It doesnt matter if the Wii U is underpowered than PS4 and Xbox One. All it matters is that its the 8th Generation console that Nintendo made. Also, its a unique compare to Sony's and Microsoft console. If Nintendo made a similar console like the PS4 and Xbox One, Gaming would be so similar but have different exclusive games. That is why I like Nintendo, for always staying out of the same direction of the PS4 and Xbox One.

lol wth?
is it WiiU being sold CURRENTLY or retroactively in the past lol

It's 8th gen. It's competing in the market place now along side other consoles of the 8th gen. That makes it 8th gen. Anyone who disagrees is wrong and simply looking for an excuse to bash Nintendo or discount it from consideration because they don't like it. They did the same with the Wii, and they where wrong then too.

The GC was more powerful than the PS2 where it counted, but there was one problem.....the disc. That and the design of the whole thing was a major turn off. Majorly the disc could not hold more space and its the same reason why Blu Ray is the preferred disc that every console has. Even Nintendo finally broke down and is using Blu Ray now, problem is they still screwed up with third parties.

The only reason Nintendo used Panasonic was:

1. They didn't want to go with DVD's because it would be expensive and they didnt want to back what Sony was pushing.

2. They don't want to get pirated. (Always failed)

If Nintendo used DVD's they would've been higher on the list with third parties than they were after siding with Panasonic. The "Q" (what the Cube disc was called) was discontinued and Nintendo learned first hand that they aren't good at pushing formats. They don't affect the larger market.

A 7.5 gen console. The 0.5 because of the tablet controller alone.

7.5th gen of course.

It's at least different, so it's not a redundant console like the XB1.

Was the Wii sixth gen or seventh gen?

Or do some people think Wii and Wii U are the same gen?

The Wii was an overclocked and modified gamecube that was secretly capable of 720

In real world performance it was an okay extension.  PS3 and Xbox  were very cutting edge though.

PS4 and Xbox are no where near cuttng edge and they completly changed the design sensibilites to that off a PC rather than customized hardware.

So its a tough comparison to make

I think that rather than comparing specs, you must look at it as when these systems come to market in relation to one another, and how they compete with one another. The Wii was released alongside the PS3, and both systems built up an install base alongside one another, despite there being no question that PS3 was more technically capable of displaying more photo-realistic images.

At the same time, surely no one would reasonably argue that 3DS and PS Vita are not competition for one another. They are both proprietary gaming devices released near one another and they have similar functions. They are indeed both eighth generation handhelds. How else would you speak of them? Surely 3DS wasn't written off in 2010 as "not a next-gen handheld" simply because PS Vita is unmistakably more powerful.

Therefore, if we can reasonably agree that Wii was in fact in competition with PS3 and 360, and was on the market during the seventh generation of consoles, just like the PS3 and 360, then we can also reasonably agree that Wii U, since it exists and is selling alongside the X1 and PS4, is indeed an eighth generation console, same as the other two. Making an arbitrary distinction like "it's graphics aren't as good so therefore it doesn't count" is complete nonsense. Because, if that's true, then 3DS doesn't count as an eighth gen handheld, and Wii didn't count as a seventh generation console. And how can that be? They were there. They sold. They sold better than the competition.  3DS is steam-rolling it's competition.  It proves what many people refuse to hear:  More horsepower does not equate to more success in the market.  In fact, the opposite is true:  Usually, the least-powerful (more affordable, larger library of games) system ends up being the one with the largest install base.  Why people still ignore this fact is totally lost on me when I see threads like this.

^ yes thats what generation means.

But I find it funny how we dont even know certain things beyond speculation and people keep insisting its last gen.

And even if it was last gen( which its not) its an incredibly well designed machine. Nintendo's been making those snce the gamecube.