Pachter reckons the Wii U will see a $50 price drop in 2013

December 9th, 2012

Pachter reckons the Wii U will see a $50 price drop in 2013

In the most recent episode of Pach-Attack!, Michael Pachter has suggested that the Wii U will receive a $50 price drop in 2013. This is not based on specific information he’s heard, but is simply a prediction. I suppose it will all depend on how well the Wii U sells though. Either way, the video is after the break.

ShaDow

Nintendo is selling the Wii U at a loss so it’s very unprobable it will get a price drop
- bhillx84
  
  Nintendo makes a profit on the WiiU if they sell 1 game with the system.
- ShaDow
  
  If they cut the price by $50 that profit from that one game sale will virtually be gone.
- Enzo
  
  If manufacturing prices stay the same during the $50 price drop, they would need to sell two games, because $50 is (more or less) how much a game costs. Nintendo doesn’t see ALL the money from games sold as well, so a price drop very soon wouldn’t be very smart. It will also piss off early-adopters.
- http://www.facebook.com/AJ.Fowl Andrew Chambers
  
  Well not exactly. Remember how the 3ds was at a loss? I think it still is, but They find ways to make them cheaper over time.
- Alex_Atkin_UK
  
  That’s what they said, if manufacturing prices “stay the same”.
  
  It was my understanding that they didn’t have much leeway with the 3DS, its one reason they released to XL as they dropped the expensive film coated plastic casing to save money.
  
  Chances are it will be a while until manufacturing of the Wii U gets any cheaper, its already very stripped down as it is. It already looks like they cut back the GamePad battery size to save money.
  
  History shows us its far more likely they will bundle games in rather than dropping the package price. That way they guarantee to still make a profit.
- Willie the Kid
  
  They’re making $6 a sell, until September 2013, when Nintendo can start making much bigger profit a sell, and then, 2014 before the Holidays will have a good price cut, really good.
  
  The manufacturing cost for the same technology gets halved every year…….just look at SD card prices.
- https://twitter.com/AceOfBlades247 AceOfTrolling(Was:AceOfBlades)
  
  I remember in ’10 I went to BestBuy to buy a 2GB SD card and it cost 20 USD now it’s only about 5 USD…
- bhillx84
  
  I agree. I don’t see them cutting the price next yr at all. I was just pointing out to shadow that they do make profit because everyone getting a WiiU will buy at least one game. Nintendo themselves said as long as one game is bought along with a console they make a profit.
- https://twitter.com/AceOfBlades247 AceOfTrolling(Was:AceOfBlades)
  
  Just I was a early adopter for the 3ds EXACTLY the first day it came to America and like 3 months later it drops 80 USD! I would have been a first day buyer for the Wii U just like the 3ds But I’m still waiting for all my Christmas money in the mail. And the Wii U price might drop…
rrrrrrrgggggg

This is probably not happening. Everyone knows everything Pachter says about Nintendo is BS.
bowman

I actually liked it O.o you people made patcher sound like he was just a dipshit from hell who bashes on Nintendo. I also think the Wii U wont price drop in 2013 and Microsoft console will launch in 2013 not Sony.
Enzo

If the Wii U does get a price drop in 2013, it will be in November or December.
- Tails the Foxhound
  
  Came in to say just this. I wonder what will be bundled with it then, I doubt it’ll still be Nintendo Land.
- Enzo
  
  It depends on what comes out at the time. If Bayonetta 2 releases in 2013, it could be the game to push system and game sales.
- Tails the Foxhound
  
  Y’know, even though I already have a Wii U, I think I’d be jealous of those late adopters. lol
- Mseevers95
  
  I can guarantee a Pikmin 3 bundle when that comes out.
- Hybrilynx
  
  Wii U Metroid Prime 4 Legacy Edition. $400. comes with all metroid games, including metroid prime 4. shaped in a special way like this red wii, but its black like this black wii, with a taste of one of metroid primes spider balls, mostly the phazon spider ball. the gamepad will also be designed as holy shh. if nintendo ever wanted to sell one shell of a wii u or any gaming system ever, this would be it. or at least from what i see in my imagination. i would probably even spend $500 for something like this. i havent had metroid in so long.
  http://i.imgur.com/ABtQW.jpg
  http://i.imgur.com/qgZKQ.jpg
  http://i.imgur.com/8WJE7.png
- Marty
  
  I doubt there will be a second prime trilogy, just more games on the prime engine. Like what will probably happen with 3d mario games, built on Galaxy engine, but not a galaxy game.
- Hybrilynx
  
  but it comes with all metroid games. nes metroid, snes metroid, metroid fusion, etc. the point though, is the hardest core game nintendo has. or at least, if youve seen all kinds of metroid fans art or at least like me, made my own metroid game ideas etc making it seem more then what it is to other people.
  
  but about what you said about mario, yes & no. it would be smart to do something like this for some other game series, and then mario as well later. becuz mario will always sell.
- Josh
  
  Metroid Prime 4? HOLY CRAP WHEN DID THAT COME OUT?!
  
