While nobody can seem to agree on exactly what's inside the Wii U, one anonymous tipster has told Forget the Box that the console's components will cost around $180 USD.
That figure supposedly comes from sources "closely involved with manufacturing and distributing Nintendo products." The $180 number includes the controller, which supposedly features no more than $50 worth of tech, according to the source:
- Camera — $6
- Near field technology — $5
- Touch screen — $14
The source doesn't mention the cost of the controller's gyrometer functions, nor any acknowledgement of the rumoured Wii U haptics technology.
So with the console's bill of materials supposedly standing at $180, the anonymous source believes the machine will retail for no less than $300, saying:
Cutting production costs to maximize profits is Nintendo’s main concern with the Wii U. They are cutting costs in the Wii U’s hardware to build back confidence in investors. Nintendo wants investors to view Wii U as a less risky proposition.
While rudimentary maths suggests a ginormous $120 profit on each machine for Nintendo, the $180 figure doesn't include the cost of labour, manufacturing, distribution, marketing, retailers' profit margins or taxes, so don't get too up in arms just yet.
Pass the salt.
[source forgetthebox.net]
Comments 118
Tastes salty...but plausible, given Nintendo's desire to avoid a 3DS-style blunder.
I just hope that people's expectations won't be too high when the Wii U's specs will be finally revealed...I think it's very possible that Nintendo have been forced to scale back the hardware capability since last year (when most of the positive comments about the console's power were made) to accomodate cost and to ensure reliable tablet streaming tech. Regardless, I'm still supremely excited about the machine!
I can't wait for E3!
I presume that the $180 is in US?
This seems about right, Australia will still have its price higher than this though.
Seems reasonable - powerful hardware capable of delivering HD visuals is much cheaper than it was when X360 and PS3 launched, and the tablet-controller is not an independent unit so it does not need much in terms of internal processing power to operate. Gyroscopes and accelerometers are not expensive either, and haptics seems unlikely (probably wouldn't fit in the specified component cost). Overall - seems to be a good launch price. :]
Sounds pretty legit, considering advertizing, shipping and other costs.
if the price is right around 300 thats cool. but i hope it wont cost more than 400. ninty gotta make a profit somehow i guess. day after day new lil tidbits keep on coming out about the wii u. hmm 2 more months until we see whats really in this box and all the things it can do. price tag around 300 is cool for me, cause in reality people drop 250 on a new smart phone every year or so, and we all know a phone never lasts 5 to 8 years.. i know people will start bitching from start about the price no matter what it is, but come on people what do u expect if you want ninty to compete
So I hope price wouldn't be higher than 300€ in Germany. So the price weren't much higher then the release price of the Wii.
@Aviator We all wish it was AUS$!
Won't pay $300, so this better not be true.
300$ is cool, as long as it has on the go, port capacities.
@repplyguy67 - Actually, it's been pretty much confirmed that the Wii U tablet will not be able to leave the house whilst the console is sending the game information to it (but hey, E3 may thow out a surprise or two).
Still, Nintendo have plenty of ideas for the tablet controller. I'd love for it to be able to hold saves and DLC titles, as well as having some sort of 'streetpass' and 'spotpass' functionality like 3DS.
i think what nintendo is doing is keeping the production costs low, but not too low. the system will be powerful than the wii, yet many of us are worried about things such as the cost of the wii U console itself.
under $300/£300 is good> over $300/£300 would potentially be a disaster for nintendo. as well as the costs of the games, i also would want to know how much that controller will cost on its own.
if it is true in that the production costs of the wii U are only $180 and it goes on to retail for say $299, £299 in the U.K, 299€, then it goes to show that nintendo does know how to make a next gen console -and yet still keep to their budget, in order to make it as affordable as they can for their consumers and fans.
I'm more than willing to pay £189 (Direct currency conversion).
If the rumours are true that is.
what do you mean by "i hope people's expectations won't be too high"??
either the hardware will be up to par or not. if not then i will be disappointed and will say so and if the hardware will be on par then everything will be fine. it is time for people to stop talking subpar-stuff into something it is not just because they got fanboy-glasses on.
@11: you do realise that the component costs are just a portion of the overall pie that is a console's cost, right? There's R&D (which would be costed over several years of a console's life), logistics (these things don't ship themselves around the world), marketing (and a TV ad is just the tip of the iceberg there), salaries (consoles don't make themselves), and so on.
