Problem
You point the Wii remote at the screen and you don’t see the cursor — the little hand that indicates to what you are pointing.
The home button on the remote is working. The battery level reads good. But you cannot select items on the screen.
Solution
Shut down the Wii. Unplug the sensor bar and plug it back in. Restart the Wii. You should see the cursor now.
Conclusion
This problem will occur if you start the Wii with the sensor bar unplugged. This is very easy to do if you’ve just returned from taking the Wii with you on vacation and you’re putting it all back together and you assume, quite naturally and reasonably, that the sensor bar is plug and play like a USB device. It is not.
You are my Wii-Angel!! I couldn’t figure out what to do for the life of me… Nintendo’s site is useless with telling me to keep pressing sync buttons and messing with the batteries. Thanks David.
Thank you. Solved my problem too.
Wayne
hi i did all u say but still not working pliiz help me
You can use two candles as the sensor bar. Google to see how people do it.
If that doesn’t help, you might try a battery powered sensor bar.
The candles should tell you whether the problem is with the sensor bar (the emitter) or with the remotes (the receivers).
One tip that doesn’t get mentioned often is that the SYNCH info can get a bit muddled up and cause all sorts of nonsensical problems.
Try this fix, it can’t hurt:
Turn on the console.
When you see the Health & Safety screen, hold down the red SYNCH button on the Console for 15 seconds. This clears the Synch memory.
Restart the console, then follow regular synching instructions. Good luck.
Candle trick worked but when I got a new sensor bar the led’s would not light up. I tried all the other solutions posted here but the bar still won’t work. I’ll probably get a wireless bar off eBay because some are selling for $3.50 now but I also found another bar that can plug into a USB port on the Wii or into a wall outlet for power. Here is the site if anyone is interested:
http://www.nextronicsllc.com/shop/sensorbar.php
Hey I wanted to add to Jeremy’s tip below. The sensor bar was not working (confirmed by camera and candles) and replacing it didn’t work (and the new sensor bar was functional), nor did synching, I was at my wits end. Clicking the A button about five times it finally started working. I had to do this with each Wii remote.
MW 2 I DID IT BUT ITS STILL NOT WORKING HELP ME!!!!!!!!
My Wii cursor will not show up. i have gone to the nintendo website and followed all the steps it has told me to do, and nothing. i followed the steps you have given me and, yet again nothing. nothing seems to work.
Do you have a friend who has a Wii that you could take you sensor bar and remote over to to see if they work on their Wii? Can you borrow a working sensor bar or remote and see if it works on yours? Those are the kinds of things I would try at this point.
I had the same problem and i ended up having to buy a new remote. if you have a Nyko remote, they break really easily, mine only last six months so i decided to pay the extra twenty bucks and get a wii one.
THANKS U SAVED MY LIFE
Wii remote ONLY works in Guitar Hero. Used to work before,now it doesn’t. We’ve done everything you and nintendo said. . . help. . .can’t do any wii fit!
Well, you’ll need to troubleshoot it using a second sensor bar. Can you borrow one? If you don’t have a cordless, battery-operated sensor bar, it’s not a bad idea to pick one up. They’re pretty cheap now. Don’t forget the 2 candle trick if you’re really in a hurry. The sensor bar just transmits infrared light (which candles do very nicely). There is no communication occurring between the sensor bar and your remotes.
Hi David!
As soon as we found this website i KNEW that it would work. Sadly, it did NOT work. We tried your directions multiple times, but no luck. We went on many many websites but, I feel so sorry for my kids. They had a great time they first played. So we played the next day and nothing worked! I am so so so so so so so so so frustrated.
Please Help!
Please describe the problem and the steps you have taken to correct the problem. This will help me provide guidance as well as other people who will be working through similar issues.
Awesome i noticed my wii sensor bar wasnt plugged in lol thx David
Hey David… I’ve got the same problem, I bought new batteries, I unplugged everything and replugged it again but the cursor is still not appearing on the screen, but every button on my remote seems to work well.
