With The Wii U, Nintendo Is Taking Power Consumption Seriously. Very Seriously.

29 responses to “With The Wii U, Nintendo Is Taking Power Consumption Seriously. Very Seriously.”

1. 

   thecracks

   October 11, 2012 at 3:25 pm

   Wow, that transparent Wii U is abominably ugly.

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2. 

   Th Red M&M

   October 11, 2012 at 3:37 pm

   That Wii U looks raw – better put it back in the oven for another few minutes

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3. 

   ndroste

   October 11, 2012 at 3:39 pm

   I don’t know, I find that design stuff pretty interesting.

   Reply
4. 

   lonewolf

   October 11, 2012 at 3:48 pm

   They did make a point of the power supply and minimal cables on the Wii, and considering the big deal made about the 360 power supply (jet engine anyone?) it should be a consideration.

   Reply
5. 

   mawt

   October 11, 2012 at 3:51 pm

   The world needs more transparent Nintendo hardware. That would be the best.

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6. 

   Pat

   October 11, 2012 at 4:23 pm

   Reminds me of the original Fat Gameboys. It’s always cool to see the internal hardware.

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7. 

   thelastquestion

   October 11, 2012 at 4:25 pm

   Despite the ugliness of the transparent Wii U itself, I’m proud of Nintendo for deciding to reduce power consumption as much as possible before releasing the console. Imagine how much cheaper our electricity bills would be if all brown and white good companies put this kind of thought and effort into the power consumption of their products. Imagine how much better off the planet would be.

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8. 

   vook

   October 11, 2012 at 4:36 pm

   Now they’re playing without power.

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   1. 

      tim

      October 11, 2012 at 5:50 pm

      I guess it means that it won’t be powerful enough to have Blast processing

      Reply
9. 

   beeawwb

   October 11, 2012 at 4:36 pm

   Didn’t the Wii, and Nintendo, cop a lot of flack over the last couple years for their “green” credentials? Maybe this is just the first step of them trying to turn that around for this console generation.

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   1. 

      plmko

      October 11, 2012 at 4:45 pm

      The ‘green’ credentials were for their lack of consideration for sourcing their materials, not how efficient the console was.

      Reply
   2. 

      mrtaco

      October 11, 2012 at 7:07 pm

      I thought that was just them receiving bad “marks” from the greenies because they just wouldn’t disclose the information they wanted to be able to judge them.

      Reply
   3. 

      eronin

      October 11, 2012 at 9:35 pm

      They’re making their game cases thinner and with holes in it now, to save plastic. Definitely trying to reduce their environmental footprint.

      Reply
10. 

    ANYONE

    October 11, 2012 at 4:49 pm

    Why the efficiency hate? You’d be suprised how much electricity costs in some places .

    Reply
11. 

    terrak

    October 11, 2012 at 4:50 pm

    Even though they are trying to reduce power consumption seems like getting the Wii U to run in 1080p isnt that hard after all, apparently though the NSMB U was initially 720p, it has been confirmed that it will indeed be running at full 1080p instead! Amazing news indeed

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    1. 

       terrak

       October 12, 2012 at 5:20 pm

       apparently not. sigh

       Reply
12. 

    David21

    October 11, 2012 at 5:49 pm

    I’m all for reduced power consumption, my original Xbox was a power hungry beast that drove up my power bill a lot when the COD4 first came out

    Reply
13. 

    James

    October 11, 2012 at 8:31 pm

    Depending on how power hungry a console is, it may need active cooling in the form of fans.

    Given that fans make noise when they’re running, lower power consumption should be a plus even if you don’t care about power bills.

    Reply
14. 

    Bronson

    October 11, 2012 at 10:45 pm

    im a qualified sparky i can tell you worrying about Console power consumption is ridiculous. The energy a games machine would consume in 24 hours would be around the same amount an average Air-Con would suck in 4 minutes

    Reply
    1. 

       Martin

       October 12, 2012 at 7:40 am

       Im a qualified human. I can tell you worrying about the environment is ridiculous. Think about what you have said. What if the games machine was on for a year? What if a thousand games machines were on for, say six years? A games console doesn’t consume as much power as the lights at my local footy ground. A games console uses more than my shoe. Think about what you have said then go sit in the corner.

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       1. 

          Martin

          October 12, 2012 at 7:41 am

          This type of thinking is why you are not an engineer.

          Reply
          1. 