The real cost of the console, if $180 is the cost of components, will be very close to the $300. And remember, that's the retail price, not the price in which Nintendo sells these things to retailers (usually retailers get a couple of points margin on console hardware sales).
Looking at those numbers, Nintendo would barely - just barely - make a profit on the hardware.
I don't want anyone looking at this and thinking "oh hey, $120 profit to Nintendo, awesome!"
Drinks are on me if this is true so I would say oz price will be around $500.
@Kage_88 Well, once, again, nintendo is speaking Inaivetion, It's they're insurance policy. I got a good feeling, about they're steps twords next gen.
and because, they will be the first ones out, we might get a lot of great features we've asked for. (at a descent price.)
they gotta set the table after all.
Which is why they make most of their money off software, right Chocobo?
I wish it would end up to be $300 or less though... It's still only a more powerful Wii with a special controller... and some little specs...
$300 for a new console with Controller would be excellent, though I think I will be 350, would be more realistic. A lot of marketing costs are involved in selling a new console.
@ChocoGoldfish
The real cost of the console, if $180 is the cost of components, will be very close to the $300. And remember, that's the retail price, not the price in which Nintendo sells these things to retailers (usually retailers get a couple of points margin on console hardware sales). >>
but of course. at $299/ £299 that sounds more realistic.
@JarvanZheitk If only that were true!
I think the price sounds about right, but I'm hoping Ninty improve the controller with a multitouch screen rather than a capacitive one.
I just hope for a litle more than 360 power (very easy to do at this cost), and many cool/extra stuff like haptic tech, multi-touch, wiimote+ included a another camera in the (console) sensor (any of those are cheap but all of them..., but those would make a great gaming platform), at no more than 300€.
i hope it has a minimum of 1GB ram other wise for me the cartoony graphics on wii u will have to look amazing and will shorten the wii u life cycle.
I think $300-350 is a fair price for the Wii U, now we (think) we know that it's going to be running on current technology. The tablet is only a tablet-like controller with a gyro built in, so it's cost shouldn't be anywhere near the cost of a low-end tablet ($200). It's got to cost more than the Wii did at launch, because Wii U is a two part console (console + tablet).
I'd love to see a $300 launch price, but if I had to put my money on it, I'd say that it's going to retail for $350. As @ChocoGoldfish has already stated, the $300 retail price will likely have Nintendo just barely scratching the surface of making any kind of profit. We saw with the 3DS that Nintendo investors are flat-out not happy with selling at a loss, and I don't foresee it ever happening again.
Hmmmm. I think $249.99 would be safer but what do I know.
I think the thing is going to bomb anyway. All the people who just bought a Wii for Wii Sports and Wii Fit aren't going to bite this time.
Sounds plausible but I am almost sure it is a hoax. At this point, only Nintendo would have a cost estimative of all parts and I doubt they would let it leak.
I'll stick with my 3DS, thanks.
Another anonymous tipster. ... Interesting that we could briefly be looking at a scenario in which Sony and Microsoft are presenting the cheaper alternatives to Nintendo's more-advanced and pricier technology.
You have to remember that the wii and 3ds cost 250$ and had a lot less hardware so I say any thing under 350$ is a pretty reasonable price
I'd pay that price, if I don't get it for Xmas.
But the camera cost $6? Is it a good camera?...
Even if that is the cost of components, I'd imagin Nintendo would want to price the Wii U a little lower so it can better compete with the PS3 and Vita.
The cost estimates based on parts never really make any sense. One of these same "price teardown" articles recently made the rounds suggesting that the Vita and 3DS are significantly cheaper to make than their prices, even though Sony and Nintendo (after price drop) confirmed selling at loss.
So based on current exchange rate and their standard UK pricing practice... that's £300, right?
$300 isn't outrageous but I'm going to guess the system is not going to be significantly more powerful than the PS3 or the 360, and the PS3 is $50 less, we'll see if that ends up being a problem for Nintendo when it comes to moving consoles in the early going. The Wii sold as well as it did because of a huge price advantage and the uniqueness of the system in comparison to the competition, I want to see what they're going to do to catch the eyes of the masses again. I'll get it for the Marios, Zeldas, Smash Bros. etc, as I'm sure many here will, the big question is, what will be the gimmick that gets the expanded audience interested? I'm not sure the tablet controller alone will do it.
