Wiikey already CLONED???

Can you tell me if the chip Wiikey sold by an italian reseller "Hardstore. com" is a CLONE?
please help me to understand it.

To me smells like a CLONE because:

1)The image:
the PCB Chip in the image posted on their site is DIFFERENT from the OFFICIAL ONE present on the official wiikey.cn site.(and hardstore is the ONLY SITE ON THE WORLD showing the chip image )
2)The components:
the PCB components are in DIFFERENT PLACES from the ORIGINAL PCB DESIGN
3)the image have a "Photoshopped" tag: "Wii KEY" on the top of the IC on the PCB (VERY BAD JOB IMHO )
3)The price of the chip:
on Gamefreax.de is 49.95€uros (and NO Chip Image on the site)
on Foundmy.com is 45$ (and NO Chip Image on the site)
on Divineo.it is 45€uros (and NO Chip Image on the site)
on Hardstore.com is 25 €uros (AND the site shows an image!!!)
4)The news:
They claims will have the CODE of the Wiikey and they will put it on a new chip they will produce.
AND they told the price will be lowered to 20€uros in 2 weeks !!!!!

Please Let me know if this site sells an OFFICIAL Wiikey or NOT...
i don't want to buy a Clone chip.

here's the link:
http://www.hardstore.com/default.asp...D=8367&idC=899

I don't know, looks suspicious. I doubt it's a clone though. Either a scam or just silly marketing. http://www.hardstore.com/files/RSMTR...8367_16728.JPG

Its highly unlikely that a no-name store will have have the modchip before highly known ones due, and more then likely respectable site swill get a sample chip prior to release for review to promote sales.

Seeing as official site has no image, and no official dealers -- I would assume possibel scam or maybe a clones of cyclowiz or wiinga chip as they already released.

But that image is haunting my mind, minus the wii key text on chip i have seen that image before.......where i can't remember, but was about a month ago.

Hardstore is not a no name store they are very well known in italy.

The board has a different layout where the resistors go compared to the WiiKey's layout picture.

But then the sketch of the WiiKey was probably just a plain prototype and this could be either scam or a first batch of chips, would of been nice to see one - maybe completely installed on the Gamefreax site

atm I would guess the chances are:

it is a genuine chip - 70%
a clone chip - 20% (xeno-gc are blue and the Wiikey site displays a blue pcb too, so why red)
it is a fake - 10% (due to red pcb & different layout of resistors but then like I said this could be a first batch or revision of the WiiKey)

Hi,
I'm Aldo Tripiciano, webmaster and promoter for www.hardstore.com .
Just wanted to confirm You that we are going to sell a genuine WIIKEY chip.

Dear cravavr3, our "no name store" is one of the biggest hardware and videogames stores in Italy, so please get informed before you start defamations.

We have been selling modchips since 1998, we have almost 20000 (happy) customers and we would never sell anything fake / cloned - we have no interest in ruining our reputation.

If we can sell our products at such a low price it's as we have another store in Hong Kong (www.hardstore.hk) allowing us to directly import our modchips at exceptional prices.

The price of 25 euros for wii key, by the way, is still not final and it may raise or lower. We are only accepting PRE-ORDERS at the moment.
So please, check it back at 16/02/2007 to know more about it.

Have a nice day,
Aldo Tripiciano
Webmaster,
www.hardstore.com

The image in wiikey's site is not a built PCB ... it's just a design picture, they could just have made a few changes on production.

Anyways, it is a preorder ... so just wait.

If we can sell our products at such a low price it's as we have another store in Hong Kong (www.hardstore.hk) allowing us to directly import our modchips at exceptional prices.

The price of 25 euros for wii key, by the way, is still not final and it may raise or lower. We are only accepting PRE-ORDERS at the moment.
So please, check it back at 16/02/2007 to know more about it.

BS...
Gamefreax sells this product at 49.95€uros,FounMy.com at 45$,Divineo.it at 45€uros and i trust in a big site like these.
If you put the price of 25€uros and claim to lower the price in 2 weeks to 20€uros, OR you are a SCAMMER, OR you have a Clone.
The price is too low to be "exceptional" as you wrote (is it english? )
AND the FACT you're selling a clone it's you admit you'll put the wiikey code INTO another CHIP!!!
Please stop kidding...
Now i have my opinion clear...

1) Their price is too cheap 2) A real picture of Wiikey is not available yet.

No point in arguing about this, just use your intelligence.

Originally Posted by gattoplano

Hi,
I'm Aldo Tripiciano, webmaster and promoter for www.hardstore.com .
Just wanted to confirm You that we are going to sell a genuine WIIKEY chip.

