back to article Wii U disassembly reveals unusual innards

Nintendo launched Wii U Stateside this past Sunday and while some users have complained of slow performance and freezing issues - something the firm has since addressed - teardown reports suggest potential hardware breakages should be relatively cheap to repair. The heatgun and screwdriver equipped iFixit team cracked open the …

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  1. ukgnome

    I will be sending my Wife to the shops on the 30th, yes she has a broken foot but if I have to fund the console for her and the kids she will just have to suffer, like my wallet has.

    ZombieU looks good, so I might play on it myself :-)

    1. K
      Devil

      lol

      Treat 'em mean.. keep 'em keen!

    2. Paul_Murphy

      Have you not told her about shopping on the internet?

      http://www.play.com/Games/Wii/4-/19876327/0/Nintendo-Wii-U-Console-Basic-Set-White/ListingDetails.html

      :-)

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Ah yes. Shopping on the internet.

        You order it, about 2 weeks later a delivery driver throws it over your 6 foot fence or leaves a note asking you to collect it from the depot which is an unsigned warehouse 60 miles away and only opens between 2.42 and 2.45pm on a 3rd tuesday of months with an A in the name.

        Safer to send the missus when shes at the shops anyway buying pot noodles and beer.

        1. Anonymous Coward
          FAIL

          Our favourite thing is: delivery driver leaves a note telling you to collect it from depot. After finding the depot you discover that the driver did not write whatever obscure hundred-digit reference number you need to pick it up on the card. Returning home you discover that the driver has, now, thrown it into the garden, apparently from a great height as most of it now resides in a small crater. You never find all the fragments.

          1. Kevin 6

            or a set of tire marks on the box, and a nice rattling sound as one guy I used to talk to a long time ago one mother board had

            1. Anonymous Coward
              Anonymous Coward

              Collect+

              ftw.

        2. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          I'm guessing you've had a delivery from Yodel in the past then? :)

        3. Paul_Murphy

          Good point - and I hope she enjoys her favourite not poodle and beer when she gets them. She sounds like quality lass.

          :-)

        4. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          Wating for a parcel, the board game.

          1. ukgnome

            @AC

            Sounds like you know my Wife :-)

  2. Danny 5
    Unhappy

    i'll take a pass

    That one sentence makes it perfectly clear why.

    Trying to make the Wii U as cheaply as possible.

    It's the reason why i think the Wii was ultimately crap too, it was cheaply made and performed as such. As i've probably said many times before, i'm the proud owner of a slew of consoles, oldest being my beautiful SNES and i'm yet to have a problem with any of them, aside from my PS2, which i did have to replace after 4 years of hardcore use. I also can't understand why Nintendo seems to be unable to provide with premium models that actually add value for money.

    Anyway, i'm ranting at Nintendo again, can't help it these days.

    1. myarse
      WTF?

      Re: i'll take a pass

      Errr, while Nintendo consoles might not be the most advanced but they seem to be the best made by far. I remember seeing videos of Gamecubes and Wiis taking some pretty amazing punishment and still working.

    2. James Hughes 1

      Re: i'll take a pass @Danny 5

      This is probably news to you, but almost EVERYTHING is now made as cheaply as possible. Phones, cars, houses, consoles. It's the way of the world. BUT, that doesn't necessarily mean it's crap.

      As to the Wii being crap. Well, I think your'e crap too Mr Mulligan. Your statement is nonsense. It's obviously NOT crap, as shown by the multi millions of satisfied customised. I've had one for years, the children still love it, and it's never gone wrong.

      I've a suggestion to you - you don't like Nintendo stuff- don't buy any, and if you don't buy any, feel free to not comment about it.

      1. Danny 5
        WTF?

        Re: i'll take a pass @Danny 5

        wow, i'm sorry for having an opinion. I thought i was pretty qualified to judge this console, since i have the following machines:

        SNES, GameCube, N64 Gameboy/GBA/DS, PSX, PS2, PSP, Xbox360 and i'm sure i left some old stuff out.