  (excuse my sarcasm)
- Tails the Foxhound
  
  I remember that Metroid case mod, almost as sexy as Samus herself, almost.
rockytem

his nuts are gunna see a 50 drop after i stomp on ‘em
- Ziggy
  
  50%?
  50 out of 60?
- me
  
  LOL
  That made me laugh, thank you.
Ziggy

The deluxe or both?!
Hybrilynx

well, its going to be 1 year old by then. but im mostly just waiting for a better bundle set before i get one. or a price drop. whichever. im not into a hurry after what happened with the 3ds. and i never will be.
Enzo

This is actually a bit random, but I decided to do some quick search about the 3DS and PS Vita. I’m seeing some conflicting things going on here. The PPI for the 3DS is said to be higher than the Vita’s, but some others are halfing the PPI for the 3DS because they’re saying it’s not actually 800 x 240 but 400 x 240, so you would half it. I don’t understand, the 3D visuals are coming from the same screen, how is it that it ISN’T 800 x 240? Wouldn’t the PPI still be higher than the Vita’s in only the situation where the 3D is turned on?
- Ice Climbers
  
  It’s 400×240 for each eye. It adds up to 800×240 as a result, but with a sense of depth. That’s how the 3D works. Google it for further explanation.
- Enzo
  
  Are you saying that the display without 3D is 400×240 and with 3D 800×240? I know how the 3D works, as I learned that it uses a barrier and a shutter to show you two different perspectives at once. However, I do not know how this figures its way into the specs itself.
- Alex_Atkin_UK
  
  Precisely.
  
  The confusion is that some people think that by having two different 400×240 images, one for each eye, it still has the same benefit in resolution as a single 800×240 image. Unfortunately your brain doesn’t quite work like that.
  
  While yes, having two 400×240 images IS better than just a single 400×240 image. Its not as good looking as a single 800×240 image would be. That is why Nintendo blocked the ability to display 800×240, games on 3DS still display in 400×240 even in 2D mode. Because they didn’t want us to see the huge sacrifice in picture quality you would get from dropping from 800×240 to 400×240.
  
  I had that very problem on my LG Optimus 3D phone which DID display full resolution (800×480) in 2D. It looked considerably lower resolution in 3D (400×480) so I never wanted to use it in 3D except for watching videos.
- Enzo
  
  It also means that the 3DS required a higher PPI in order to achieve a high quality 3D image.
- Enzo
  
  What I searched up to help clear things out a bit is I found out what it even means to be 400×240. 400 pixels length-wise. However, these aren’t the same 400 pixels in both eyes, correct? So, in that sense, this would make the PPI not divided in half to something like 118 PPI, but remain to be its originally stated 236 PPI, right?
- ePik Min
  
  Auto-stereoscpic 3D does not use a shutter, this is for active 3D. The parallax barrier in auto-stereoscopic 3D and the shutter in active 3D do the same job; hiding half of the video from each eye (though they do it in 2 different ways).
  
  As for the 3DS displays… The top screen is 800×240, but when 3D is turned on, each eye can see 1 column of pixel every 2 columns. When 3D is turned on, the system has to display TWO 400×240 pictures on the same screen.
  
  Thus, for the system, the resolution is 800×240 (+ 320×240 for the bottom screen) when the user will actually see a 400×240 (+320×240) video output.
  This is 269kpixels ((800*240)+(240*320)) to be displayed by the system and 173k ((400*240)+(240*320))seen by the player.
  The Vita screen for comparison: 518k
  
  For me, the resolution depends on what you are talking about: what the console has to display, or what the player will see.
- Enzo
  
  I’m trying to ask about the pixel density rather than how many pixels there are in the screen itself.
- Alex_Atkin_UK
  
  Seeing as we have the 3DS and 3DS XL, obviously it will differ.
  
  Whatever pixel density the 3DS screen technically is, you have to halve it anyway as it ALWAYS displays in 400×240. In 2D its pixel-doubled, otherwise you would see the drop in resolution when you switched 3D on.
- Willie the Kid
  
  But it gets re-combine with depth when it’s process thru your mind, which is how you see it looking 3D looking.
  
  So the pixel density continues to be the same, but in 3D.
  
  But you need to have 2 working eyes for the pixel density to stay the same with the 3D ON.
- Alex_Atkin_UK
  
  Not sure if you are agreeing or disagreeing with my point.
  
