Wii U developer leaks console specifications

by Steven Mostyn - Dec 5 2011, 10:55

The much talked about Wii U is expected to arrive next year as Nintendo’s somewhat belated ‘next-generation’ console offering.

And, according to current rumors floating around online, prospective buyers won’t be disappointed when it comes to the Wii U’s internal muscle.

Indeed, Wii U Daily cites an unnamed software developer in a report that suggests the Wii U will outperform both the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3.

First off, the developer’s supposedly leaked specification list points to the inclusion of IBM’s quad-core 3.0GHz PowerPC processor (45nm)—not the Power7-based platform previously hinted at by IBM.

The console will also apparently boast between 768MBs and 1GB of embedded DRAM on the same die as the CPU, and an as-yet unknown GPU from ATI (40nm).

It should be noted that certain industry watchers are questioning the quoted DRAM allocation—and Wii U Daily’s reporting—insofar as 1GB is a massive leap from the paltry 3MBs aboard the Wii, and the 10MBs squeezed into the Xbox 360.

PCMag posits that it’s more likely that the Wii U will have up to 1GB of core memory (twice that of the Xbox 360) and around 32MBs of embedded DRAM. 

Regardless of gathering rumors and unfounded speculation, the Wii U should be ready for retail release in the latter half of 2012. But will it be too little too late for Nintendo where the more ‘hardcore’ demographic is concerned?

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