What can I do?
Camila,
Did you power off the console before plugging the sensor bar in? That seems to be important. Also, put a couple lit tea-light candles in place of your sensor bar. If that works, then the problem might be the sensor bar. If you have a video camera with a night-shot setting you should be able to see the infrared LEDs in the sensor bar with the camera in night-shot mode. If not, then the sensor bar might be toast.
Hi David,
I had the ‘no cursor’ problem and tried your tealight suggestion and lo the cursor appeared (really impressed the rest of the family with this trick!) so therefore showed the sensor bar to be faulty.
Many thanks for your help.
Hi I have tried all the things to get cruiser on tv nothing working help
i have pull all plugs every trick that has been posted and have remotes
Well, if you have tried everything, you are probably out of luck and need to replace your sensor bar.
try using a lighter : )
press the wii remote sync button while on the home screen with the ligther in front of it
this is a test to see if its the sensor bar
After reading many many post about the Wii remote and scensors . I tried the lighter trick in front of the scensor bar and the cusor came up finally, concluding that the scnesor is faulty. thanks alot David’s Blog
THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!!!!
David,
Thank you so much for the excellent advice. This problem cropped up for us when the power went out in the house and obviously when it came back on the plug-in order was messed up. It is sad that two years after you first posted this advice, Nintendo’s official web site still has the same lame advice Christine noted back then.
I had to unplug my sensor bar and plug it back in while the Wii was still on. Try this in case the first solution doesn’t fix it.
Hi David, thanks for trying to help so many people out. I bought my Wii yesterday and set it up today. I got the package that includes the Wii Fit Plus. When I first set it up I was able to see the cursor and made my Mii character with no problems at all. Then I tried to sync the balance board for the Wii Fit Plus and everything seemed to stop working. I have tried literally every suggestion mentioned in this thread, both by you and others, including the tea lights, and I still can’t see the cursor. It is very frustrating. Got any ideas?
Is the Balance Board connected? Are the Remotes connected? If the board is connected, have you tried reconnecting the remotes? Disconnect the board. Do the remotes work properly?
When you say “connected” do you mean “synced”? If so, I think so but I am not sure how to check that it worked. It was when I went to sync the board that the remote stopped working…
when turing on my wii it won’t work when i try using the remote. the remote just flashes and goes off. i hooked up another wii system and the remote and sensor bar works fine. its like it doesn’t detect a remote. i have tried sync it and nothing works. help
this was happeneing to us. By fluke we fixed it. While the Wii was on I pushed the little red sync button on the remote (beside the batteries) while my son pushed the sync button on the console at the same time. It worked fine after that.
It didn’t work for me. I just got mine ,and It asked for the language ,and I couldn’t find the cursor. I almost backed out the window lookin for it ,so I tried A ,and all the others ,and nothins happening!!! I tried your solution ,and no difference.
nev mind
I have tried everything with my wiimote.The a and B buttons don’t work.I have no vibrations when it moves and no pointer.I switched remotes and bought a brand new senser.Nothing works.i slapped the remote everything nothing i don’t want to by a brand new wii please help.I have even resynced them..nothing!
I’ve done everything, including getting a battery powered ssensor. Still no luck finding the cursor.
HELP!!!!
i’ve got a little problem with my wiimote. english is not my native language but i’ll give my best
the cursor (that little hand) doesn’t show up on the screen when I point the remote at the _screen_.
if I turn it to the left (just like you do when playing super mario bros. wii) the cursor appears on screen.
i’ve done everything they tell you on the nintendo website, but nothing will work
Lit a candle and it worked!!
lit a candle? how does that can work
me too! Awesome, thank you
Hello what is the sensor bar??
MY Wii remote was working fine until now, no cursor nothing. Please help ASAP!!!
mine still doesnt work the buttons are working but the hand doesn`t appear and `m not able to plat any game
Just wanted to say thank you for this post, solved my problems straight away!
Thanks again
When I came home the kids complained that the Wii remotes were broken. I couldn’t figure it out, until I read your tip.