        Fact of the matter is that i've been a Nintendo fanboi for as long as i've been into console gaming and i feel like Nintendo doesn't care about me anymore. The Wii wasn't good, the only redeeming quality it had was that it was fun for playing in groups, but that's pretty much it. It's cheaply made and has tons of problems. After getting trouble myself, i found out that not only where these problems all too common, Nintendo made is abundantly clear to me, that they had no intention of providing any support. Yeah, i could turn in the problematic one and get a new one at reduced price (which was 90% of OEM price). I felt screwed over badly and it seems to me like it's only going to get worse with the Wii U.

        Nintendo is no longer for real gamers and therefor no longer for me. Their tech support is just aweful (i can only judge for Holland) and their hardware is shoddy at best.

        1. James Hughes 1

          Re: i'll take a pass @Danny 5 again

          Did you get your Wii from Mars or somewhere? My children love it, it's never gone wrong and figures shows its by far the most reliable console. You are tarring an entire product sales with your one bad experience - sorry, but that doesn't count. Tons of problems? Bollocks. 5 years I've had mine, and none whatsoever. Or do you include batteries running on in the remotes?

    3. Dan 55 Silver badge

      Re: i'll take a pass

      From 2009 but probably still holds true:

      Xbox 360 failure rate 23.7%, PS3 10%, Wii 2.7% - Study.

    4. sisk

      Re: i'll take a pass

      Erm....having owned all three consoles from the last generation let me assure you that the Wii was the most durable of the lot. Both my 360 and my PS3 had problems inside of 2 years, but the Wii is still happily chugging along after 5 years. It gets more use than the other two ever did to because my kids love it.

      When Nintendo says 'cheap' what they really mean is 'off the shelf and affordable.' They don't build to high end specs I'll grant you, but they do build for quality.

    5. Anonymous Coward
      WTF?

      Re: i'll take a pass

      > It's the reason why i think the Wii was ultimately crap too,

      Eh?

      Wii is very reliable and very well built.

      You're just trolling, yes?

  3. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Have they got rid of the cutesy cuddly UI yet? That's what put me off any Nintendo products.

    1. James Hughes 1

      And yet that cutesy interface is one of the reasons the Wii sold so well outside the hardcore gaming arena - it's understandable (mostly) to young and old alike.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        > And yet that cutesy interface is one of the reasons the Wii sold so well...

        Indeed:

        http://www.computerandvideogames.com/378029/features/revolution-the-story-of-wii/

        Very interesting read.

    2. HP Cynic

      I believe that remains, it's probably even more pervasive now .

  4. Chris007
    FAIL

    No Wii U for me until Mario Kart is released for it

    see title

    icon - cannot believe that the Wii U is launching without Mario Kart

    1. Fibbles

      Re: No Wii U for me until Mario Kart is released for it

      I hope it's better than the Wii incarnation and it's massive FPS drops in multiplayer. I really need a replacement for Double Dash, I can beat everyone I know with both eyes closed and one arm tied behind my back these days (possible exaggeration). That may sound impressive but sitting down to a game of Mario Kart, slipping into a daydream and then coming back to find you've just won the race is a seriously weird experience.

  5. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Cheap as possible...... Obviously you've never taken apart an Xbox360.

  6. LinkOfHyrule
    Thumb Up

    Gotta hand it to...

    ...Foxconn - they've done it again!

  7. Kevin 6

    Only one thing I want to know

    Does the Wii U still force the Wiimote(outside old wii games) on people for over used motion controls, or do they now got a proper controller to use(not counting that tablet thing)?

    1. A. Coatsworth Silver badge

      Re: Only one thing I want to know

      There is a proper controller... "classic pro" or something like that... can't remember the name. I was announced on last E3 and looks very much like a Xbox 360 controller (TOO much, for my liking)

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Only one thing I want to know

        There is indeed a more conventional controller.

        I understand that you can also use the Wiimote with it.

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