$300 is unfortunately legit, I would love to see it at $250 though
Hey Hey, before jumping on the hate bandwagon, we must think of the PS3 and 360 Launch Prices when they first came out. I'm just glad it's not $599.99 U.S Dollars.
Anything but 300 would surprise me.....
People will wait for a price drop, sadly
$300 for a system reportedly is less powerful than the ps3? yup, you can alot better than that, Nintendo.
@hydeks Like so many, too many variables: we don't know its power, we don't know its additions, storage - anything, basically.
I'll buy it anyways.
There's no way Nintendo would price anything $300.
$299.99 - now that might happen.
$299 sounds about right.
Myself, I do not care a huge amount about the margin that Nintendo or retailers are making if for what I'm getting it seems like a fair price, $299.99 seems fair.
$300 Isn't bad for a console, but I'm a bit concerned about the cost of buying a second tablet. If the materials cost $50 I wouldn't be surprised to see them selling for $100.
I was prepared to pay more--So if this is true it's a pleasant surprise.
Sounds legit, except I'm tasting a HUGE amount of sodium in this rumor.
$249 would be a more appealing price, but I'm guessing Nintendo will start at $300 and if people buy it, stay there, but if they don't, they can safely drop it to $250 without taking a hit like they did with the 3DS price drop.
I hope this is true.
I would expect $250 and a lot of addons like with the Wii. If they sell it for $300 then other systems will likely be in that range and they have to do another rushed price drop and I don't think they want that.
I've saved up enough money and still saving to buy the system and a game. by the time it is released, I'll probably have enough to buy at least 5 games with it.
@The_Fox nintendo has already said that they will not sell extra tablets and will only come with one because they dont want it to be to expensive
Also i will only have to spend $150 because me and my sister are splitting the cost and getting a game possibly:)
$300 seems fair, although I suspect that means no haptic touch controller
If Nintendo was keeping the Wii U name, "What's inside U?" might actually have been an interesting tagline.
I hope it's wrong as far as the cheaper components go. I hope it at least runs anything Xbox 360 and PS3 can, but it better be able to do it in native 1080p @ 60fps. I really find it hard to believe that Nintendo is going this route though, since they aren't giving MS and Sony fans any reason to buy one. Those fans are going to be looking for better graphics and a controller that shares the same or better functionality as the ones they are used to. The controller, as far as we know, doesn't even have analog triggers let alone buttons on the circle pads. I'm going to have a hard time believing that this is a good move for Nintendo unless I see some crazy sales figures later on.
I will, of course, buy one, because I've been a fan of Nintendo since my brain started retaining memories. I just hope Nintendo isn't digging itself a hole with this one. I swear, the stupid investors don't know anything; they'll be the death of Nintendo.
It'll probably be $350-400
Unless I am presented with some amazing launch games, even if it's 100 dollars, I'm not coming off a dime. I learned my lesson when my 3DS sat in a corner for 6 months until it was fully-formed and had games worth playing on it.
I'd be okay with $400 or maybe even more, but this is the figure I was hoping for. I'm still not going to go for it though, there is plenty of time for this to change, even if it is true.
it really depends on how much sony and microsoft's next gen consoles will cost for me to make up my mind...
I think it's got to be $250 to even have a hope of competing, considering people can buy a PS3 for $250, and the WiiU doesn't look any more appealing.
I'm not getting this if the games look like my PS3 games.... Wth would I get a last gen console when I already have one?
Wii U will fail if Nintendo tries the same tactic as last gen... Casual gamers already have a Wii, and ARE NOT willing to buy the successor. Hardcore gamers are not going to buy something underpowered. The Wii U will flop if Nintendo releases it being just as powerful as a PS3/360...
seems very reasonable, $300 retail launch, which will likely mean £250 in UK (where I am). i really don't think this thing will have the horsepower to do all the nice graphical stuff at 1080p...we'll see. i'll be more than happy if it natively renders at similar resolutions to current gen but looks quite a bit better.
day 1 regardless! next question is what software is on for launch ;]
$300 sounds perfect, considering the Wii sold quite well at $250. And the other consoles (X360/PS3) didn't start at $300 and they still sold. And some of you guys are willing to pay $400, that means you have and extra $100 for games, accessories, etc.
