According to Nintendo designer Katsuya Eguchi, the company doesn’t want to sell the Wii U at a loss when the console launches later this year. Usually, when new consoles launch, their hardware is very powerful and advanced, which makes it quite expensive. Therefore, the console is initially sold at a loss, and money is made in the long run. For example, when the PlayStation 3 launched, it cost Sony over $800 to make a PS3 console, while it cost $500 for consumers.

The Wii U is far from a very advanced machine compared to current generation consoles, and Nintendo hasn’t sold console hardware at a loss for a long time, both the Wii and GameCube were profitable from day one. And it looks like the Wii U will be profitable for the company on day one as well. Speaking to GameTrailers, Eguchi said, “We would like to avoid taking a loss on the hardware, so we are gonna be seriously considering how it is priced”. Lately, there have been many rumors suggesting Wii U prices anywhere from the very high end of $399 to the lower ends of $199. Nintendo has been losing money over the past few years, and its share price has equally diminished since the Wii reached its peak a few years ago.

With a successful E3 behind them, Nintendo now has a tough job ahead to figure out the right balance between a launch price that will appear to as many gamers as possible, and a price that would ensure the profitability of the console. Microsoft and Sony will almost certainly lower the price of their consoles as a respond to the Wii U when it launches. This will make the Wii U launch price even more important.

Source: http://wiiudaily.com/2012/06/nintendo-wont-sell-the-wii-u-at-a-loss/

Well they love they're money, and they know how to make it!

Not surprising. I expect to see it at $250-$300, or £199-£239 in the grand scheme of things; bundled with NintendoLand.

If it's $300.00, I'll get it at launch for sure. If it's more, I'll get it later in its lifetime.

Good. If this sells well they'll be making boatloads of money due to 3DS also starting to make money in September. Go Nintendo! Swim in a pool of money like you once did!

GC wasn't profitable from day 1... the losses were minimal but they were still selling them for less than it cost to make.

They should be fine with a minimal loss. It will be trimmed quickly and bucketloads of Nintendo SW will make more than enough money on the side.

All depends how much the machine actually costs I guess. I cant see them wanting to go over $350 at launch, yet i cant see that hw+controller coming in at less than $300...

They should release it like Vita memory model instead of that silly external HDD. Nobody wants cheap non-proprieties products.

Ninetendo has been running at a loss for some time now, so they are experienced at that. This should also tell them the importance of getting a good product to market. Unless they do it will not last.  I don't know why they don't make their consoles upgradable likee the pc, add more ram, etc. I put a 500g disk in my PS3. i don't think they know the market that well (gamecube), and just got lucky  with the Wii. It won't last. I suspect they will stick to what they know, even though they got mounds of cash in the bank, and won't sell at a loss.

Yeah. That's why everyone loves Sony's proprietary Vita memory cards. We certainly don't want them to be cheaper.

OT: Wii U will be no less than $300, no more than $350. Nintendo's recent comments that they want the price to remain steady for a long time have me leaning closer to $300. Maybe $320.