Topic: Analyst: 3DS May Cost $249-$299, Hit Japan First

[NWR_insanolord]

Considering people lapping up the IPhone 4 and the IPad, I think Nintendo will price this higher.

Nintendo is not apple and that's why I love them.

Nintendo is a lot like Apple, much more so than you'd be willing to admit. As a huge fan of both companies, I notice the similarities often. Part of it has always been there, other parts are obvious efforts on Nintendo's part to emulate Apple.

[oohhboy]

This is just an incremental upgrade of the DS

Bullshit

If you throw out the 3D and the extra camera, it is only an incremental upgrade. A screen is a screen. There is no reason why that screen is so special as to jack up the price to such a degree. Even if the 3D screen was literaly two complete LCDs sandwiched together, that still wouldn't account for a $100+ price hike.

The guts and the shell of the DS has had 6+ years of technological maturity and I can't see why they couldn't pass a lot of that on to the 3DS. By Mores law it should be able to have 16 times more transistor on the same size chip for the same price let alone the other improvements that have been done like clock speed, new ways to dope and multi core.

No doubt the gaming companies would like to charge Apple prices for their wares, but time and time throughout history premium pricing for games just doesn't work. Either the consumer won't buy or hold off for the price drop or the company eats a fat subsidy in order to get the price low enough. Xbox has eaten that subsidy for 2 generations with nothing to show for it except for an online community that prides itself shouting at everybody in earshot racial slurs like they were breathing air and a negative return on investment. Now MS resort to setting up North Korean style Potekim villages in place of media briefings. Sony's singular cycle of subsidy had vaporised two complete generations of profit, killing their golden goose and golden boy in one hit. How did we laugh when we were told to get a second job to buy a PS3?

That 3D screen will create a metric ton of hype, but it worthless if no one in their usual market, which is currently everyone and anyone, can't afford to buy it. Even Nintendo needs to hit the ground running and not count on just early adapters buying on launch. That would be leaving far too many things to luck.

[Halbred]

I don't listen to these analysts. What's the point? Their predictions are rarely correct. And remember the DS launch? It hit North America FIRST, didn't it?

[Louieturkey]

If you throw out the 3D and the extra camera, it is only an incremental upgrade. A screen is a screen. There is no reason why that screen is so special as to jack up the price to such a degree. Even if the 3D screen was literaly two complete LCDs sandwiched together, that still wouldn't account for a $100+ price hike.

Yes throw out the two main things that make this more than just an incremental upgrade.  That'll fix your argument.  Don't forget to throw out the analog "stick" and bigger top screen while you're at it.

[Pale]

Considering people lapping up the IPhone 4 and the IPad, I think Nintendo will price this higher.

Nintendo is not apple and that's why I love them.

So why don't you love Microsoft and Sony? I'm not following your logic.


Do you love me? I'm not Apple, but I use one!

[oohhboy]

A 3D screen will have a subtle effect on gameplay. One thing is does do is make a 3D game a bit more intuitive in a sense that you can see how far something is in 3D allowing you to better judge a jump. For example, instead of relying on the other way your brain judges distance based on relative size of nearby objects or in Mario games with a permanent shadow always directly below Mario.

It's not like you can literally look around the corner by twisting your head. It's very neat, but it's not an additional +100 dollar neat nor is the manufacture cost going to add even remotely that much to the price per unit.

I mean look back to the DS which had an entire screen more than the GBA and one of them which is a touch screen, both backlit. Better battery life. Some more buttons, two card slots, wireless coms. Yet they managed to keep the price as it's predecessor.

Why the hell would a wider 3D screen an extra camera and an analogue stick cause the price to blow out. It has been 6 years, surely technology has move forward from the DS since then? This isn't some limited run half bake machine that is the DSI or XL that had half a reason to exist with a fat margin. This is going to be the new base unit that is projected to be sold for the next 4-6 years.

It's incremental to the DS. If the DS was a really high end Gameboy then the 3DS would become today's DS in the same way the DS is to the GBA.