Why are you guys just buying it on day 1 for no reason? What is there to hype the system up..? All it has at launch is a couple of game that you could easily get for a PS3/360... And plus if this news is true, WTH would you buy a system that is just BARELY more powerful than something you already have....?
hmmmm. time to save my money. But so many could games to get it on. arrgh!
This is going to be broad talk, but I believe if it delivers "a little more" than the Wii U (which will be on par w/ PS360), then no questions asked it will be $300 regardless of the reasoning. If Nintendo is trying to put a fair amount more oomph into the bells and whistles that we'll come to know as the Wii U then it will be $350 for sure. Other than that, I can't possibly see the Wii U costing $400 or more what with no media/computing thing-a-ma-jigs like blu-ray, DVD, and still unknown at this point HD. More to come, I guess...
@Nintendoftw: if they want it day 1, they want it day 1. not everyone will make the same assumptions and choices you will; diversity is the spice of life. please chill out.
Well the $300 price is something I've been saying since last E3 so I can't argue w/ that But in all honesty if I were sitting in that boardroom setting the system price I would really want to know what games are going to be ready at launch. Anywhere from $250 to $350 unit sales are going to be a direct correlation to the games. Pikmin 3 is only going to sell so many. Darksider 2 won't sell any as it will be a 6 month old game. If they're smart they have Kid Icarus 2 ready to go. Both my sons played it and finished it and they keep going back for more. While it wouldn't be in 3D it would make obvious good use of the tablet controller. And it has online multiplayer. And they could make little Kid Icarus toys for the NEAR function.
Oh, and to address a couple of issues raised by Nintendoftw - "Casual gamers already have a Wii, and ARE NOT willing to buy the successor." Oh, I think they are willing, since they have all purchased HD tvs since then, and they're all hooked on dance/workout games, so they'll upgrade to get HD graphics and the newer games in the series. Probably not at launch, but Just Dance 5 and Zumba 3 when Nintendo stops releasing Wii versions. "All it has at launch is a couple of game that you could easily get for a PS3/360" Can you please show me your launch lineup, my copy must have gotten lost in the mail. Wii sold for Wii Sports included in the box. 3DS didn't sell for lack of games. Add those 2 together an you get something good to play in the box on the controller. Maybe make the Miis be based on a photo of your self taken with the camera, I've always wanted a Max Headroom version of myself.
Whatever - Santa left a lot of Kinects under trees last year b/c quite frankly, what else was there? At $300 they'll be a lot of these this year, how many depends alot on what games Nintendo shows off at E3, and what "must have" they stick in the box.
@Nintendoftw
I'll buy it day 1 because I want to support Nintendo and its franchises. I want to send a message to Nintendo saying, "Hey! I have your console, now put some decent games on it!" The second reason is so I can show it to all my friends and hopefully get them to purchase one as well, thereby increasing my potential for gaming with them in the same room or online.
The real fact of the matter, though, is that WiiU WILL be a better console and have more capabilities than current gen. I found a youtube post outlining exactly how it will be better. This guy is pretty dry when it comes to entertaining, but it's actually quite informative. Here's the link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OcnsG11MRE8
The only thing that really concerns me about the video card is that it will be producing visuals for two screens. Of course, one of those screens probably won't be displaying anything beyond simple interfaces and maps, but it still eats power from the GPU. Another major question I have is about storage. How much flash memory is this thing going to have? My guess is 16-32GB, but it could be less. I hope it's more.
day 1 because i've owned every nintendo console since the SNES on day 1 :3 and never been dissapointed.
nintendo will have some goodies lined up (new and upgraded rereleases) for launch and the nintendo network will be fully live. also, first runs of consoles are more likely to contain hardware exploits and the like. these days paying full price is as much about paying to play first.
software and to a lesser extent hardware is dropping in price more than ever after a period of time. but this is irrelevant to a lot of day 1 people.
@Nintendoftw
Because as a gamer, I enjoy new control experiences and I enjoy advances in old control experiences. Being able to play games in a new way while also having the option to opt for older styles is just a part of gaming for me.
