Wii Mini is actually a great idea. People need to understand that it's not for anyone that would ever go on this site. It's for small children, who you don't want to go online, who don't care about 480p, who are probably using the family's old box TV in the basement. It's cheap to make, easy to use. it looks like a toy.
The Wii Mini does several things:
-It expands the Wii brand. This is a major goal of Nintendo. Wii became its own identity, seperate from Nintendo. Much like the i-Pod from Apple. Nintendo wants to expand this concept and run with this good will. That's why they named Wii U what they did. By naming Wii a Wii Mini, they make Wii into a family. "Wii" is a brand. If you are a high-end user you buy the Wii U. If you want something cheap for your kids you by a Wii Mini. There is no longer a plain old Wii, so this helps Wii U to become distinct.
-They make it cheaper to sell Wii's. This has obvious benefits. They will probably milk this old tech for a few more years, why not make as much money as possible.
-They make a VERY kid-friendly platform. One of Nintendo's great successes is that they indoctrinate gamers as youths. Nothing will ever top those first adventures with Mario. Having a $99 toy-like console available is perfect for this, while allowing the Wii U to be adult-focused and avoid a GameCube-like situation.
And yes, I think it will give a modest boost of longevity to Wii sales over the next year or two, while just as importantly bringing users into the Wii brand from which they will hopefully graduate to Wii U's in a year or two.