Thanks!
Really can’t believe that after many frustrated hours changing batteries, waving arms wildly in the air, plugging and unplugging etc. etc. the candle trick really does work – amazing – thanks for the advise.
Hi There,
Seems like you are pretty wii savy. I am having a problem with my wii remote but the weird thing is that it only happens when I try to go to a website or the mii page. As soon as I get on one of those pages, the hand disappears and I could turn my hand any which way and it does not appear again. It works on the main page and in the games. Any ideas would be very greatful. Thanks.
Thank you! Nintendo’s site is absolutely a joke!!! No help at all. I had my Wii remote working in 60 seconds after I read your solution. Awesome!
found the mice had chewed wires. may be the problem will repair and see if that works???thanks this site seems alot better than nintendo site
found the mice had chewed wires. may be the problem will repair and see if that works???thanks this site seems alot better than nintendo site
tried the candle trick and got cursor back long enough to get into zelda thanks a million
No, i tried the candle stuff and the re plug but nope
what candle stuff
l tried the unplugging thing etc, didn’t work so l took the whole system off the shelf where it was sitting and working prior to not working. found the problem.. our little kitten decided the sensor cable was the purrfect chewtoy lol. found the cable was not attatched in the middle, sum stickytape and wire twisting and all was right with the Wiinie. (oh. be sure to use your lighter to burn the insulation off both the copper AND the red wires prior to joining them…)
Thanks so much for the advice. I plugged in my Wii for the first time in months, and the buttons worked but the cursors wouldn’t show up. After unplugging and replugging in the sensor bar and trying to resync, it was still not working, so I tried using 2 candles as a sensor bar as suggested. It actually worked! I guess that means I have to get a new sensor bar, though
In any case, thanks so much for all of your helpful info!
Your advice is still sound. Thank you from a Wii-loving family. We moved houses and went without the Wii for about a month. My son was super-excited tonight to get to play it again (he’s 4). But to my chagrin I was having problems, but you saved me. Thank you.
Hello!
I noticed my sensor settings were off due to only seeing the cursor when holding the controller at an angle. I attemped to correct it through the sensor bar settings but accidently clicked “ok” with wrong settings. Now I cannot see the cursor at all.
The home button and others are working fine. I have reset with all cords plugged in and used the candles. Still the same, buttons working but no cursor. Can I reset the sensor settings without the wii remote being acknowledged?
Can’t you format your Wii?
Excuse me but I have tried everything and nothing is working please help me I unplugged plugged and then it still doesn’t work help me please David
Ok I have a battery powered sensor bar, batteries are fine in the bar and remote, but no hand, so frusturting.
Also what is the candle think, sorry a little confused and that is on a good day.
Help! Our Wii remote was working perfectly this afternoon. My son was playing a Star Wars game and all was well. He handed the remote to me, I put the Wii Fit disc in and I could no longer aim the cursor straight at the TV. We finally found a spot to the right of the tv and console where the cursor would show up, but only when I aimed the remote to the left corner of the room. I tried unplugging, re-syncing, and using candles in place of the sensor. Nothing works. Can’t get through to Niontendo. Thanks!
Thanks so much. The candles trick work!! first i was a bit confused how it worked, but you should Google it or look at this video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o6BB047BG_Q&NR=1
Honestly it didn’t work the cursor Is gone and we have tried EVERYTHING
When we point the remote at the sensor, we get nothing. If we point it sideways and up in the air we get the hand. How do we get it to straighten out
Hey David. Lots of great info here. I have 4 wii remotes. 3 work fine. 1 if them doesnt show a cursor. The home button works and it responds to resyncing after I cleared the sync memory but still no cursor. Any suggestions. I read the previous posts but didnt see any problems that were similar to mine. I know the bar must work cause of the other 3 controls working fine. Is my remote just out? Appreciate the blog and the help.
I wiped off the sensor at the end of my Wii because it was dirty and what do u know problem solved.
Thanks for that!