Just another rumour, but if true then WiiU would be more or less in the same league of PS3/XBoX.
The most important part for me is:
"Nintendo wants investors to view Wii U as a less risky proposition"
And probably because of that Nintendo might pretty well be following the very same path the Wii had. All these millions of "casuals" aproaching to the Wii might be catched again by the Wii U if cheap enough and considering that Wii games batch is actually dry. But it also means that Nintendo will be again far away from competing with next gen of MS and Sony.
Definitely just a rumor, I doubt Nintendo has settled on a price yet. $180 for the components? Maybe, it's hard to say, but that part honestly is of less interest to me, that affects Nintendo much more than the consumer. $300 retail? Hmm... I'd say that's a good guess, I wouldn't guess any lower. Nintendo has a reputation for trying to keep their prices substantially lower than their competitors. My guess is definitely betwen $300 and $400. I'd be quite happy with $300. Either way, I doubt we'll hear anything about the price until sometime after E3.
@Alienfish #73
Very informative video. He was very unbiased as well, just stating facts.
If this is true, up the power and charge me another hundred!
Waiting for E3.
the $300 pricetag wouldn't be unreasonable i mean the GameCube at launch in 2001 was $200, and the Wii in 2006 was $250, so it wouldn't be surprising if the Wii U was priced at $300, but since its such a massive jump in technology when compared to the Wii, a price range closer to $400 seems alot more realistic, especially if the console is more powerful then the 360 and Ps3.
I think this is great news even if a rumour and sounds pretty realistic. I'd wager it will be more like $350 but if it's any less it'll be an instant buy for me. That really is pretty cheap for a new HD console.
Ok, lets say it is slightly "underpowered", by that we're talking the same or slightly better than current HD systems, we can't underestimate the appeal of simply a new HD Nintendo system with some exciting new control ideas including the current motion+. It's what we've wanted all along and here it is, coming soon. I won't complain, I'm going to have a blast with it. Nobody will admit that just a new nintendo system with new things happening is appealing, if it's cheap enough that will win me, and even many who aren't the fanboy that I am.
Let also be realistic about media, blu-ray and even DVD are already barely relevant now when most of the same movies/ shows can be seen streaming in HD, so a media disc player is just not a selling point anymore. Surely it willl have Netflix and Hulu like the Wii does so why do we need a disc player?
I'm excited. I think people underestimate the massive demographic that the Wii served (even gamers) that just can't spend all their money on a games console but want new hi-tech experiences and don't even have an HD console now. Some will be skeptical, but so many others will buy it in a minute even if it only does what the Wii did, but with HD graphics, motion sensing, AND a touchscreen. Whats not to like?
$300 is a reasonable price, assuming it has some sort of hard-drive for downloadable stuff.
$180 is a good price for the Wii U but I wouldn't get it for $300.
Again, chill out please. This is not a life-or-death situation, it's video gaming for goodness' sake. — TBD
anyone expecting 200 or less is living in the past. you better be prepared to wash a lot of Nintendos' dishes for that little. you can't get a familes' monthly groceries for that much anymore, it's just not realistic.
I think whether or not $300 is a good price just depends on how good the games look. Put Mario and Zelda out on day one and this thing will sell no matter what price.
As from now I am ignoring all 'news' about WiiU until E3. Basically if it's got games I want to play at launch I'll get one ,if not I'll wait till it does. Easy
If the Wii-U is out this year, I won't buy one until next year... don't know why I think this but I have a lot of Wii games to play before I am ready...
@Myx - Are you referring to my first comment?
I said "I hope people's expectations aren't too high", because when Nintendo reveal the actual power of the console - I am more than willing to bet the 'fanboys' will instantly dismiss it as a failure and once again idiotically proclaim to death of Nintendo.
That's not MY logic. That's my observation based on the mouth-breathing, knuckle-dragging 'hardcore gamers' that pollute the internet with their ill-informed drivel whilst making E3 an even bigger willy-waving contest than it already is.
The Wii U may be more powerful than the current gen...or it may not be. I'm not insulting the Wii U by insinuating that people should lower their expectations regarding the actual console - just its 'power' (to use a broad term). Your use of the term "subpar" intrigues me though...how does one measure "subpar"? How powerful is the Wii U supposed to be - in order to not be "subpar"?
