Pachter: Nintendo To Consider HD Version Of Wii?

Noted industry analyst Michael Pachter has predicted that Nintendo may release a HD (high definition) version of the Wii hardware within the next two or three years, as a means to combat an increasing disparity between Wii and Xbox 360/PlayStation 3 graphics. Writing in an e-mail to consumer website GamePro, Pachter commented that “consumers may hope for improved graphics, and my guess is that Nintendo will comply.” Continuing, he suggested that "in two or three years, commodity prices for graphics processors and CPUs may decline to the point that a High Definition Wii could be introduced. If so, Nintendo will likely introduce one.” Nintendo has a long history of releasing updated versions of portable hardware, with several iterations of the Game Boy and two already of the Nintendo DS. However, it has generally shied away from anything other than cosmetic changes to home console hardware. Although Pachter’s comments are pure speculation, a number of Nintendo executives have hinted at a possible new hardware iteration in recent weeks. The most significant comment has come from Nintendo figurehead Shigeru Miyamoto who in an interview with consumer blog Kotaku suggested that HD functionality for the Wii was a “definite possibility”, but that no final decision had been taken on how it would be introduced.