Nintendo removing digital A/V output from GameCube

[Teddman]

Nintendo cutting hardware costs a little too deep to make that $99 price point? This does not bode well for progressive scan support in future games...

No more removable nameplates on top of the disc drive either.



From Game Science

Nintendo // Gamecube and GBASP price drops, but at what cost?
17:03
Nintendo announced today a small drop in price for the Gamecube and Gameboy Advance SP in Japan, to tie in with new regulations regarding the display of consumption tax. Currently, the Gamecube is available for 14,000 yen, and the GBASP for 12,500 yen, excluding tax. From 22 April, the prices will remain the same but will include tax. Consumption tax is currently charged at 5%, but is likely to increase in the future.

Along with the price reduction, the Gamecube hardware is undergoing small modifications. The Digital AV output, used with D-cables for Progressive Scan, will be removed, and the ability to remove and change the "nameplate" will also be lost. Both changes are believed to be aimed at cutting the cost of manufacture to fit in with the drop in price.

Source: Nintendo

[Mairu]

Dumb

Though it wont really effect me at all because I have an older gamecube... and I don't plan on getting a progressive scan TV anytime soon. Still dumb though

[voltz]

They should leave the door open for people who still want support for their HDTV, if they had any brains, we wouldn't have to use another port for video in the first place.

Somebody at nintendo needs to be fired really really badly.

[Diff-chan]

LOL.

[MVS]

Bit odd, but seeing how I don't have an HDTV, this would not affect me one way or another in choosing to buy a GameCube.

[Johnny]

How many Gamecube games actually support Proscan currently? When the next generation of systems come out they all better display 720p & 1080i, with every game taking advantage of that. You can pick up a 30" HDTV for $800CDN now so it'll be the standard in a couple years time.

[Adrian]

This is pathetic. Nintendo's stupid decisions baffle me.

[haohmaru]

Sounds like Nintendo hired some of Sega's old management to me...

[Norimake]

Unfortunately it's not unprecedented. NES lost composite video when it was revised. SNES lost RGB when it was revised. Not like Sony hasn't done the same sort of thing with revisions of the PSone (s-video port, composite port, link) and PS2 (ilink).

Guess I'll have to buy a backup GCN before the next price drop after all.

[Teddman]

Yeah, the SNES also was stripped of S-Video support when it was redesigned as the smaller, sleeker model. Which made it worthless to me... Nintendo's setting a bad precedent here; I don't care for cheaper hardware if it's inferior hardware.

But the PSOne was still capable of s-video via the multi port, wasn't it?