| theDX said: He has a point though. The 3DS launched before smartphones took off in Japan. The iPhone 4S was one of the first successful smartphones there and it came out in September 2011. America in 2011: 42% of phones were smartphones (source) Japan in 2011: 18% of phones were smartphones (source) In 2011 the majority of consumers (even in America) didn't want to spend >$250 on a new phone. However, by 2014 smartphones hit ~70% market penetration in both markets. This is when most consumers would have gotten used to the higher prices. I think this change in perception of value in recent years arguably helped the Switch. It might have even helped the PS4 Pro and Xbox One X. Because remember people shitting on the Xbox One because it launched at $499? That was in 2013. Same year as the Switch launched we got the Xbox One X which also cost $499 at launch and no one cared. But that is difficult to compare because the base consoles are cheaper now. |
Not really as smart phones and such are mostly obtained either for free or a small deposit depending on the contract deal by the service provider, this is the main reason why smart phones took off as people still don't want to spend more than 250 on anything. It wasn't really a change in perception of value it was that the devices became more widely affordable due to contract deals which actually backs Miyamoto's point.
