By 2016, the Wii brand will be 10 yrs established. Divide it up any way you want, but blame Ninty for giving OG Wii 6 yrs to Wii U 's 4, they were late and the U has suffered for it. But clearly the market is pushing Nintendo to change the game up once again.

I certainly agree that software development for the next handheld has started or will start this year if they plan to release a new handheld in the next two years. And yes, I'm talking about handheld, not console.

TheLastStarFighter already talked about it but I'll do it again. You, Soundwave, keep talking about how Nintendo looks at Apple for their next hardware and then point the iPhone and the iPad and you use that to conclude that Nintendo will launch a single device that is both things. Why would they do that if not even Apple does it?

No, what they will do it make a handheld and a home console with the same hardware architecture (but not the same power) that use the same OS and development tools to speed up development time and allow Wiiware/VC games to be shared for both devices. There comes in handy the unified account system that, to be honest, should have been ready for the WiiU/3DS (but that's another story).

But I agree with you that the next handheld will have only one screen, and that Nintendo will abandon the "DS" and "Wii" names.

We'll be seeing the DS4 and the Wii 3 being released in 2016 and 2017 respectively, with them both being revealed a year before release.

You assume quite a lot. Nintendo could afford to lose money on Wii U for the next 10 year straight and STILL have a reserve of $$$$$ in their banks. And it just so happens they are no longer selling the hardware at a loss. It also just so happens that, while nothing is guaranteed in this life, some ACTUAL big-deal "AAA" titles are coming to Wii U soon, with MK8, SB, etc. The system has not had those kind games yet, and that fact cannot really be argued. It's had GOOD Games, not "MUST HAVE" games. There is a big difference.

And I'm sorry, but since when is 5-6 years "way too long"? Wii was effectively on the market for 5 years or so. NES was on the market for around 10 years in the US. So was the PS2. So what's the big deal? Nintendo is expanding into other non-gaming areas ("QOL", etc.), to bring in more revenues. That is smart and something they probably should have done, at least as a side thing, years ago. They will always be a games company, that won't change. But as Iwata himself said recently, they're an entertainment company, they don't have to JUST rely on games for their business.

But regardless, I think late 2016 AT THE EARLIEST is when we should see the successor to Wii U. And I still say I'd almost prefer it came in 2017 (perhaps the first half of the year even) instead. There are a shit-ton of games Nintendo themselves and their first/second/third party partners can/should make for the thing. I don't feel any need nor desire to shit out more $$$$ on a new console anytime soon. I like to get my money's worth out of a system, and that does not just imply "Oh good, I got my Mario, Zelda, Metroid, Smash Bros., I'm good now". Not even close. Nintendo has plenty of money, and I have no dbout they'll turn this (not-necessarily-game-related) "QOL" thing into more $$$$ for them as well, not to mention their increasing of licensing. They can afford to stick with Wii U for the appropriate amount of time (at least 5 years), and they should.

No, it's really not. And ultimately it doesn't matter what "the market" is pushing for. It matters what gamers are pushing for. And what gamers are pushing for, is MORE GAMES, either for those who already have Wii U, or those who have held off getting it because they want more games to justify the purchase.

MK8's release will be really telling, in a lot of ways.

But saying Wii U should have come out even earlier? Sorry, but that's ridiculous. On the one hand, support for Wii was tapering off big time in 2012, yes. But on the OTHER hand, people are already also saying Nintendo released the Wii U TOO early, that they should have waited, etc. etc.

In the end, all the matters is the games. Nintendo needs to advertise a LOT more in NA, and they need to get those games out at a faster, steadier pace. That's all there is to it. That's all there ever really HAS been to it.

I think people are going to be surprised as to the company Nintendo is in 5-6 years. It won't be DS4 + Wii 3 and business as usual, there are going to be some dramatic shifts coming I think. They are going to branch out and gaming is going to become just one of the things they do, and it will be one unified platform (no separation between console/handheld/etc. you play the same games on both).

Honestly video games aren't that great of a business, almost no one is consistently making big money in this industry, not any of the three console makers, and even the big third parties are up and down and all over the place with their finances. 

The huge problem that presents to Nintendo and Iwata touched on their in the Q&A is Nintendo doesn't have other divisions like Sony/MS to weather changing industry conditions in the game business. If things are going bad, then there's really no recourse for Nintendo. 

Sony kinda hogs the console market, and consoles only really sell great in North America + Europe now, two areas in which Nintendo has very little credibility with core gamers anymore. They can't compete there. So there's 3DS, but that market is declining every year, shockingly dropping to pre-1998 (prior to Pokemon launch in the US!) levels. The erosion of the casual/kids market to cheaper/pick-up-and-play iOS/Android gaming continues unabated, that is creating a 1-2 combo that's left Nitnendo with only a core fanbase to sell to and they can't sustain their business off just 20 million loyalists. 

I think Nintendo should release a tablet as the handheld portion of the Fusion. Make it powerful but cheap when compared to the competition ≈ $250. Create an OS for it and turn the eShop into an app store. Not only do you have access to all the amenities of a high quality tablet, at a cheaper price than its competitors, but you also have access to Nintendo games. Include a gaming controller with the tablet.

Sorry, but all of that sounds rather terrible.

Gamers want a handheld system with buttons intact, usually one that is a dedicated game system. Nintendo watering down their product to simply being a "cheap tablet", is not going to do them any favors whatsoever.