Nintendo Wii Console (Black) with Wii Fit Plus and Balance Board + Motion Plus Controller (Wii)

This bundle has everything you need to get you started (except a TV to plug it into), although if you want to have a tennis match against a live opponent rather than the system mii (a cartoon character), you'll need a second Wii Remote Plus Wii Remote Plus - Black or alternative brand. If you want to box (virtually) against a real opponent, you'll need an additional nunchuk as well Nintendo Nunchuk Controller - Black (Wii). However, for solo exercising, it provides everything. The wii and balance board are easy to set up and simple to use. It comes with the latest Wii Remote Plus which has the motion sensor built in, instead of as an add on. It can support four Wii Remotes for multiple play. There are two options included for connecting to the TV - Composite and SCART, but no HD support which is surprising since HD ready TVs have been the norm for several years. Serious gamers may find the graphics a little lacking, but they seem fine to us.

If you haven't used wii fit before, it takes various measurements like weight, balance, etc to work out your wii fitness age. As you progress your wii fitness age should decrease. Don't worry if you share your machine because you can hide all the grisly details of your weight, BMI, wii fitness age, etc by PIN number. For the slimmers, you can also set yourself targets, both in weight loss over a period of time, and calories you want to burn per session. You also get your choice of personal trainers, and you can use a preset group of exercises to target specific areas or just pick them ad hoc to suit your needs.

The exercises start at a fairly gentle beginner level although you can move up to advanced. Like computer games, your scores are recorded, and it's great to see the improvement day by day. There are additional training exercises, which comprise the "plus" part of wii fit. Things like segway, cycling, etc, which might seem a bit odd considering you are stationary, but they seem to work by leaning in different directions and walking in place on the balance board. The yoga and balance games are a good way to help warm up and cool down. The exercises may not be difficult enough for some hard-core gym addicts, but they are fine for the majority of people. If you want a really difficult workout there are plenty of wii exercise discs/games on the market both on Amazon and other retailers. I understand that The Biggest Loser for wii The Biggest Loser Challenge (Wii), which you can find for under a tenner, will definitely make you feel the burn and have aching muscles the following day, if that's what you're after.

wii Sports, which comes on a second disc, can be added towards your daily exercise goal, as can any non-wii exercise. The training is obviously originally designed for the US market with things like ten pin bowling and baseball, but it does also have tennis, golf and boxing. We would have liked to have seen cricket on it for batting and bowling practice, but you can't have everything. Like the wii fit, wii Sports gives useful tips to improve your game.

A nice inclusion is the ability to weigh your pets (cats and dogs), after you have weighed yourself, by just holding the animal when you are on the balance board. This is great if you have your pets on a special diet or need to watch their weight. Although they can't do any exercise on the wii, the little avatars of your pets often pop in to join you on various wii fitness exercises like jogging, cycling and segway.

If you are debating on whether to get a wii fit or not, I'd definitely recommend buying one, whatever your age or ability. You can do as little or as much as you like, fitting it in around your lifestyle, and it sure beats going out in horrid weather to get your daily exercise. It's also a lot of fun, so even sofa spuds will want to exercise. With additional handsets Wii Remote Plus - Black the whole family can exercise and play together.`

FIRST MONTH'S UPDATE: Although improving fitness had been the primary goal for me, I've lost 8lbs lost in the first month which included the Christmas period, so wii fit definitely works, and I have gone from sceptical to convert. You can do a body test each day and this records your weight, so it is a great incentive to avoid overindulging. I do 45 minutes to 2 hours using the wii fit or wii sport games each day. You can feel virtuous while having fun, and even if you only have 10 minutes to spare, it's so easy to turn on and have a couple of games. However, it is addictive and you'll find yourself doing 30 mins before you realise it. It's proved so popular over the holidays, most of the activity has been multiple user. It was certainly a lot more enjoyable than slumping in front of the telly after Christmas dinner. We had a wide range of ages and abilities and we've all loved it, whether playing solo or together. My wii fit age has fluctuated between 27 and 75, so I don't think it is a measure of anything other than how alert (or hungover) you are at the time. The batteries in the wii remotes last about 20-25 hours, so I would recommend one of the many chargers available if you use your wii as much as us. We've bought an inexpensive Invero Black Nintendo Wii Twin Dual Charging Station Charge Dock Stand with 2 Rechargeable Battery Packs plus LED Light for Wii Remote Control and it works fine once you find the miniscule on/off switch on the back. We use it on both the sitting room and family room televisions, so an inexpensive duplicate wired sensor bar Micropix - Replacement Wired Sensor Bar For Nintendo Wii means we don't need to prise it off and restick the bar to the TV each time. I got Just Dance (Wii) for Christmas and this is absolutely hilarious, whether as a dancer or spectator. I can't remember when we have laughed so much. It's good exercise too.

Had already participated in the games etc on the Wii and were impressed. Decided to get our own and loved the black console, etc - blends in so well. We are no "spring chickens" and not very technically minded but this can be set up so easily and anyone of any age will enjoy some aspect of this. Easy way to keep up your excercise in the comfort of your own home when the weather bad. My 86 year old Dad is also keen to participate and does quite well with the Wii Sports resort which we have as well!! If you have been thinking about it - just go for it - its not just for the youngsters - although they love it too.

I had not had much experience of Nintendo's Wii before I bough this one, but have to say it is great! Games in which you be actively involved with the whole family offer so much more than the rather withdrawn world of the X-box and Playstation, but in fairnes they offer a different sort of entertainment anyway. Get one. You won't be disappointed!