  The bottom line is, the same 800×480 image going to both eyes still looks more detailed than independent 400×240 images, one to each eye (3D).
  
  However independent 400×240 images does look more detailed than just the same 400×240 image going to both eyes.
  
  However much I love Mario Kart in 3D, if Nintendo suddenly allowed the game to run at 800×240 in 2D I can guarantee you it would look more detailed – otherwise why block the game from doing it? Because they didn’t want people to see the 3D was at a compromise.
  
  In 3D you are only getting extra details due to a slightly different viewpoint, in 2D every single thing on the screen gets more pixels of detail at 800×240 compared to 400×240. As I said, it was immediately obvious on my phone and made me not want to use 3D mode, the same goes for my passive 3DTV.
- Enzo
  
  If a game did not allow the 3D to be turned on, in theory the image being produced can be sharper than the Vita’s, right? Because to show two different 400×240 images, you still need to be at 800×240, resulting in the same slightly higher pixel density than the Vita. Of course, this is also an issue of whether or not the hardware is capable of doing it as well, and the 3DS can display stuff higher quality than its power is capable of.
- Alex_Atkin_UK
  
  Correct, although I personally always felt the 3DS screen was TOO small and prefer to sacrifice a little pixel density for the more immersive screen size of the 3DS XL.
  
  Bearing in mind I am a big supporter of high pixel density, but not at the cost of screen size. Even I am starting to think “what is the point” when they are talking about putting 1080p screens on 4″ SmartPhones next year.
- Kaizar
  
  In 2018 the new Nintendo generation handheld will have 3840x1080p pixel count per screen and both screens will do 3D and it will have a second circle pad and 2 extra shoulder buttons & NFC & a 3 GB or so RAM & so fort while keeping the cost at $199.99 and making a profit of each one but not by much during the first year of selling the system.
  
  In 2014 you can fit the entire Wii U technology in the Tablet controller and in 2016 you can fit it in the 3DS regular size.
  
  Technology at least double every year which drastically cuts the manufacturing cost for making the same technology.
  
  By 2018 you can surpass it somewhat in every area of power & quality & get a longer battery life (probably 4 to 7 hours with everything going), and have the cost somewhat lower, the $300 and make a little profit with each sold during the first year.
  
  remember that the 3DS only consumes like 40 to 50 Hz, while the Wii U consumes 75 Hz (but only 40 Hz when you’re not gaming), so the battery life will be easy to improve on altogether by 2018.
  
  GO TEAM VENTURE!
- https://twitter.com/AceOfBlades247 AceOfTrolling(Was:AceOfBlades)
  
  …The Nintendo Wii U Mini Deluxe Rainbow Handheld bundled edition…
- Willie the Kid
  
  It will have more better specs then the Wii U, like a 3 GB RAM or so, for a Handheld, and so fort.
  
  Hopefully they can make clickable Circle Pads by then, I prefer the Circle Pads with added ability to click.
- Clockwerk Orange
  
  OH LOL
http://profile.yahoo.com/3TQXCBRGMXMBPY7GVATXIOBGKM Jonn Mcnally

Who cares?
millsy

This isn’t really related, but let me share my Wii U experience. I invited four of my friends over to my place to play Nintendo Land. My friends are the kind of people who think Call of Duty is the best game series in the world, people like that. So when we played the three competitive attractions, there was lots of yelling and shouting and big whoops and cheers when one of the Toads caught Mario, etc. When we stopped, I was surprised to hear that they all wanted to buy Wii U’s as soon as possible. That’s the magic of Nintendo ;)
- http://www.facebook.com/AJ.Fowl Andrew Chambers
  
  Yeah, similar experience. We had a “Zombiu nerd party.” Afterward, everyone who attended wanted a Wii U
- Omarsonic9
  
  na
Marty

I call bull http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rmLAj9iIfQk
Bam

Is this the same guy who said the Wii U will be out of stock till next year? Just another stupid analyst with nothing to backup his theories.
Darkmeister

Oh come on, not this guy again. I don’t even think he himself believes all the BS that comes out of his mouth.
Josh

Most of the time, I hate this guy and disagree with him…But for once, i’m hoping this prediction is true.
- http://www.facebook.com/JonathanRider Johnny Rider
  
  I get what you mean because it’ll be more affordable but it also means Nintendo not doing very well which isn’t good for the future of the company..
Bob

Guys, you do realize the only reason he makes controversial comments about Nintendo is to draw in traffic to his website right?
Mseevers95

What’s worse than want a WiiU and not getting one?
Buying one and being told that you can’t even open the box to look at it until Christmas.
- Alex_Atkin_UK
  
  At least they might have ironed out a lot of the bugs by then.
- http://www.facebook.com/JonathanRider Johnny Rider
  
  What bugs?
- Alex_Atkin_UK
  
  Random lockups (haven’t had this myself), assuming they weren’t all fixed in the recent system update.
  
