Nintendo Reveals Wii U’s Specs, Price, and Release Date (UPDATE)

Update (7:30 AM) – The Wii U will be released in America on November 18th! The regular bundle will cost $299 while the deluxe bundle will cost $349. | Nintendo will reveal the release date and pricing for the U.S. model later today, so we’ll update this story when that happens.

Nintendo just finished holding their Nintendo Direct presentation for the Wii U: it will be released in Japan on December 8th! Two bundles will be available: a white 8 GB model that costs 26,250 yen ($337) and a black 32 GB premium model for 31,500 yen ($405). Both packages will come with a gamepad controller and the system itself, but the premium package will also include an HDMI cable, a charging stand for the gamepad, a regular play stand for the gamepad, a Wii U system stand, and exclusive membership to the Nintendo Premium Network where you will get 10% off digital purchases.

A sensor bar will not be included in either package since you can use the one from your old Wii’s, but it can be purchased separately. In terms of accessories, additional gamepads can be purchased for 13,440 yen ($173) and their charging stands for 1,870 yen ($24). The Wii U Pro Controller will cost 5,040 yen ($65) while the Wiimote will continue to have the same 3,800 yen price ($50). The Wiimotes will also now be available in red and blue coloring.

The Wii U will have 2 GB of RAM: 1 GB will be for games and the other 1 GB will be dedicated to system memory. According to Nintendo, the Wii U is 20x faster than the original Wii. As we already knew before, the Wii U will support 1080p HD, so the graphics will be vastly improved as well. Additionally, each Wii U disc can hold 25 GB of data compared to the original Wii’s 4.7 GB / 8.54 GB discs.