buying second hand wii , advise please.

[unfitmummy]

i'm quite keen on buying a second hand computer console. i like the idea of a wii as we could all play together, but we'll be moving to USA next year so i guess we won't be able to use it there? so i'm wondering about getting a cheap one second hand off ebay to see how much we do use it - then could always get another one out there if we find we do like using it.

anyone got any advice on buying them second hand (ebay?) or their general use. my daughter is getting very into playing games on our computer so i thought this might be something we could all do together?

I'd be more inclined to buy a secondhand one from Game than Ebay as you can take it back if it goes wrong. We did this about this time last year, but then found that in the run-up to Christmas the new ones were heavily discounted everywhere anyway so they weren't much more than we had paid for a secondhand one. The games are expensive too. Have you tried using one at a friends house maybe? We found that the DCs were playing them at other people's houses a lot before we got ours and loving them, so we knew it would get used. However we have bought one or two games that haven't been used much, which is a waste. How old is your DD?

I have bought both Wii and PS3's off Ebay and Gumtree. Also buy lots of stuff second hand from Amazon (so that might be worth a try too). As a buyer you get a lot of protection through Ebay when paying via Paypal so don't be put off by it, just check feedback scores properly - might also be handy to do an advanced search and seeing if anything in your area is selling so you can collect in person, that should save you a fair whack on postage.

As for games, second hand all the way. Do you have a Lovefilm subscription by any chance? We hire games through this all the time and find it really useful for helping decide if it a game we actually want to buy although I usually find that playing a Wii game for a couple of weeks is enough (with exception of guitar hero which I could happy play forever!)