[NeoStar9X]

If you throw out the 3D and the extra camera, it is only an incremental upgrade. A screen is a screen. There is no reason why that screen is so special as to jack up the price to such a degree. Even if the 3D screen was literaly two complete LCDs sandwiched together, that still wouldn't account for a $100+ price hike.

Yes throw out the two main things that make this more than just an incremental upgrade.  That'll fix your argument.  Don't forget to throw out the analog "stick" and bigger top screen while you're at it.

Then there is the significant graphical increase as well. Wish some people would stop purposefully ignoring things.

[Pale]

Well to be fair, a significant graphical increase is all part of an incremental update to some people.

[UncleBob]

So, if the additional control scheme, graphical update, processor increase, additional wireless abilities, additional internal memory, additional RAM, larger screen, 3D screen (am I missing anything) is a "incremental update", what would you expect out of a whole new system?

[Pale]

Hey, don't yell at me. I'm not calling this an incremental update.

However, I do think if a system ONLY includes increased horse power, it is an incremental update.  Thus, if we are arguing this ridiculousness, it should not be included in the list of reasons why it isn't.


In fact, I'd go as far as to say that increased horse power is the definition of an incremental update.

[UncleBob]

I"M NOT YELLING AT YOU>

Just asking the general population - what wouldn't be an "incremental update"?
Star Trek Holodeck?

[ShyGuy]

Just so we're clear, the 360 and PS3 were incremental, right?

[oohhboy]

Well to be fair, a significant graphical increase is all part of an incremental update to some people.

It's increment because it is expected. ie, check the never ending bitching that surrounds the Wii because the upgrade wasn't significant enough. eg, two GCs duct taped togeather.

The DS really had changed the game for handhelds. Instead of a juiced up powered Gameboy which Sony made, we got a real game changer that Sony couldn't follow.

As I said, it's incremental to the DS, but if Nintendo released the something like the PSP(The whole third pillar thing) 6 years ago and release the 3DS like they have now then it wouldn't be incremental.

However that said, if you really could turn your head to the side and still see what is on the side and behind the object, then we would have a real game changer like the GBA->DS transition. But that's ok, because not every single generation has to be so mind blowing as much as we want it to be.

[Pale]

I'm enjoying this.  Let's study Nintendo's home consoles and whether or not they are incremental (IN MY OPINION)

NES -> Super NES
Definitely incremental.  Only possible innovation is the addition of two more face buttons and the shoulder buttons. I personally don't think either of those count.

Super NES -> N64
Here's a funny one.  Increased horsepower, which is technically incremental as I said before, allowed for a new dimension in gameplay.  This brings it into a gray area.  Combine that with the addition of the analog stick and I would say this is definitely an innovative update.

N64 -> GameCube
Definitely incremental. Significant horse power increase and second analog stick, but still same fundamental experience.

GameCube -> Wii
Definitely innovative because of the addition of a brand new control method and digital delivery.  However, the assumed horse power increase was not really present.  This is an interesting oddity.

Wii -> Wii2
Here's to hoping this will be an incremental update.  I don't want them to revolutionize anything. I want improved horse power and online support and that's it.

That was kind of fun. Someone else should do the handhelds!

[Pale]

Also, as you can see in my Wii2 hopes, there is no reason to equate an incremental upgrade with being bad.  Both have their place.

[UncleBob]

Let's pretend the Wii 2 was nothing but a Wii QuadHD with the horsepower of 20 PS3's.  You could even use your Wii remotes with it.  Incremental upgrade?

[Pale]

Yes, unless that 20 PS3 power facilitated a significant change to gameplay like my N64 going into 3D example.

[KDR_11k]

The 3DS is like the Gamecube to the DS's N64. That's a sustaining innovation, not terribly useful for grabbing more of the market. Maybe I'm overly skeptical because of the whole not-having-depth-perception deal but 3D doesn't strike me as a feature that will really increase the appeal of the 3DS beyond those people who would have bought it as a 2D system as well. Compare what the 3DS adds to the DS to what the DS added to the GBA. The DS added the touch screen that enabled wholly new genres that really pushed the system's appeal way beyond the core. Sure, we're all interested in the 3DS because to us the upgrades to processing power and the analog stick and whatnot are good reasons but to the expanded audience the DS reached those won't be compelling reasons, their games don't need much processing power or 3D.

