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Nintendo’s TVii available tomorrow, but it won’t be fully functional

Image Credit: http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-9020_7-57551039-222/wii-u-to-ship-incomplete-missing-nintendo-tvii-service-and-more/

Reggie Nintendo TVii

Nintendo TVii is finally coming to your living room and the Wii U tomorrow, the company announced, but it won’t arrive with all the features originally promised.

Nintendo announced TVii earlier this year as a service that would integrate all television content and Wii U apps, such as Hulu Plus, Amazon, and Netflix. Wii U owners could then use TVii as a hub for selecting viewing content whether it’s coming through live television or a streaming service. At least, that was the plan. The application didn’t make its expected launch alongside the Wii U.

When it arrives tomorrow, TVii will allow users to find content such as sporting events or movies and tap an icon on their GamePad to view the content. It works with their cable provider or satellite service and also offers social features like content sharing on Twitter, Facebook, and Nintendo’s Miiverse.

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However, as website Polygon pointed out, some of the features that Nintendo announced with the service won’t be available tomorrow. TVii won’t be able to access DVR content, and it won’t have TiVo programming support. Those should be available next year. Netflix won’t be available directly through TVii, either. For now, users will have to launch the Wii U’s built-in Netflix app to view its content.

Nintendo’s Wii U is one of a host of devices angling to be your new all-in-one media center. Microsoft’s Xbox 360 and Sony’s PlayStation 3 deliver many similar services, as do many other devices like Roku.

Well, at least Nintendo kept that December promise.

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