I'm just going to say this: the Wii U sold...what...around 100,000 units in January 2014 in NA? Maybe less? So is having a slight sales increase year-over-year in January 2015 really something you can boast about? It's like saying you sold 2 units instead of 1. Yes, that's technically an increase. That's technically growth. But it's still utterly pathetic, and means absolutely nothing in terms of proving a stronger user base.
As for the 3DS, I don't see any way that Nintendo avoids putting out the real next Nintendo handheld next year. Nintendo's 3rd party software support comes almost exclusively from Japan, and all the Japanese developers have abandoned the traditional games market for mobile. Even Sega, one of Nintendo's strongest supporters, recently stated they were transitioning out of the traditional games market when they laid off those 300 workers. The 3DS isn't turning the tide against developers moving to mobile, and segmenting the userbase with an incremental new model isn't going to change that. Putting $40 versions of free mobile games isn't going to change that. Hell, I'm not sure even releasing a real next Nintendo handheld is going to change that, but I think Nintendo's going to try by the end of 2016.