Home Gaming Wii prices explode in SA!

Wii prices explode in SA!

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WiiPrice.jpg

A local blogger, who is known by some as The Puppy Stuffer, sniffed out the story a few days ago that Wii prices were going to be going up in South Africa.

Today, people on the tidemedia forums are confirming that they have indeed seen that Nintendo Wii’s are now selling in stores for as much as R3,699.00! The price increase is borderlining on absolute insanity if you take into account that it is essentially a Gamecube with a peripheral, which means that production costs should be very low at this late stage of it’s hardwares’ technology.

Rumour has it that Core (Who are responsible for Nintendo in South Africa) had to put up the prices due to the cost of importing. Regardless, I still think that this price hike is crazy and that the Nintendo console should not be selling for such a high price. If possible, we will try and get an official statement from Core and post it up on the site.

I was considering picking a Wii up for myself soon, but with a price like that I will be more than happy to brush it off because for not much more I could get a PS3 instead.

Source: The PuppyStuffer Blog

[Ed] We actuall reported this on the 1st of April but I guess a reminder isn’t the worst idea

Last Updated: May 28, 2008

21 Comments

  1. The Wii has been overpriced since day one. Nothing the core group does with pricing surprises me, really. I own a mac – enough said. I paid R180 for an iPod cable. A cable!

    Reply

  2. sepulfrodo

    May 29, 2008 at 02:28

    its sooooo over priced already.. well atleast for us africans.

    you could buy one of those in the uk for 180 pounds, brand spanking new, basically R2700(with wii sports). when you make pounds, 180 for a console is nothing. most people in africa make that in a month, if that.

    cant we get some sort of third world discount?

    Reply

  3. Etienne Vlok

    May 29, 2008 at 06:36

    So the entry level Xbox is now R1600 cheaper than the Wii, which is, as noted, basically a pimped Gamecube.

    Someone show me the logic here.

    Reply

  4. j4nr1k

    May 29, 2008 at 06:48

    Capitalism = supply + demand.

    Reply

  5. Banana hammock

    May 29, 2008 at 06:49

    This is a joke, one of the big attractions of the Wii is it’s price and we are getting raped here.

    Sepulfrodo mentioned the price in the UK, but even that’s expensive compared to the US price.

    Reply

  6. larch

    May 29, 2008 at 08:57

    In before Wii haters. On no the price of the Wii has gone up woe is us South Africans. If you don’t like the price don’t buy, if you still want it import it yourself. And if you are still to cheapskate buy a Wii Knockoff: http://www.gameater.com/chinese-wii-knock-off-gets-sequel-vii-2/

    larch’s last blog post..How not to get hooked by a flamebait

    Reply

  7. Lupus

    May 29, 2008 at 09:30

    Well I still got the one I’ve got for R2799 which is bad as the 360 pro is the same price.

    Reply

  8. bokka1

    May 29, 2008 at 09:51

    I think that the Wii should sell for R1500.00. Anything above that is a waste of money. (I sold mine for R3000.00)

    Reply

  9. Fox1

    May 29, 2008 at 09:59

    From day one we I have being moaning that the Wii is over priced is SA. Don’t be surprised if it ends up like another GameCube here 😕

    Anyway, there are cheaper mainstream alternatives like the 360 and PS3 💡

    Reply

  10. doobiwan

    May 29, 2008 at 10:00

    The Wii is a toy, I’d happily buy one at toy prices, but that’s just insanity. Core needs a kick in the nuts of note. Then again, it’s supply and demand. If they’re selling their allocations at that price why would they do any different?

    doobiwan’s last blog post..The Games that made the consoles

    Reply

  11. Fox1

    May 29, 2008 at 10:05

    That’s the reason why many of us changed to the PC and other mp3 players. It may not be as stable but there is a line to be drawn between insane pricing and what people afford here in SA.

    Reply

  12. pfangirl

    May 29, 2008 at 10:11

    Ha! What prices aren’t exploding in South Africa at the moment? 😉

    It really does defeat the purpose of the Wii as an “accessible” console for the Everyman/woman/child. At that price I’d just go and buy a PS2.

    Reply

  13. Fox1

    May 29, 2008 at 10:22

    No. Buy a 360 Arcade 😛

    Reply

  14. Thomeval

    May 29, 2008 at 11:34

    This seems to be affecting the Nintendo DS as well. I’ve noticed it for sale for well over R2000 now. Is demand for these products really so high that they can justify these prices?

    Reply

  15. Fox1

    May 29, 2008 at 11:50

    Actually demand I think demand is so low thats why these prices are so high 😯

    It’s similar to how the iPhone failed in the European market 😕

    Reply

  16. pfangirl

    May 29, 2008 at 14:34

    Just got an email from Kalahari – they’re selling the DS Lite for R1,699.95.

    Reply

  17. larch

    May 29, 2008 at 15:07

    Actually the Wii is outselling the Xbox and PS3 in South Africa at the moment so that point is pretty moot.

    larch’s last blog post..How not to get hooked by a flamebait

    Reply

  18. Nick

    May 29, 2008 at 15:27

    Well larch, I dont know if thats going to be the case any more…

    Reply

  19. doobiwan

    May 29, 2008 at 15:39

    Or so Core says, which, last time they shot their mouths off were put in place rather firmly by Microsoft.

    doobiwan’s last blog post..The Games that made the consoles

    Reply

  20. larch

    May 29, 2008 at 17:30

    Well since everyone seems a bit cheap skate may I give you a cheaper alternative: http://larcho.wordpress.com/2008/05/29/chinese-wii-knock-off/

    larch’s last blog post..Chinese Wii knock off

    Reply

  21. Fox1

    May 29, 2008 at 17:41

    Core never justifies their statements with any proof 😉

    Reply

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