in a world called reality and i cant believe it. sorry
i so wish that was true. i think that would be halrious to see. i would have been in tears :)
But i live in a world called reality and i cant believe it. sorry
I think this might be fake. By looking at the strap, its looks like it "broke" way too far off to the right. If the wii strap was really around his arm the way it should've been, it would've been tight with no slack, forcing it to break in the middle of the string, wouldn't it?
This is from SomethingAwful, known primarily for Photoshop work..
See, if the Wiimote slips out of my hands, it just hits the wall. So I might have a hole in some drywall to patch. Gotta love that Panasonic PT-AE900U projector action.
After watching the IGN video, it looks completely plausible to me.
Welcome to the next generation of console gaming!
Yeah, looks plausible, but I doubt it happened.
Wiitard!
I don't think this is plausible. First, unless you have an incredibly tenuous hold on the controller, the risk of it flying out of your hands is next to nill. Second, even if you did let go, you would need some incredible speed on the controller in order to break the strap (F=m*a anyone?). The mass on the controller is very small - likely only a few grams, which would require an incredible acceleration in order to provide a force sufficient to break the strap. Sure - this is possible. Major league baseball players routinely pitch balls in excess of 50mph or 80km/h, requiring a net acceleration of more than 22 m/s^2. If his little sister is able to do that, she has a shining future ahead of her.
Assuming that the wiimote was hurled at a speed sufficient to break the strap, the energy absorbed by the strap wouldn't leave enough kinetic energy to break the TV.
Short version: I call it a fake.
"A few grams"? What scale are you using? the buttons alone on the controller are likely "a few grams". You mean 100-200g or so. So in F=ma that would increase the force by a factor of 100 or so from your prediction. Even if the weight of the controller alone is under 100g, remember that you have to put batteries in.
Happened to my 7 year old son. Strap broke and wiimote flew off into the wall. Nothing broke but the battery compartment flew open and the batteries scattered. Controller was fine after that.
But, what fun is the wii!! We played wii sports all day and I rather my son swing a racket than sit there. I routinely run 5 miles and was winded after playing wii boxing.
The only way I can see this happening is if he was actually swinging the Wiimote like a bolo, then repeated actions may cause the strap to snap. It's the little lanyard connector string, not the actual lanyard. Why no one holds onto the remote tight enough is beyond me. I haven't had a problem yet, but I did feel a little iffy with how weak the connecting part looked. Maybe worth covering with tape to strengthen?
Even the crack looks fake
---Germ
well if you don't want that tv, u can give it to me.. hell the wii's broke 2, so u may as well give that away...
I saw this happen at Gamestop launch night. Smacked the wall, batteries flew out, but everything was fine. A 3rd Party is going to have a field day selling tougher Wiimote straps.
Wow, that dude must've hit the TV pretty hard to cause a crack like that.
I had an old Sony 17" computer monitor that stopped working a while ago (imagine that). My brother wanted to destroy it, so he took a prybar and smacked the crap out of the glass. Not so much as a scratch. Kicking with steel toed boots? Nada. The only thing we could get to punch through the front glass of the CRT was a bullet.
Pay attention, several people including the folks at IGN have had this sort of thing happen, so it's quite plausible.
first off, anyone taken an old TV and tried to track it? those things are seriously tough man. and anyone notice they dont show the destroyed wii remote? plastic vs. glass, if theres enough force to effect the glass, the remote was utterly destroyed, yet in that pic only tv damage is shown.
as for other posts saying that a plastic part is broken as well, how can you tell? the remote is bleached out in that pic due to its whiteness, and for where it broke on the strap, there was no other plastic, it looped itself on a little spot on the remote
I would say that it is definitely a fake- there is no way you could break a TV screen like by accidentally chucking a plastic remote/controller at it. It would require some serious deliberate force with something like a hammer.
From years of experience with lanyards, I can say with certain that it is extremely unlikely that the actual CORD would break. The plastic is actually the weak spot.
No, I haven't been swinging around USB sticks, sometimes if I shove the stick in my pocket and the lanyard is hanging out, it will get caught on the seatbelt in the car. I would stand without noticing and YANK! I have yet to see a cord break though.
And if you watch that video at IGN so many like to point out, you will notice that it was, in fact, the plastic bit that gave out, not the cord itself.
The TV is a rear projection TV, with a PLASTIC screen. This is why is cracked under force of the flying remote. If you people bothered to read the thread you would know this, the guy even states he doesn't plan to sue nintendo or take any malicious action.
Hmm, its pretty weird that the something awful sites one's strap looks cut, whereas IGN's looks legit because straps always have weak points, and SA's was cut at the strong point.
Well if you look at the way the roping is broken it doesn't look like a stress induced breakage.
It looks rather clean and cut.
They don't even make a 60" tube tv to my knowledge, not even wega. If they did it would weigh over 300 pounds. The front of the tube would be a few inches thick. Perhaps the article was making a joke by saying it was 60". Plus..that damage would implode the crt. It looks more like a flat crt computer monitor with a glass panel that has been damaged. All of the rear projection crt models I've seen have no glass in front, just a fresnel lense which is plastic.
Just my thoughts here to add to the FAKE consensus. They would have had a better chance saying it killed their cat instead.
in an even harder to believe incident, my brothers an i were Wii bowling, and my brother didn't have the strap around his wrist. He let go, bowled a strike, and the wiimote hit my phillips crt on an upward angle. it ricocheted back toward us and he caught it. neither the tv nor the controller broke.
my other brother who owns the console went through a very short rollercoaster of emotions, luckily ending in laughter.
Got mine. 9/10 overall first impression.
This isn't fake...it happened to me too. My girlfriend was playing bowling and the remote slipped and the strap just snapped. It looks exactly like the strap in the picture.
Luckily, her remote went up and instead of a broken TV, I only have a 1/4" dent in my ceiling. Still, not cool...gave me quite a spook.
Is the Wiimote as heavy as a bowling ball too? SHENANIGANS
Trust me, this is possible. Within a few hours of getting it, I was throwing a fastball in Wii baseball, the strap secured around my wrist. The controller got out of my hand and the strap broke clean through similar to in the picture - though I can't find the cloth sleeve, all that's left attached is the plastic fiber that's run through it.
Fortunately I wasn't aimed at my tv at the time and the wiimote bounced harmlessly off the wall, but I want to be very clear in saying this can, and will happen, even without alcohol involved. So please be careful guys.
- Dan
How Wii todd did.
Is this like a bunch of monkeys with a new toy? Why are people flinging these remotes around enough to lose control of them?
Perhaps Nintendo has a warning in their instructions that cautions players to use the system moderately. I don't know, because I haven't bought one yet. Only seen it at EBX. It doesn't look like a danger to society.