Selling hardware at a loss and expecting software sales to make up the difference is a common business model for console manufacturers. Unless, of course, you are Nintendo. Their devices have almost invariably been able to turn a profit from the moment they hit store shelves. And the 3DS which has been making waves all over the industry looks to be no different.
According to an interview with VentureBeat, Nintendo's Satoru Iwata believes that their upcoming 3D handheld has, "value worthy of the production cost," and believes that the device can sell without losing money on every sale.
I was already curious as to how much the 3DS is going to retail for when it releases, but this kicks that interest up a notch. It's a startling new technology, one which actually seems to work, and that's almost never cheap. Which begs the question, is this new 3D technology less expensive than it seems to be or are we going to get some serious sticker shock when Nintendo announces the price?
Nintendo CEO reveals how company toiled for years on 3DS concept [VentureBeat]
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Contest:
5:00 AM on 06.22.2010 | 
also cyan and red consoles? 3D anaglyph glasses? I see what you did there nintendo!
The only way I would have caught on is if they'd put cyan and red on the same machine.
Dude, it's a parralax screen, it has been around for a couple of years. You put a filter on top of a screen so that light emits in two directions at your eyes. You make it sound like they invented the Holodeck.
/buying a 3DS on day one
though I appreciate Sony and MS not charging the full amount of their consoles to us too :-)
the 3DS will prolly be a day-one-purchase for me as well :-)
nintendo is so freaking rich right now it could stand to lose a little money off the top, which would help them in the long run, by allowing a larger instal base to buy more software.
From wikipedia:
"Begging the question (or petitio principii, "assuming the initial point") is a logical fallacy in which the proposition to be proved is assumed implicitly or explicitly in the premise. The word beg, when used in this phrase, does not mean "asking for something", instead it means to dodge or avoid.[1] Begging the question is related to circular argument, circulus in probando (Latin for "circle in proving") or circular reasoning but they are considered absolutely different by Aristotle.[2] The first known definition in the West is by the Greek philosopher Aristotle around 350 BCE, in his book Prior Analytics, where he classified it as a material fallacy."
TL;DR? Stop using that phrase; you don't know what it means.
I still say $150. No Nintendo handheld has been that expensive. Anyone that is thinking it's going to cost more than the Wii or the DSXL is a nitwit. And yes, I used the word "nitwit"
Nintendo is begging the question. They have stated that it is coming out before March 2011 and they are going to make a profit off of each one sold. Whenever someone asks them the price, they quickly say that it will be announced soon. The way I see it, they are waiting for TGS. My guess is November like the original DS.
Mid-November for $150 is where my bet is.
a. Stores don't run out
b. It's under $250
I don't think the way the term was used in the article is the same as what you're referring to. I'm not an expert, so I could be wrong.
After seeing some of the demo vids of the 3DS in action, I have to say that my prior skepticism is slowly eroding.
Hopefully this works. Another take on It Prints Money!. :P
no, maybe the 3DSi will be better....
or better yet the 3DS XL...yeah that will be the best!
If they come out with a better and cheaper one a year later, I'm going to say "Fuck it," and probably stop buying from Nintendo, since that means they've virtually become Apple when it comes to handhelds.
Or rather, $199.99 to $249.99.