300 seems good. I was thinking 399 for the launch price but 300 is better! Honestly though, it doesn't matter for me. I'll be lined up for this one regardless of price.
So many rumors about the Wii U, still no facts with reliable sources.
Wait for E3.
300 BUCKS?!? That's not too much, but that is going to take over a year to save up for with my allowance.
For everyone saying things about the WiiU's launch titles being simple ports of PS360 games, why is that a problem? It only makes the GAME more popular. Also, if I had the choice to get a next generation console that can play a last generation game, I would rather get the next gen console as opposed to the last gen console. "You could just get the game for the PS360 easily and cheaper." True, but in another two months when Sony and Microsoft make their PS4s and 720s, then what? They haven't been kind to backwards compatibility this generation, so...
And to everyone complaining about the $300 price (speculated), why?! Remember how the 360 and PS3 launched at over $300? And how the Wii came out at $250? Wouldn't $300 be perfect knowing that Sony and Microsoft would have to jack their price up EVEN more to both A. Make it more powerful than the WiiU and B. Avoid selling at a loss by making it more powerful?
Personally, $300 would be perfect and I would buy it day 1 if it came out around Christmas.
$300 is a reasonable price. I paid over $300 for an iPod Touch so why shouldn't I pay the same price for a great console! I'm so getting this for Christmas!
Nintendo fanboys:
Anonymous dev says something bad about Wii U: Fanboys: So fake, its just haters, Probably Sony an Microsoft LOL.
Anonymous tipster says something good about Wii U: Fanboys: Awesome! Seems legit.
Seriously.
nintendo is going HD! no amount of sony and xbox trolls can make this prospect any less tantalising!!!
time to get those pennies together. they will have some really far along titles to show at e3 and i suspect some HD revamps of older titles coming for the download/online service.
I don't believe it. People are just spouting off rumors everywhere. I'll wait until E3 while everyone is in this frenzy.
@Hanks: Metroid Prime Trilogy HD and ANY Zelda HD would be awesome!
$300 is probably the sweet spot. I think $400 or higher will cripple the sales like we saw with the 3DS.
@SomeBitTripFan everything is possible. i think a zelda HD revamp is extremely likely, quite possibly the most recent skyward sword, seeing as you can use the wii remote still. tbh i'd be less excited for that than an older title, ideally wind waker or TP...with new controls. unless they added some new content too.
and still waiting on a god damn F-ZERO title. so many possibilities with this new controller, it'll be great for racing games where you could select weapons and stuff. imagine a mario kart where you got to collect multiple weapons and select options for them on the fly on the touch pad, deep strategy.
If this is true and it is $300, then that's not too bad. $350 might be the highest I would go, but I'd really need to consider it at that point. But I think I could go for $300... I don't have enough info about the console at the moment, but just maybe.
I believe that the Wii U will be more powerful than the PS3/360 whilst still coming in at around $300. The reason they'll be able to hit that price point is that the console doesn't have a harddrive (reportedly has 8GB flash memory and uses SD cards or USB harddrives) and it uses proprietry DVD (with no movie playback) instead of Bluray (the DVDs can hold up to 25GB).
Now the 'anonymous developers' who claim that the Wii U is less powerful than the PS3 or 360 are obviously fake (seriously what dev would say that a console has 'less shaders') and that those stories broke from the same source that claims that 'Call Of Duty will not be on the Wii U' further damages any credibility they could have had (COD is always on everything and the Wii even received Black Ops). There is no way that an R700 series GPU can be weaker than a X1900 or a 7900GT. Some people have even claimed that it uses a modified HD4950, which would not only dwarf the current gen but would also out perform the rumoured 'Xbox Durango' (HD6670) and 'PS Orbis' (HD7670) GPUs. Of course displaying images on 2 screens may take away some of that extra power.
All the rumours and speculation really mean nothing though. The only reports that I totally believe are from Epic and Gearbox; both of which were favorable about the console. Still I'm pretty sure that everything will be clear after E3 and then we'll be able to rejoice/complain about the systems price or performance.
You're silly if you think the Wii U will be less powerful than the PS3 and 360. What sense would that make?
it's an anonymous tip so i rule this as false.
No offense, but I'm not eating this rumor. It's got enough sodium in it to send an elephant into cardiac arrest!