  There is also a lot of optimisation that needs to happen. Its insane that it takes 10 seconds to get into Miiverse when its supposedly got 1GB of RAM reserved for the OS. It takes 5 seconds just to bring up the friends list which is funny as that is about twice as long as the 3DS takes to do the same thing.
  
  I can’t remember when it last took 10 seconds to do ANYTHING on my phone, except perhaps the dreadful Facebook app.
  
  For a console which is supposed to be all about socialising, its just not good enough. I expect it to be at LEAST as quick as Xbox 360, considering its dedicating 32 times as much RAM to the OS than the Xbox 360 does.
- Vampiric
  
  Some NA systems developed bugs after the initial update. A second update was needed to fix the issue. Nintendoland, sonic racing and zombi u also had bugs which were addressed with an update as well. You Limeys got the updates during your launch.
- BellaKazza
  
  What are these bugs everyone is talking about? I got my Wii U the night before it came out and it works fine, I’ve not seen one bug.
- BR!4N
  
  Explain that it’ll probably take that long to patch everything.
Mseevers95

Nintendo made the original mock-up of the gamepad out of cardboard with a
place in the top to slide in paper as a simulated screen display.
As we speak Sony and Microsoft are trying to rip off this original cardboard design. The only problem is their developers aren’t allowed to use the big boy scissors.
- Kaizar
  
  That was back in 2008 that they made that cardboard mock-up at Nintendo.
  
  Man, time sure fly’s from when Nintendo started working on the Wii U controller.
  
  WE THE BEST! FOREVER!
- Ice Climbers
  
  The brainstorming phase for Wii U started in 2006, soon after the Wii launched.
http://www.facebook.com/JonathanRider Johnny Rider

He predicted the Vita woud destroy the 3DS, he predicted the Wii U would have little to no 3rd party support at launch. I’m guessing this prediction means the Wii U is going to do excellently.
Diamond Ammo

I dont like home consoles anymore, I stick with my vita and 3ds xl. the vita is ps3 quality itself anyways and the 3ds is wii, so there is no need anymore.
- BellaKazza
  
  Don’t like home consoles anymore? Must be pretty dumb, I’ll be playing Zombi U.
- Kaizar
  
  I would agree with Diamond Ammo on the home consoles thing, but after the Wii U, there is now 1 home console I like for during the present……now.
  
  I can’t wait to see what gets done with the GamePad besides ZombiU & that Ninja Castle from Nintendo Land & so fort.
  
  I still not that hyped about the Wii U for the moment, but the greater games coming out & the Panaroma View videos is gonna be awesome.
  
  Nintendo in the 8th Gen = Total Domination.
  
  Can’t wait to get a Wii U and try out such things as TVii & NFC & Geomagnetic Sensor & so fort.
  
  WE THE BEST! FOREVER!
- RockinCellist
  
  I own a 360, Wii U, PS3, PC, 3DS, and Vita. I love playing on all of them.
Mseevers95

Pachter needs to die. Someone should do the world a favor and murder this douche waffle.
- BR!4N
  
  It would be done if I had some .50 caliber ammunition and a Barrett M107A1.
- https://twitter.com/AceOfBlades247 AceOfTrolling(Was:AceOfBlades)
  
  I would OD’ with Mini Dual Vulcan Canons. Only If I could lift 1 of them…
me

why am id banned……i dont get it
Brandos12

I hate that guy..
bob

How come no one else realizes that the only reason he says this stuff is so people pay attention to him and draw in Site Traffic and revenue for his site?
http://www.facebook.com/AlejndroForero Alejandro Forero

Seriously, an I the only one that wants to see Reggie punch Pachter right in the fucking face?
http://www.facebook.com/norman.fongochoa Norman Fong Ochoa

Hi… I have a question…
Is it possible that WiiU will experience a boost in sales either if First or Third party games are released?
And… this guy is an anti-Nintendo, and those are the plage we have to exterminate.
BR!4N

How often has he been right lately?
LaLaLa

I agree, they did up the price since so many people were preordering it and almost everyone would already have a wii u by 2013
- Willie the Kid
  
  it’s being sold at a lost during the first year sells.
  
  But during 2014 is realistic.
- LaLaLa
  
  Good point
Adam

I do think there will be a much needed price drop In 2013, but thats just common sense. Words can’t express how much I hate Pachter. Everything about him makes my skin crawl. I honestly don’t see the point in what he does!!!

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Pachter reckons the Wii U will see a $50 price drop in 2013

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