Wii price, date to be announced "by September"

The Nintendo Wii.

At Nintendo's pre-E3 conference, Reggie Fils-Aime, now president of Nintendo of America, disappointed some fans when he said, "As for date and price (of the Wii), we think it's best to keep those details quiet a little longer." He wasn't kidding.

Ever since the release date and price of the Wii wasn't announced at E3 2006 last month, hardcore Nintendo fans have been frantically clicking "refresh" on gaming sites in hopes of hearing an announcement. According to a report from the Associated Press, those gamers can probably give their index fingers a rest, as an official announcement might not come for a while.

The release date and price of Nintendo's console will be announced "by September", Nintendo president Satoru Iwata told the AP. The company has been taking a "wait until the last minute" strategy with its console, letting Microsoft and Sony show their hands first.

One of the biggest pieces of news at E3 2006 was the pricing and November release date of Sony's next-gen console, the PlayStation 3. The AU$999 price tag for the high-end SKU has caused a lot of fallout among gamers, and now potential Sony customers have about six months to picture themselves AU$1000 bucks poorer.

It has been confirmed that the Wii will launch sometime in the fourth quarter of this year for less than AU$350. However, it's the specifics that still remain unknown, which could very well be in flux as Nintendo uses the extra time to gauge market reaction to the PS3 and Xbox 360.

While Sony has been criticised for the price of its upcoming console, Nintendo has taken a fair amount of flack for the name of its console. Iwata thinks the name Wii is just fine.

"I have never thought the name was a mistake," Iwata told the press in Tokyo. "Some people seem to have a problem with it now, but I think they'll grow to like it." According to the AP, Iwata cited the naming of the Game Boy as another Nintendo product whose name was initially frowned upon before gaining acceptance.

Speaking of the portable space, several rumours have predicted that the sector is about to get more crowded, with Microsoft possibly joining the race in 2007 or 2008. Nintendo has long held dominance in the portable market, and doesn't plan to change its strategy even if an "Xboy" is released.

"Whatever Microsoft does (with portable gaming) won't change what Nintendo will do," said Iwata.

As for the company's current portable darling, Iwata said that Nintendo will boost production of the DS Lite to 2.2 million units per month worldwide.