I used the word incremental as meaning a sustaining innovation but either way to me it means the new device doesn't enable many games that the old one didn't already.

Another thing to note about those Nintendo consoles is that their sales constantly went down until the Wii : .

[Pale]

I think the 3DS is innovative because of the addition of the gyros and the analog control, which are both brand new when it comes to Nintendo's handhelds.

I'm reserving judgement on the 3D, but I am still expecting to be underwhelmed by it.

If the installing games thing actually ends up being true, that's another huge innovation in my book.

[ShyGuy]

If it only had another 100-200 pixels in horizontal resolution, then it would be all that and a bag of chips.

[Louieturkey]

I'm reserving judgement on the 3D, but I am still expecting to be underwhelmed by it.

But it technically changes the way games are viewed visually now.  I'd say that's pretty innovative, especially without glasses.

[Jig Insane]

The Innovation isn't technically the 3D aspect, but the thought of doing so without the need of glasses or something extra whatever to create the effect. It's true that every system upgrade isn't innovative (I like the system breakdown earlier), but lest we forget, even if the 3D doesn't present significant changes for gameplay, you have the added motion sensor, and gyro sensor and front facing cam with the ability to recognize face change and other movements a la the eye toy.

When all of this is combined with the 3D aspect it becomes pretty innovative, and the analog slider is a must to help navigate most of it with ease.  It is a situation where one thing alone isn't innovative, but the combination of technologies become an entirely different thing altogether.

however everyone are making great points.

[Adrock]

While I'm confident in Nintendo's pricing structure (this being the same Nintendo that slashed the price of N64 before it launched so go them), I'm weary that they'll get greedy. See, Nintendo doesn't need to make money selling hardware. They just do because right now, they can. They could have lowered the price ages ago, but instead of passing the savings of old technology onto the consumer, they're pocketing it. It hard to blame them. It's nice and all, but they make most of their money publishing games and on licensing fees (please don't ask me to dig up the old EGM where I read that). Nintendo is cleaning up so well and I fear that's getting to their head. People are still willing to pay $129 for a DS Lite despite how dated the technology is. I can't even imagine how much money they're actually making on each one sold in 2010. My hope is that Nintendo bites the bullet and decides to sell 3DS at a price where they break even on hardware rather than go for the extra profit margin. Ultimately, they'll sell more and the say $50 people aren't spending on hardware, they may spend on software which is Nintendo's bread and butter anyway.

[Jig Insane]

One of the things Satoru Iwata mentioned during Nintendo's E3 show is that they have had this planned out for the past two years, "and were waiting until the technology was cheap enough to release cost effectively"

I don't believe they will go over $199, but I seriously doubt it will be less than $149. mostly because of this statement, and the constant mantra of remaining affordable to the masses, Nintendo knows very well they cannot jump the price on 3DS, plus with IPhone4 impending in the handheld market.  DS held off PSP not only by unique gameplay, but also by pricing. If Nintendo wants to be sure no one steps into the handheld market and takes over the way Playstation did the console market at one point, they know to keep the price low. They've already admitted to waiting until the tech was not only right, but also affordable, and that is a savings you pass on to your consumer.

PS3 tech was not affordable at release hence the astronomical price and even more loss, same with X360, where teh tech was not only unaffordable, it was not ready either, hence the frequent rrod's lol

[Adrock]

I've been hoping for years for a new Kid Icarus title and 3DS is still not a day one purchase for me, regardless of price. The last day one purchase I made was DS Lite and that almost doesn't qualify. So really, the only day one purchase I ever made was Gamecube. I lined up at Toys R Us. Point being, regardless of what 3DS launches at, I don't know if I can justify it. Kid Icarus and a bunch of remakes. Ehh.... I can wait and by the time some phenomenal games come out, the price will probably drop or failing that, 3DS Lite will be ready.

I'm predicting a $179.99 MSRP.