Topic: The OFFICIAL Big N rumor thread *bring your own salt*

[ShyGuy]

What does NFC stand for?

[TJ Spyke]

Near Field Communication: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Near_field_communication

[Chozo Ghost]

What does NFC stand for?

Nebraska Fried Chicken

[BlackNMild2k1]

http://mynintendonews.com/2012/04/08/wii-u-cost-of-manufacturing-detailed-system-to-retail-for-under-300/
discuss

FZero, I'll actually give you an applaud for new rumors to the thread. (Cater I owe you a few too ), but you should have linked the actual source.

Rumor: Wii U’s Total Bill of Materials Estimated at $180
and should retail at no less than $300
http://www.forgetthebox.net/mag/culture/forum-m/rumor-wii-u-price.php

Speaking with sources closely involved with manufacturing and distributing Nintendo products, the total cost of materials to manufacture the Wii U console (includes cost of controller) is estimated to be around $180. On top of this, our source tells us the controller’s total bill of materials and components cost no more than $50.

The source goes on to say that Nintendo is assessing the overall market and finalizing costs to determine the price for the Wii U, but it will be no less than $300 retail price when it launches.

Summary:
- total cost of materials to manufacture the Wii U console (includes cost of controller) is estimated to be around $180
- controller’s total bill of materials and components costs no more than $50
- Wii U will be no less than $300 when it launches
- Cost of cameras in system to be $6 and of slightly higher quality than those on the 3DS
- NFC in controller to cost about $5 but expected to quickly fall to about $1
- Touch screen estimated to cost $14

Cost of individual parts doesn't mean it won't be powerful though, so even though I would be a little happy that my estimates for the controller cost would be pretty accurate (and at that cost, I couldn't see why they wouldn't allow atleast 2 on a single system) and that $300 is right about where most of though the price would land, I was actually hoping it would be closer to $350 just for that added boost in capabilities.

But we shall see. As usual, taken with a grain of salt. and I'll update the list pretty soon too.

[Chozo Ghost]

It only costs Nintendo $180, but they will sell it for no less than $300? Isn't that a huge profit margin?

And my concern is if the total manufacturing cost is only $180 then those rumors about it being weaker than the PS360 might actually have some validity to them, and if that's the case that will really suck.

[BlackNMild2k1]

well, it is sill just a rumor, and as far as we know, Nintendo still hasn't finalized the CPU or the GPU (as I don't think final dev kits have been released internally or externally according to "sources" who are apparently in the know)

But yes, I was hoping it cost north of $250 to put together with a $350 price tag at retail, but whose to say it won't?

I'm not expecting a complete powerhouse of the system, but I'm definitely expecting it to outshine current HD console offering in every way possible (outside of HDD capacity in box)

[Chozo Ghost]

I'm not expecting it to out muscle the PS420 either. The minimum I hope for is that it at least out muscles the current HD systems, and hopefully by as wide of a margin as possible. If it can at least pull ahead of existing systems then I will be satisfied.

[Shaymin]

It only costs Nintendo $180, but they will sell it for no less than $300? Isn't that a huge profit margin?

That's just the cost of manufacturing the stuff that goes in the box. Once you add in marketing expenses, shipping costs, the inevitable packin game, retailer margin... $300 is probably the minimum you could charge and still make a small profit.

[Ymeegod]

Sigh, there's a difference between manufacturing costs and developement, you have to factor in all the middlemen, labor, shipping, retail, so when it's all factor in it's more likely $200+ just to ship and that's without marketting costs.  A good example would be the fisco that was the 3ds, at $250 nintendo was making less than $30 profit even though the reports claimed the system costed less than $110 to make.
Damnit, Shaymin beat me to it .

[Snake-Arms]

Wait, am I crazy or did Nintendo not say that the Wii U would likely be a pricey console?

Maybe it's just me, but I don't exactly view $300 as pricey.

[Oblivion]

What, are you rich or something? $300 is pretty pricey.

[TJ Spyke]

Wait, am I crazy or did Nintendo not say that the Wii U would likely be a pricey console?

Maybe it's just me, but I don't exactly view $300 as pricey.

The rumor says the Wii U would be at LEAST $300, meaning that is the lowest it would possibly be. And $300 is not cheap.

Sites iSuppli are interesting, though some people think that the manufacturing costs are the only expenses. As others pointed out, you have to add in money for the retailer, shipping costs, advertising costs, etc.

[Snake-Arms]

Wait, am I crazy or did Nintendo not say that the Wii U would likely be a pricey console?

Maybe it's just me, but I don't exactly view $300 as pricey.

The rumor says the Wii U would be at LEAST $300, meaning that is the lowest it would possibly be. And $300 is not cheap.

Sites iSuppli are interesting, though some people think that the manufacturing costs are the only expenses. As others pointed out, you have to add in money for the retailer, shipping costs, advertising costs, etc.

I know dis, mister. -.-

I was just wondering if someone can confirm Ninty making any comments on the price of the Wii-U.

[Snake-Arms]

What, are you rich or something? $300 is pretty pricey.