For better or worse, as with the 3DS, I will be buying this on day one!
@mastersworddude Except that the anon devs saying it wasn't very powerful were contradicting the named developers who were saying it was. Making it look a lot like professional troll-bait used to get ad-revenue.
This story? It's on price. There's not much to gain from saying it'll cost $300US and therefore presumably about $400AU. That's pretty much as expected. The low cost of the tablet? Not a surprise either. Those components are in everything these days including the excluded gyros. You get more tech in a $30 burner phone these days.
I've felt from the first mention of the Wii U that the price range would have to be $300-350. Anything higher would be crazy considering Nintendo's fan base. People bought the wii for three reasons - innovation, familiar franchise characters, and the biggest, BECAUSE IT WAS DRASTICALLY cheaper than EVERYTHING else ( $400 xbox? $600 PS3? Those guys should be happy they are still afloat, no system of that price has ever survived until now). To me, the Wii needs to be in the sweet spot of $300. Maybe even beat that at $279 just to make it more convincing. And pack in a new wii sports/games title. It would FLY off the shelves. I will be there day 1 if the price is right.
Wait, so the tablet-like controller thingy is extra? That's too bad.
No. The $180 is how much it costs for a system and controller. At least, it is if you take this rumor as pure truth.
would like to pay 500-700 for a next gen console.
No need for a retro machine with retro games again,.
In the uk we wont see much change from £300, and i'll doubt it will come with a game!
As long as it still plays Wii and Gamecube games and has the wii virtual console, sounds ok.
$300 is pushing it, but I have paid more for consoles in the past. If it's worth it, I intend to get it.
@MikeDanger1 It has already been confirmed it won't play Gamecube DISCS. Which of course means it's plausible for virtual gamecube games to show up though.
Hm...this is a curious scenario. Without the controller, the system hardware comes up to around $130. Factoring in buying power and wholesale prices, I'm kind of wondering how good the hardware can be at that cost. Anyone familiar with the wholesale business care to shed some light on this?
C'est la vie. Whatever happens, happens. {I hope the console is small cause I'm running out of room on my gaming shelf..}
MikeDanger1 - the currently selling Wii doesn't even support Gamecube games or controllers. I'm half expecting HD remakes (a la Sony) of the 4 Players Choice games that dropped in price the day the system dropped in price (which is the reason I bought a Gamecube).
One thing Nintendo is probably focusing on - which I haven't at all - is onboard storage. I was very happy to get that 2GB card in the 3DS box, and Sony got a lot of grief for it's really expensive proprietorial Vita memory cards. I actually read the article and it doesn't list a price for storage, either HDD or flash based. I'm guessing flash based w/ an SD card slot. If Nintendo intends to get a lot of Wii upgraders it can't follow Sony and MS into the world of constantly changing SKUs. But I'm guessing they haven't finalized this yet, so another unknown piece to the price puzzle.
Not that I'm expecting it to be region free, but has there been a confirmation about that yet?
$300? Not bad, but I have a feeling there's gonna be agonizng demand with Wii U like it's predecessor.
@The_Fox I agree about the concern of a 2nd controller being $100. On top of a likely $299-350 price range for the the console and one controller, that could end up being prohibitive for a lot of people.
I wonder how many people are like me - I got tired of waiting for next gen-graphics and 3rd party games, so I bought a 160 gb PS3 for $250 (less really since I made some money from selling old games).
So far, I'm really happy with my PS3. I'm keeping my Wii too, but I did downsize the Wii games I own.
Now...it's going to be a tough sell for me to buy a Wii U, having just bought another console... maybe eventually. I wonder how many are in a similar situation to me...
I'm putting my money on $350. It would be a bit concerning to me if it wasn't, because that would mean either a) the console really is drastically improved over the current gen but Ninty's selling at a loss, or b) It's really not that improved over PS3 and therefore not that much more expensive. If the console is really that powerful, + the touchscreen/universal remote/tablet controller, I would think the price tag would be a little more hefty, which I'm okay with.
OK what's the big deal I remeber OFFICALLY when they said the kinect only had $50 worth of hardware in yet it retailed for $150 this is how the real world works people you forget to ad in marketing shipping etc.
Show Comments
Leave A Comment
Hold on there, you need to login to post a comment...