Dear cravavr3, our "no name store" is one of the biggest hardware and videogames stores in Italy, so please get informed before you start defamations.

We have been selling modchips since 1998, we have almost 20000 (happy) customers and we would never sell anything fake / cloned - we have no interest in ruining our reputation.

If we can sell our products at such a low price it's as we have another store in Hong Kong (www.hardstore.hk) allowing us to directly import our modchips at exceptional prices.

The price of 25 euros for wii key, by the way, is still not final and it may raise or lower. We are only accepting PRE-ORDERS at the moment.
So please, check it back at 16/02/2007 to know more about it.

Have a nice day,
Aldo Tripiciano
Webmaster,
www.hardstore.com

Errrrr ... you cant consider yourself a big italy store since YOU ARE NOT IN ITALY and you are not big. Then it's not the first time your shop insert fake-priced items just to trap poor users.

our shop is established in RSM but most of our clients are italian.
And yes, I don't know what you mean with big, but in terms of sales WE ARE BIG . And not, we can't do any scam to anyone.

I'm sorry, you probably own a concurrent website and you are trying to affect our credibility, but you are talking about nonsense.

Also, you are turning this post into a flame - so you are probably a troll.

@blacko1: at first, exceptional IS ENGLISH (http://www.google.com/search?sourcei...&q=exceptional) .
Then, if our price is too low, feel free to buy the chip at a higher price.
I already said this is only a pre-order, we never sold any fake and we'll never do it.
You'll see HARDSTORE in the list of official resellers for the chip in their homepage. We have a direct contact with the developers, who recently told us about the delay in production.
THEN AGAIN, FEEL FREE NOT TO BUY IT. Just wait until you see our name in the official distribution list .

AND the FACT you're selling a clone it's you admit you'll put the wiikey code INTO another CHIP!!!
what are you talking about?!?

AND the FACT you're selling a clone it's you admit you'll put the wiikey code INTO another CHIP!!!
what are you talking about?!?

In a news on your "BIG" site, you tell that you implement the WIIKEY CODE on a chip called PRODIGY...
that's why YOU SELL A CLONE, because you already have the code STEALED

Otherwise, IF the chip is original, you presell at a FALSE LOW PRICE a chip that at the launch will have THE SAME PRICE of ALL OTHERS SITES mentioned.
This is NOT FAIR.

But, i dont' think the price of this scam clone will raise...you admit in the news about the chip that in 2 weeks it will lower to 20€uros...
Are you mad?, a NEW innovative chip starts selling, AND 1 week after have a price cut of 5 €uros??
WTF are you telling????
Do you think we are morons???


P.S.
AH "Exceptional" is used in english with this meaning, as i'm from mars.

If they charge 25€ for it, they still make profit so why dont u believe it ;-)

Yes, you are from mars:

from http://www.wordwebonline.com/en/EXCEPTIONAL :
Surpassing what is common or usual or expected
"exceptional kindness"
- especial, particular, special

this is what I meant, refering to our prices.

Then again, you DIDN'T READ our news.
The WIIKEY and the PRODIGY 4.5 are TWO DIFFERENT PRODUCTS.
We will never implement any wiikey code in the prodigy chip, IN FACTS we wrote:
The week after will be avaiable the first PRODIGY 4.5 version that include in only one chip the PS2 and WII code, all in one modchip so, with the same price as before...


In the article we are talking about two different things, WIIKEY and PRODIGY 4.5, that has NOTHING TO DO WITH WIIKEY.

Read things CAREFULLY before you put shame on our website, thanks.

Loco001: you are right, we still make a good profit with 25 euros. And other websites make a HUGE profit... selling things overpriced when they are new.

don't try it with me, scammer...
FROM HARDSTORE OFFICIAL NEWSLETTER:
"La prima settimana di marzo tocca a PRODIGY!!! SIII il team sta lavorando ad integrare in PRODIGY4.5 il codice WII di WIIKEY... il tutto al prezzo di un prodigy normale... !!! 2 CHIP IN UNO QUINDI con un semplice ponticello per uno o l'altro uso."

Translation:
first week of march there's' PRODIGY!!!YEEESS the team are working to implement in PRODIGY4.5 the WIIKEY CODE...at the same price of a normal Prodigy...!!! 2 CHIPS in ONE, with a simply bridge for use one or the other.


i repeat : DON'T TRY IT , we are NOT so fool, scammer.


AND the price of 25€ IS :
a) the price for the clone (in that case too high)
b) the price for the original (in that case is a commercial move and then they will raise to the standard price)
in EVERY case: Blame on you...