One year, seven months and two days. That's how long it's been since Satoru Iwata announced the existence of the Nintendo NX. Since then, the amount of info we've been officially given has been very sparse. But no more! It's finally time for us to learn more about the heck this thing actually is. But before we do, I think it'll be fun to make some predictions about the NX. And to make things even more fun, I enlisted the help of 10 of my friends! Let's see what we predicted and eventually see who was the most correct!Before we begin, it is important to point out that these surveys were conducted in December 2015 and January 2016. Since then, some of the questions have already been answered.Either way, huge thanks to Adam, Alex, Arsenette, Chris A, Chris S, David, Jordan, Mike, Rider, Rob, and Ube for helping me out with this survey!Question 1: The most popular rumor right now is that the NX is actually a combination of a home console and a handheld. Do you believe this to be true? [Yes / No]Results:People who said "Yes":Chris A: "Nintendo does a fairly good job at thinking outside the box. The Wii U gamepad asalready a step towards home console and handheld device, so I can definitely see this as a trialrun."David: "I know nothing about the NX but it wouldn't surprise me."Mike: "This is just a guess but it does seem like a "Nintendo-thing- to-do". They're alwaysfinding innovative ways for gaming and I feel like this will be a good way for them to go.They've been in both the console and handheld business since the early 90's (maybe earlier?)and this seems like a smart move if they're able to pull it off."Rob: "It would seem like the perfect progression from the Wii U, given said console's tablet-like GamePad. In addition, with Nintendo being a strong force in the handheld market with the3DS, bringing portable qualities to the NX would be appropriate."People Who said "No":Arsenette: "Because that was the problem with the WiiU. It seemed to me that Nintendo didn'tknow what it wanted other than trying to get people to buy a 3DS but for their TV.. I doubt theywill do the same mistake twice."Jordan: "Nintendo already has a success in the 3DS. While it's not new, the system certainly has some time left before Nintendo moves on to a new handheld device."My Prediction: I have a feeling that I may end up being wrong on this one, but I chose No. Based on what Iwata said in the past, I feel like Nintendo will still have a home console and a handheld device but will both use the same OS in order to make porting games between devices easier.Question 2: Both of Nintendo's current devices (Wii U and 3DS) use a touchscreen. Will the NX also have a touchscreen? [Yes / No]Results:Note: Rider's answer involved him saying that if the NX is a portable device, it will have a touchscreen, and if it's a home console, it won't, hence the half votes.People who said "Yes":Chris S: "In a pre¬iPhone era, the DS helped bring touchscreen gaming to the mainstream. IfNintendo wants to keep an air of simplicity with its interface(s), the touchscreen is in."Adam: "Easy technology to include at this point. Hopefully it will be optional (not required) during actual gameplay."Chris A: "Nintendo seems to like touch all the way back to the first DS. I don't see them changing that ever. Even Sony used touch functionality to some effect."Alex: "Many products, including tablets and most phones, have been utilizing touchscreens so it makes sense that Nintendo would continue to utilize them"David: "Touchscreen is becoming increasingly popular amongst many devices."Mike: "I feel like it will because the past 2 generations of handhelds plus the Wii U all incorporate a touch screen, so it makes sense that they would keep it going forward and that would also allow backwards compatibility (which who knows if that will be.)"My Prediction: If you're wondering who the one person who said No was, that would be me. As much as I like the Wii U, the controller was the biggest reason why Nintendo was unable to make the price of the console lower than it is. Also, most games really didn't use the touch screen very effectively.Question 3: The touchscreen on both the Wii U and 3DS are resistive screens. If the NX does have a touchscreen, what type of screen will it be? [Resistive / Capacitive]Results:Note: Two people elected to not answer this question.People who said "Resistive":Rob: "Unlike capacitive screens, which are more accurate but fragile, resistive screens are sturdier at the cost of lower tech. Nintendo's systems hold up well over time, so why not stick with what works?"Chris A: "Without changing the stylus too, a capacitive touchscreen would restrict the user to using just their finger. I believe Nintendo would want players to be able to touch the screen with their fingers, wearing gloves or not, as well as a stylus."People Who said "Capacitive":Rider: 'Nintendo has been using Resistive for a few generations but I think even they may be feeling it's time