- Wii U chipset may be limiting hardware performance and “a tad too cheap”
- wireless functionality not up and running yet
- 4th prototype coming by the month's end

“So far, the Wii U controller’s main chipset – that manages the device’s essential functions, including streaming and wireless – seems inadequate. This chip, described by our source as maybe a tad too cheap, has been the sources of many headaches in recent weeks. So far, the wireless functions simply do not work – at all. There have been so far three different prototypes, and a fourth iteration is expected by select developers at the end of the month.”

- controller “is fitted with a small black box”
- dev kits aren't working properly

“So far, developers are working with a tethered controller: each one is fitted with a small black box with a tethered connection to the main unit. And even then, it still doesn’t work properly. Many developers are feeling lost, their progress impeded by a distinct lack of visibility, their working days paced by the quasi-daily software updates. In those conditions, many feel unable to properly exploit the system’s most innovative and promising features, those very features they haven’t been able to test properly so far.”

- “developers are still expecting a June 2012 release”
- could be delayed to September

“Ten months before the tentative release date – developers are still expecting a June 2012 release – the fact that Nintendo engineers are still struggling to make this supposedly final architecture function properly is worrisome at best. Could Nintendo have to make radical last-minute changes, and if so, what would be the cost? This unexpected development runs contrary to Nintendo’s reputation for carefully weighing all tech options long before any announcement. Inside the company, there have been talks of a delayed release, with September as a new tentative date. Being three months off-schedule doesn’t seem such a big issue, when compared to a home console’s life cycle. But this is not 2006 anymore. The industry is undergoing a radical mutation, and there is a growing amount of rumors positioning Microsoft’s next system to be unveiled during the 2012 E3 conference, and a relase in short order. If that was to happen, the Wii U would only enjoy a few months of ‘optimal run’ alongside the Xbox 360, which would essentially moot the much-touted ease with which developers can port 360 code for the Wii U. To succeed in its incredibly audacious endeavour, Nintendo will have to walk a very tight rope.”

http://gonintendo.com/?mode=viewstory&id=159660

This could be disastrous if true, though it contradicts positive reports coming out of several developers (namely THQ and Darksiders)

I wonder if 01net has some sort of axe to grind with all this...

Edit: updated thread title

http://gonintendo.com/?mode=viewstory&id=159982&sid=d3c33bc9c3c98d47b7f8371ed0c7962d

i'm looking at early 2013 now.

gives tem more time to fix the issues

I don't think Nintendo would ever let it get this bad, I'd presume that developers would be getting their games ready for launch soon as well so we'll probably hear them saying how good and simple it is to develop for (like with the Darksiders developer)

I wonder if the models we saw at E3 had more expensive chips then. They seemed to work just fine, so maybe Nintendo are trying to find a cheaper alternative.

im thinking its the site the report is coming from not nintendo itself. i think they are working on a cheaper chip set plus i think there is gonna be two sku's for the Wii U, one at max power which would be 350 and one that would be about the same power as the ps3 at 200. and i think the one that is the cheaper sku is the one they are having trouble with.

Are these the same people who made up the moronic second analogue stick rumour for the 3DS?

Shouldn't someone develop a reputation before you believe the (most likely fake) rumours they spread?

They leaked the Wii U and the Vita features before they were officially announced--they have a very strong reputation.

However, these rumors both sound ridiculous.

I don't see why would ANYONE want to do something like this haha

They already have the rep.a VERY good rep...vita and WiiU details they put out were very much spot on and they did it before reveal. THAT is what's worrisome about this, this has a good chance of actually being true

let's hope they work out the issues before release...but have to wonder since it's less than a year to the rumored release date.

Nintendo is good at releasing reliable hardware, so if this is true I think they will get everything running properly.