I am a Nintendo Wii Freak.I just love the Wii i was disappointed that it did not come with dvd player function.Then i found a website that turned my Wii world upside down and inside out.
Thanks to
The New World Rebels Wii Brew Community
You’ll find a lot more in info Click Here to Read More.
Your initial instructions worked just fine for me. Thanks for your help!
I have checked the sensor bar connection and followed all steps online and in the book. i am so lost, what do I do?
I have tried checking sensor bar connections, done all things online and in the book about not having a cursor point icon on tv screen. The joystic works but do not have a visible cursor point on the television screen. Can I have a solution to my problem PLEASE!
What happens if you have a wireless sensor bar?
tnx big time
Very very usefull, thank you so much…………the nintendo website is useless =)
Wow, the candle trick worked for me!! What does it mean? Is my sensor buggered?
We had the same no cursor problem and tried all of the mentioned remedies-to no avail. Then my husband closed the drapes, though it’s only cloudy today, and now it works!
That did not work for me the system is only a year old and I have not played it in a few months but worked great every other time I’ve played. Thanx
That did not work for me the system is only a year old and I have not played it in a few months but worked great every other time I’ve played. Thanx hope for answer ASAP gotta play with kids for new year.
UM ok so no hand on one remote the second one works fine both are synced the home button works and can flip with the + – buttons. Can see player 2s hand but not on the main controller. not sure what to do now????
yup im having this problem too, the wiimote that came with the wii is fine, the one I bought afterwards has all buttons working etc but no cursor, tried many many things and no joy….are there any further suggestions (besides returning the wiimote)?
Duuuuuude thank you SOOOOO MUCH. Ahhhh this makes me incredibly happy! I’ve searched everywhere trying to fix it and nothing worked. And then I found this and it worked! Thank You!
my wii remote plus controller is not working, its seems something is wrong with the sensor bit.It goes left and right on the opening screen but no cursor appears on the screen it was working fine then just packed up when playing wii resort.Ive tried the batteries unplugged the sensor bar put it back in but nothing works, so my son cant play wii resort anymore. All the other controllers work but there not wii motion plus, do u think the controller is faulty? just seems a bit wierd as only got it at christmas, if u can help be much appreciated
I’m not getting the cursor up on the screen, the wii remote i got with the wii seems to be working ok apart from the cursor not being up. I even borrowed my mums sensor bar and a different remote but still having no luck at all, tried the synching but its not coming up with any synching instructions…………….. Help please.
This is going to sound weird but it worked for me. You can look up “Wii candle trick” on YouTube if you don’t believe me. Unplug your sensor bar then place two candles on either side of your tv. Light them and turn on your Wii. If your Wii remote works now (the cursor shows up) then it means your remote is fine and its the sensor bar that is not working. Since you already borrowed your mums (working I assume) sensor bar that probably means the sensor bar outlet on the back of your Wii is broken. I replaced my sensor bar for a wireless one I bought off eBay.
Hope this helps:
http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?rt=nc&LH_BIN=1&_nkw=wireless+wii+sensor+bar&_dmpt=Video_Games_Accessories&_trksid=p3286.c0.m301
dont know how you tride the synching but i had the same problem as you & i just now figured it out..in case you havent try these steps..1. turn off your wii 2. take the back off of your wii remote 3. turn your wii back on 4. press and let go of the red sync button on the back of the remote (as the lights are flashing on your remote) 5. press and let go of the sync button on the wii.. after your screen changes from the health warning to the main menu screen it will hopefully show up..mine did..but before i did this my lights kept flashing on the remote as if it were a new remote and it had to be programed..if your lights are doing the same this should fix the problem..
Umm mine is still not working correctly I have tried all of that heeelllppppp!!!!!!!!!
Thank you so much. I have been trying for weeks to get my pointer to work. I thought my batteries were no good, but when that didnt help…. Anyway thanks so much for posting this. It was a great help!!
Thank-you so much for posting this – problem solved and my 5 year old’s tears have finally stopped flowing!
having trouble finding the curor on the wii plese help