to move on, with how much more accessible they've gotten due to Smartphone developments, the ability to have multi-touch would also enhance the experience, along with not having to worry about a stylus that might get lost. There are also rumors floating around about NX being based on a modification of Android and if true a change in touch screens might be necessary."Chris S: "This is going to contrast what I said earlier Yes, Nintendo wants to keep things simple & durable, but resistive touchscreen/touchpads feel like old technology compared to their capacitive counterparts."Mike: "Many people are used to that type of a screen because of smartphones, plus it has a sharper image display as well as multi-touch capability (such as using 2 fingers to zoom in on a picture on a smartphone)"My Prediction: I said Capacitive. Multi touch games have become more of a standard in touchscreen gaming and resistive screens would limit that too much.Question 4: It's generally accepted that the PS4 is currently the most powerful home console. If there is at least a home console component for the NX, how powerful will the console be? [On par or stronger than a PS4 / Less powerful than a PS4]Results:Note: This question is referring to the original PS4, not the PS4 Pro.People who said "On par or stronger than a PS4":Rob: "By the time the NX releases, it should be up to the same level as PS4 in terms of processing power, while Sony's next console will be superior in that respect. Nintendo's systems are known more for their ingenuity, as opposed to processing power, so they can get by with using inexpensive tech."Chris S: "Nintendo is shooting towards a weird midgeneration release which might be fine for3DS and Wii U fans who are ready, but the gaming community may not be so ready. The NXcannot look like a step back, and at least look equivalent to the PS4's power. Third parties willalso work better with "current" tech, and not older stuff ala the Wii."Adam: "It will end up competing with next generation Sony and Microsoft platforms (and Steam??), so something weaker than last generation will get laughed at."People Who said "Less powerful than a PS4":Arsenette: "Nintendo's logic has never been to be the most powerful but the most fun to play (game wise). If it turns out to be powerful then by all means but that's not their explicit goal (unlike Microsoft)."Mike: "Nintendo has never really been one to have "powerful" consoles and I feel like they'll continue going that route."David: "Sony does what Nintendon't"Chris A: "Nintendo is behind the curve when it comes to hardware, and does not seem interested in catching up. They focus on innovation and fun, which is commendable, but not always best."Ube: "Hardcore gamers have never been Nintendo's target audience."My Prediction: I said Less powerful than a PS4. I don't think Nintendo believes that the average consumer cares about raw power and would prefer to cut costs by using some less powerful processors.Question 5: Both the Wii U and 3DS are backwards compatible with their respective previous generations of hardware. Will the NX be backwards compatible with Wii U and/or 3DS games? [Yes / No]Results:People who said "Yes":Chris S: "Nintendo has had a strong reputation with embracing backwards compatibility. Thenature of the glassesfree 3D of the 3DS and the second screen experience of the Wii U wouldprobably cause issues with 100% compatibility but I trust Nintendo to figure it out."Rob: "It wouldn't make sense for the NX not to be backwards compatible. After their previous systems have been backwards compatible, Nintendo would be wise to continue the trend."Rider: "I feel like it will most likely be backwards compatible with the Wii U but not necessarily with the 3DS. One of the biggest points of the 3DS is the 3D aspect, so unless they incorporate the 3D technology into the NX (which I don't think they will) I doubt it'll be there."David: "It would hurt them not to."Alex: "Backwards compatibility is a big selling point for console buyers"Chris A: "I can see this trend continuing because if sales is what Nintendo is after, having a console that can replace your Wii U, or even play Wii U games so that you don't feel like you need to buy both consoles, consolidates user expenditure"People Who said "No":Rider: "The rumors of a cartridge based system feel pretty likely (I'll elaborate later on that question) and considering Nintendo's favorite way of backwards compatibility is shoving the previous console inside of their new one it feels pretty unlikely they'll leave the disk slot just for backwards compatibility."Arsenette: "I don't believe they will since they want to change the architecture design. Besides, they are really gunning to expand their digital market so they will make you pay for the same game 3-4 times over if they can get away with it. It has worked in the past."My Prediction: I realize this contradicts my prediction for question 2, but I'm going to hedge my bets and
