My Wii U won't connect to a single Wi-Fi network I have.

[Jayro]

I have tried my phone's hotspot in both 2.4GHz and 5GHz, with and without passwords. I've changed router channels. I've made new dummy SSID setups. I've dumbed my network down to N and G speeds to simulate a Wii U era router. And after all that, the only thing that can get it online is a USB to Ethernet dongle.

Is it safe to assume the Wi-Fi chip is dead or faulty?

And if it is, can I just "buy a new one" off eBay or whatever and swap it in myself without much fuss, like you can with the Wii and DS Lite? I ask because I have to use a 50 foot Ethernet cable that drapes across the kitchen floor and down the hallway, making a trip hazard and it looks ugly AF. So Wi-Fi to my Wii U is important.

 

[The Real Jdbye]

I have tried my phone's hotspot in both 2.4GHz and 5GHz, with and without passwords. I've changed router channels. I've made new dummy SSID setups. I've dumbed my network down to N and G speeds to simulate a Wii U era router. And after all that, the only thing that can get it online is a USB to Ethernet dongle.

Is it safe to assume the Wi-Fi chip is dead or faulty?

And if it is, can I just "buy a new one" off eBay or whatever and swap it in myself without much fuss, like you can with the Wii and DS Lite? I ask because I have to use a 50 foot Ethernet cable that drapes across the kitchen floor and down the hallway, making a trip hazard and it looks ugly AF. So Wi-Fi to my Wii U is important.

FWIW the Wii U doesn't support WPA2-PSK (AES) only WPA2-PSK (TKIP)

 

[Jayro]

FWIW the Wii U doesn't support WPA2-PSK (AES) only WPA2-PSK (TKIP)

Good to know, but even SSIDs with no password fail to connect. I've also tried 3 different 'known-good' routers. Everything points to the Wi-Fi module going bad. The weird thing is though,. I've barely ever used the Wii U. It easily has less than 300 hours on it. So it's not like it's been used extensively 24/7 with data streaming to it non-stop. I'm completely at a loss as to what else could be wrong. The router I use is only 15 feet away, with direct line-of-sight.

(The girlfriend is gonna kill me if I don't get rid of the Ethernet cord...)

 

[V10lator]

Do you have a friend who has a Wii U, too? If so try to connect to his WiFi network. Else make 100% sure you have Wii U compatible settings. In case you're living in a city you could also simply do a WiFi scan on the Wii U: Does it see at least one Network (mine shows 10, 9 are from neighbours) ?

When all these tests fail open your Wii U and check the antenna connections, maybe they are just loose. In case anything looks fine you can purchase a new WiFi module.

//EDIT: Or just continue to use the LAN adapter as you seem to have one already and the Wii Us WiFi is pretty bad anyway.

 

[AmandaRose]

I have tried my phone's hotspot in both 2.4GHz and 5GHz, with and without passwords. I've changed router channels. I've made new dummy SSID setups. I've dumbed my network down to N and G speeds to simulate a Wii U era router. And after all that, the only thing that can get it online is a USB to Ethernet dongle.

Is it safe to assume the Wi-Fi chip is dead or faulty?

And if it is, can I just "buy a new one" off eBay or whatever and swap it in myself without much fuss, like you can with the Wii and DS Lite? I ask because I have to use a 50 foot Ethernet cable that drapes across the kitchen floor and down the hallway, making a trip hazard and it looks ugly AF. So Wi-Fi to my Wii U is important.

Is your WiiU hdd placed on top of the WiiU? When mine was I had the exact same problems as yourself. Simply placing the HDD at the side of the WiiU got the WiFi working again.

 

[V10lator]

Is your WiiU hdd placed on top of the WiiU?

Oh yea, that too: Don't put metall objects on top of the Wii U.

 

[Jayro]

Is your WiiU hdd placed on top of the WiiU? When mine was I had the exact same problems as yourself. Simply placing the HDD at the side of the WiiU got the WiFi working again.

Nope, my Wii U uses an all-metal USB stick. Works flawlessly otherwise.

Do you have a friend who has a Wii U, too? If so try to connect to his WiFi network. Else make 100% sure you have Wii U compatible settings. In case you're living in a city you could also simply do a WiFi scan on the Wii U: Does it see at least one Network (mine shows 10, 9 are from neighbours) ?

When all these tests fail open your Wii U and check the antenna connections, maybe they are just loose. In case anything looks fine you can purchase a new WiFi module.

//EDIT: Or just continue to use the LAN adapter as you seem to have one already and the Wii Us WiFi is pretty bad anyway.

The SSIDs show up fine in my apartment complex, but NOTHING will connect. It tries and tries, but no connections can be made. I've made everything Wii U compatible in my various routers I've tried, so I think I just need a new module.