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Are Nintendo testing the waters by not including an AC adapter with 3DS XL? [roundtable]
 
I know Nintendo are including an AC Adapter in the US but in Europe and Japan the system will not include one, this is apparently to reduce costs. What if this is a test by Nintendo to see how people react to this in preparation for the Wii U launch?

We all know Nintendo has a problem on its hands with regard to Wii U pricing, they had to have a major price cut shortly after launch of the 3DS due to its perceived cost and apparent lack of games, in my mind Nintendo has addressed the games issue but now it has to deal with the price.

A great many people have commented that they will not buy a Wii U at launch if its more that $300 and many more say they won't pay over $200 yet with the expense of marketing the console, the manufacturing cost of the Gamepad as well as the system itself this may be a tall order. What if Nintendo has two SKU's, one with everything you need to play right out of the box and another which had nothing but the system itself and maybe Nintendo Land. Targeted at Wii owners the system would not contain a Wiimote or Nunchuck, AC Adapter, Sensor Bar or AV cable, it would simply come with a GamePad and Console.

Personally I know which one I would buy, I own a multitude of Wiimotes and Nunchucks, Sensor Bar, Wii AC Adapter and have more HDMI leads than I know what to do with, I could certainly go for a reduced price console that features only the bare essentials.

So what do you guys think, would you be happy paying less for a system with a few less items in the box?

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07/18/12, 01:37    Edited: 07/18/12, 01:50
 
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Someone was bored
07/18/12, 06:07   
@VofEscaflowne
I hope you're not referring to my 3DS XL Customer Experience fan fiction? That was a serious exercise in literary prose, not the product of boredom in any way.
07/18/12, 06:12   
I think it is ridiculous that Nintendo is not including the AC adapter in those countries. Sure, if you already own a 3DS/DS product, then you have the adapter.

BUT, what about those people who do not own any current NIntendo handheld?! I mean, does Nintendo think that the only people who will buy the 3DS XL is current owners of the 3DS/DS handhelds?

If so, thats kindof narrow thinking on Nintendo's part.

As far as Nintendo testing the waters, I guess anything is possible. I made a post awhile back suggesting that there might be a couple different skus. Though, deep down I really don't think they will do that route. But you never know.

Still, the AC adapter, or lack thereof, is just fucking cheap, esp, if you are a brand new to the handheld market. Did Nintendo even think about those people, does Nintendo even give a shit about attracting new customers. I would love to have a hidden camera placed in NIntendo's stronghold, just to be able to listen and see where they are actually coming from, when they come up with decisions like these.
07/18/12, 08:57   
Well over here they are doing bundle deals of £174.99 with no adapter and £179.99 with the adapter. I don't think there is going to be too much confusion among owners, you either have a working AC adapter or you don't.
07/18/12, 10:54   
I miss THE Nintendo that came with power
07/18/12, 15:23   
I was talking with NOM about this yesterday and he brought up the point that we take for granted that our electricity is standardized. In Japan and Europe where this is going to be happening the decisions of which adapters to sell plus the different boxed versions would get to be numerous.

That being said I think a far better solution would be to just include an AC adapter alongside the package. At least though the issue isn't as simple as Nintendo cutting cost.
07/18/12, 16:28   
@Stephen
I thought Japan did have standardized electricity and was the same as NA?

Anyway, for Europe that does make a lot of sense, all those different plugs, I'd never thought of that. Is it common to buy gadgets in EU without chargers? Like if one buys a new phone do you have to buy the charger separate? I can see that being a valid business practice if every single country has to have it's own special plug and voltage etc.
07/18/12, 16:43   
@Stephen

I'm not that well versed but from what NOM said there's a couple areas that have different frequencies for their AC power. Like Tokyo is on 50 Hz and else where is 60 Hz or something.

EDIT: just found out:

Wikipedia said:
Japan doesn't have a single national grid like most other industrial countries have, but has separate eastern and western grids. The standard voltage at power outlets is 100 V, but the grids operate at different frequencies: 50 Hz in Eastern Japan and 60 Hz in Western Japan.[14] The grids are connected together by 3 frequency converter stations (Higashi-Shimizu, Shin Shinano and Sakuma), but these can only handle 1 GW.[15] The 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami resulted in 11 reactors being taken offline with a loss of 9.7GW.[15] The 3 converter stations did not have the capacity to transfer enough power from Japan's western power grid to significantly help the eastern grid.
The two grids were originally developed by separate companies. Tokyo Electric Light Co was established in 1883 which also established electric power in Japan. In 1885 demand had grown enough that TELCO bought generation equipment from AEG of Germany.[15] The same happened in the western parts of Japan with General Electric being the supplier to Osaka Electric Lamp.[15] GE's equipment used the US standard 60Hz while AEG's equipment used the European standard of 50Hz.[15]
07/18/12, 16:51   
Edited: 07/18/12, 16:56
warerare said:
Well over here they are doing bundle deals of £174.99 with no adapter and £179.99 with the adapter. I don't think there is going to be too much confusion among owners, you either have a working AC adapter or you don't.
Agreed.

Like @NinSage said, it would only work if it was optional. I know in my house we have enough chargers but the kids still misplace them frequently so I'd opt for the charger. Still though if there is a market for two SKU's then what's the problem? (except maybe uninformed consumers)

Going back to the OP's point I do think it would be a harder sell in the console space. I would think there are more households with multiple handhelds than with multiple consoles.
07/18/12, 19:30   
Edited: 07/18/12, 19:31
It's weird, but I already have several of those AC adapters and having more would just be a burden on the environment.


Oh, wait. I don't care about the environment.
07/22/12, 17:46   
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