By using this site, you agree to our Privacy Policy and our Terms of Use. Close
Soundwave on 22 September 2015
Edit Thread
zorg1000 said:
Soundwave said:


I'd like to see an A9X level chip in the portable itself. If they use a tablet form factor the thermal heat issue should not be a factor, it does work in the iPad Pro after all and while Nintendo's version wouldn't be that large, it would certainly be likely 2x-3x thicker because you need some grip to a gaming device. 


Idk, I just don't see Nintendo releasing a handheld that beastly, how much would such a handheld cost? I know Apple devices are sold at extremely high profit margins but still the entry model IPad Pro is $800, can Nintendo release a handheld with similar specs for $200-250? I'm not sure if that's possible and I can't see a Nintendo handheld having any sort of success at a higher price than that.


In a word -- yes. 

While Apple devices are very costly at retail, the biggest cost of them by far is the high resolution touch LCD displays. 

The Apple A8X was estimated to cost only $22 as of last year, so the new A9X might be a little more than that, but probably not much more, Apple likes to maintain the same profit margin on their devices. 

$50 - 6-inch 1280x720 cheap but decent LCD display

$40 processor - Lets say Nintendo goes for something beastly

$35 - 4GB LPDDR4 RAM

$4 - cameras (Nintendo cheaps out)

$20 - Sensors + NFC chip

$5 - WiFi Chip

$14 - Battery (large 32 wH battery)

$10 - NAND Flash (16GB or 32GB)

$20 - Misc

$5 - Manufacturing cost

Yeah ... I could see it for under $250 honestly if Nintendo is wlling to sell it at cost. Keep in mind the Nvidia Tegra X1 console is $199.99 and that's a similar class of processor, but obviously it has no LCD screen + battery, but Nvidia is likely pocketing a fat profit margin there too. 

Here's the cost break down for the iPad Air 2, but keep in mind the Air 2 has a massive 10 inch screen at a huge 2048x1536 resolution and is made of fairly premium materials (also ignore the cellular models):

http://pctablet.name/wp-content/plugins/RSSPoster_PRO/cache/3d555_514554.png

Remember the Sony Vita basically used the same processor as the iPad 3, but the Vita was able to launch at $250, while the iPad 3 was $500-$800.