Video game consoles are essentially a closed platform. Once the hardware is finalized, the specifications usually remain the same throughout the lifecycle. There have been little tweaks here and there with home consoles towards the end of their life cycles, such as slimmer and smaller PlayStations, but game systems usually keep to the status quo.

Handhelds are a different story, however, as Nintendo has written the book on how to reinvent and redesign portable systems. Nintendo clearly realizes the profit potential of incrementally improving its hardware—not so much as to introduce new functionality, but to increase usability—so that customers may even buy the same system twice.

The most recent example of this is the Nintendo DS, which saw an initial release form of a bulky, sturdy folding brick, and later reinvented into the DS Lite, a sleek, shiny iPod-like fun machine. Considering Nintendo’s great success with this strategy, it should not be surprising to learn that the games maker is plotting a similar strategy for the Wii, perhaps even earlier than most expected.

In an interview, GameDaily asked Nintendo of America  VP Perrin Kaplan if the ‘hardware revision model’ would apply to the Wii, to which she replied succinctly, “Sure, absolutely. You'll see the ways in which we do that.”

Kaplan’s assertive but tight-lipped answer points to more than just adding something like DVD video playback. In fact, a DVD movie-enabled Wii has already been announced for release later this year. Kaplan comments on the DVD playback as something minor in the scheme for Wii: “I think it's just to give them a choice. We've not yet come out with a firm date; we haven't talked about it too much. It's not the top thing on our list.” When asked if DVD video capability was part of the plans for a new Wii hardware revision, Kaplan says, “There are always lots of things in the future.”

The Nintendo marketing VP isn’t showing any of her cards, but one thing is for sure: there will be another Wii. The obvious things that Nintendo would do to make the Wii more attractive are add new colors, increase its internal flash memory, include rechargeable batteries for Wii Remotes and component cables. There isn’t much merit to making the console any slimmer or lighter, and high definition support isn’t likely to happen.

The Wii is attaining mass-market appeal, much like the iPod. It may only be a matter of time before Nintendo adopts Apple’s hardware redesign strategy.