After Sonic Solutions announced today that Nintendo will be using their DVD playback software in a new version of the Nintendo Wii due out in the latter half of 2007, questions began to arise regarding a U.S. release of the upgraded system. When last we checked there were no plans to release the Wii-VD outside of Japan, but today Nintendo has confirmed that it is indeed being released stateside. Not only that, but it'll cost more! Hooray!

Nintendo of America's Public Relations Manager Matt Atwood said that a price has not yet been determined, but that the DVD-enabled Wii would come at a higher price than the standard Wii console ($249) because of the "extra cost required to implement DVD playback."

Personally I see no point in this. Everything in my house plays DVDs. My Xbox, the 360, the two PS2s, the impending PS3, my actual DVD player, my Hello Kitty toaster (probably not), and my PC. If for some reason all of these things broke I could still by a DVD player at Wal-Mart for $30. Basically what I am saying is this story is unimportant, and I just wasted at least a minute of your day. Don't mention it! Michael Fahey

Confirmed: Nintendo to Release DVD-Enabled Wii in 2007 [GameDaily]