Jim Intriglia’s Blog

Santa brought my son a Wii to replace his aging Playstation game console. The latest generation of the Wii gaming console is designed to connect to the Internet to enable updates to the Wii console and allow multi-user play with gamers all over the world.  The Wii also enables users to surf the Net right on their TV.

Having a gaming console that is Net-aware presents an all new dimension in the gaming and simulation experience. It also presents a challenge for parents respective of securing their home network and protecting their children from inappropriate Web content and applications.

To continue the level of parental controls that I had established on my son’s laptop, I now needed a home network solution that would enable me to apply parental controls to Net-enabled gaming consoles like the Nintendo Wii and DS portable gaming platforms. Enter the iBoss Internet Parental Control router from Phantom Technologies.

The iBoss is a wireless G router designed to enable parents to assert parental control over their home Internet connection. The product manages both wired and wireless Internet access by personal computers, gaming consoles, anything that can connect to the Internet via the home network.

The iBoss won the 2008 iParenting Media Best Product Awards from family organizations and was received accolades in an online parental control forum. As Phantom Technologies was running a holiday special for the iBoss at $99.95 and offered a 30-day free trial, I decided to give it a go and placed my order.

From the reviews that I have read, the iBoss looks like a terrific solution. In addition to providing parental controls for the Wii, it will also provide an additional layer of protection for my sons laptop, which also has NetNanny parental control software installed.