             Bronson

             October 12, 2012 at 8:33 am

             Engineering? Calculating KWh consumption is simple maths. This is all about marketing, plain and simple. its your kind of sheep-like thinking that sees us all throw functioning light globes in the bin to install “eco friendly” mini fluro globes that are full of mercury, buy toyota prius’ to “save oil and reduce co2” , which are charged from coal power stations and contain numerous v. nasty compounds, buy houses in “Eco-Villages”, that give you that warm feeling inside but means sod all. Corporations are selling you lovely new shiny things, generally made cheaply in china, with very few environmental controls or regulations, on the back of these inflated “Green” credentials.
             I can just see the headline now, “Nintendo console reduces power consumption, global warming averted.” ssshhhyeeeahhh. But youll feel good inside, for saving money on your power bill (haha) and saving the environment single handed in one easy, self satisfying swoop, as you treat yourself to the latest and greatest in video game machines.

             Reply
             1. 

                Martin

                October 12, 2012 at 10:01 am

                Actually I do not think this. I am well aware of ‘green’ marketing. Once again you assume too much and are just spouting illogical rhetoric. I agree that calculating power consumption is easy. The Young scientist book of Electricity (RIGBY/USBORNE. 1976) taught me how to do it in primary school. That is why I am dumbfounded that you have preceded your ‘statement’ with the authorative qualifier – that you are a qualified sparky. A child could do the sums. You then proceed to say the preceding discussions are ridiculous BECAUSE a console uses way less power than an air conditioner. This is blatantly obvious to both sparkies and children. The difference is- that a CHILD would understand that this TRUE statement has nothing whatsoever to do with anything. The statement a console uses more power than a shoe is just as relevant to your lack of arguement. AS I SAID THINK ABOUT IT. IF A DEVICE USES LESS POWER BECAUSE OF FORETHOUGHT AND CREATIVE ENGINEERING – IS THIS NOT GOOD FOR THE CONSUMER AND (COLLECTIVELY) THE ENVIRONMENT WITHIN THAT SPECIFIC CONTEXT???? If this result has comeabout due to un sustainable environmental praxis then of course we need to weigh the net advantages and disadvantages of said construction. Which again is obvious to a child.
                Finally – What electricity bill? I have surplus 🙂
                Unfortunately you can not see my roof. it is covered in these dodgy chinese made things called SOLAR PANELS. DID YOU KNOW COCOA POPS TASTE BETTER THAN SOLAR PANELS!! TRUE – A CHILD TOLD ME

15. 

    diaglyph

    October 11, 2012 at 11:59 pm

    From what I’ve read etc, when powered on the Wii U uses 75W of power. When “powered down” it’s around 45W. That’s quite impressive.

    Reply
    1. 

       Bronson

       October 12, 2012 at 7:16 pm

       Whoever sold you those panels would be laughing right now, the markup on Chinese solar panels is around twice that of their German counterparts. I bet you were told they had a higher energy output than the more expensive ones, thats the usual line fed by the solar installers.

       Reply
       1. 

          Bronson

          October 12, 2012 at 7:30 pm

          Regardless of our little tete-a-tete, we all know these kinds of “Advances” all lead to a world full of discarded batteries, fluorescent bulbs and failed electronic devices. Im not saying a device using less power isnt using less power, im saying touting these things as an environmentally friendly way to do business is bull$#@€

          Reply
          1. 

             Martin

             October 13, 2012 at 7:14 am

             They are not actually made in China. As proven above – you are an idiot. Go away. Your dribble is embarrassing the adults in the room. Take your cocoa pop qualifications and go do something useless somewhere else. You have offered NOTHING but idiocy. No.argument. No thought. Just useless rhetoric. Go away little qualified sparky. Come back when you have something to actually contribute other than I have a TAFE certificate. LOL.

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          2. 

             Martin

             October 13, 2012 at 7:18 am

             Dude. No one said this stuff was going to save the world – you have have jumped to that conclusion. I was merely saying that everything you have said is stupid and dumb. I am still laughing that you think being a qualified sparky is a badge of intelligence. LOL. As you said a child could do it. You sir have used many words and said nothing.

             Reply
          3. 

             Martin

             October 13, 2012 at 7:23 am

             The words tete a tete would imply this is a conversation. It is not. A monkey does not have a conversation with its trainer. The trainer tells the monkey what to do. So f off little monkey. Go have some cocoa pops and a cigar.

             Reply