I was listening to Radio Free Nintendo and Guillaume and friends were discussing how hype for the Wii U has slowed due to tablets becoming more ubiquitous and the Gamepad looking less impressive compared to the newer models. This got me thinking about how Nintendo was going to be tied to this controller for the next 7 years despite technology improving.
While I agree with the podcast crew's conclusion that the Gamepad should be viewed as a controller and not a tablet, Nintendo IS clearly trying to market it as more than that by pushing TVii, web browsing, video chat, etc. And even solely as a controller, new technology could nonetheless improve the experience.
In particular, an HD screen is something that will likely be more affordable in the next couple of years. Why shouldn't Nintendo come out with a Wii U Gamepad Plus with an HD screen and sell it for 75-100 bucks once that would be sufficiently profitable? It would be a nice improvement for people willing to pay and unlike Wiimotion Plus, it seems like it wouldn't split the user base in any way, since the only difference would be resolution.
For other ideas, I'm not personally in the camp that capacitive touch screens are inherently better than resistive, but touch screen technology must be improving and I could imagine a case where they could add multi touch for the non gaming functions without affecting precision for gaming with the stylus (although someone else may be able to speak to this better).
I could see Nintendo doing this. It would give them a chance to sell more hardware, which they always love, and allow them to keep up with devices like phones and tablets that are always improving. Plus, with those devices, people seem to be used to upgrading every couple of years and Nintendo might want to tap into that desire for the best tech that many consumers have. They've certainly been capitalizing on it with their handhelds in recent years.
So what do you guys think? Is this something you could see Nintendo doing? Do you think it's a terrible idea? Would you buy one? How much would you be willing to pay? What kind of improvements would you want to see?
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