No.  The price of the PS3 at launch (which I bought day one) was pricey.  $300 is very nice price for a new console IMO.

[nickmitch]

It only costs Nintendo $180, but they will sell it for no less than $300? Isn't that a huge profit margin?

No, that's just a bill of materials. Labor isn't included nor are selling expenses. There's more to profit margins than just how much the stuff you buy costs. The stuff I mentioned only gets you to gross margin.


EDIT: And "slightly better" cameras? Are you shitting me? Is Nintendo buying the cheapest available cameras again? I really don't wanna find out that the only reason they're not using VGA cameras is because nobody wants to make those anymore.

[Shorty McNostril]

I'm afraid I am getting more and more disheartened by everything I hear now.  I am growing more and more fearful this will be the Wii all over again.  An underpowered machine with a gimmick strapped onto it. 

I never thought I would say this, but if this thing does turn out to be thus I will not be purchasing it until it see it in a bargain bin somewhere.  Which incidently I don't think will be that long a wait.  Can they really pull off a Wii miracle for 2 generations?  I doubt it very much.

[GoldenPhoenix]

http://mynintendonews.com/2012/04/08/wii-u-cost-of-manufacturing-detailed-system-to-retail-for-under-300/


Discuss.

It is worrying if the whole system costs $180 for the parts and that includes the controller. If I recall that is even lower then what the parts cost for the Wii when it came out.

I'm not expecting it to out muscle the PS420 either. The minimum I hope for is that it at least out muscles the current HD systems, and hopefully by as wide of a margin as possible. If it can at least pull ahead of existing systems then I will be satisfied.

That is what I hope as well. At the very least have it be comparable to what the Dreamcast was when compared PS2.

[Kytim89]

Nintendo is not stupid enough to make a console that is still underpowered compared to its current competition and will still be underpowered when it new competiton arrives in the next few years. What is most likely going to happen is that the Wii U will be vastly more powerful that the PS3 and 360, but Nintendo will still retail it at $299.99 even though Microsoft and Sony will drop the price of their consoles again. This makes sense when figures the probable price of the PS4 and Xbox 720 as being between $349.99 to $499.99. These systems will be more powerful than the Wii U, but the power difference will be so insignificant that third party developers that will already be familiar with the system will have no issue down porting to the Wii U. As for the price of the Wii U, by the time its real competion is released Nintendo will have the benefit of lowering production to a point of selling the the Wii U at $249.99 and still make a profit. It will be the Wii all over again, except this time in a better way.

What is really going to make or break the Wii U at this point is its online network. If the Wii U comes out of the box with Steam and Origin enabled from day one then there is no reason to say it will fail. Couple this with some kind of multimedia system that is similar to what Microsoft is putting in place for the 360 and the Wii U could be the center peice of the living room.

[Mop it up]

I wonder if "no less than $300" still excludes the $299.99 point. If those costs are true, then I see Nintendo going with $299.99. With the bad taste of the 3DS still in Nintendo's mouth, they are going to make sure they charge as little as possible without losing money on the Wii U, especially since consoles aren't as popular as handhelds in Japan.

Also, if the controller is around $50 in materials, then I think it could be priced at $70. Sure, we'd all rather it be lower, but it's not unreasonable, as a Wiimote + Nunchuk + Classic Controller is $80. Nintendo may not make a profit at that price, but the point would be to get controllers in people's hands so they buy multiplayer games. This is, of course, assuming the Wii U supports more than one controller, which is somewhat unlikely.

[BlackNMild2k1]

I just saw a mock-up of a Nyko branded uMote.
It looked pretty nice. Let me go find it again and I will edit it.

I hope it's a real concept and not just a fan made thing as that would all but confirm multiple uMotes per system (although it could just be for replacement controllers too).

[Kytim89]

If Nintedno allowed third parties to develop their own versions of the uMote wouldn't it have the added advantage of driving down production costs and thus retail price? This would make it easier to get it into the hands of consumers and thus be more readily available for games.

[nickmitch]

Not really. Nintendo would still need to ship the console with a controller, so the costs don't change.

[BlackNMild2k1]

I just checked the source of the pic and unfortunately it isn't a real product as the designer currently works for Huawei (according to his resume)





http://www.coroflot.com/jianxuying/game-accessories/11

But it still looks nice. Maybe something from a 3rd party will look just as nice or even better.

[GoldenPhoenix]

I just saw a mock-up of a Nyko branded uMote.
It looked pretty nice. Let me go find it again and I will edit it.

I hope it's a real concept and not just a fan made thing as that would all but confirm multiple uMotes per system (although it could just be for replacement controllers too).

Hopefully, there seemed to be a lot of fans upset when they suggested it would only support one controller. I just hope the system is powerful enough that the quality isn't degraded when using more then one. I know some of the rumors seemed to suggest that one controller can potentially hog a pretty big chunk of the resources, unless it is something simple like a map or item select screen.

[Snake-Arms]

Can someone direct me to the page/topic with the rumors consolidated?