Looking inside the Wii Mini

The Wii Mini is just barely lighter and smaller than its full size counterpart, although its power supply is comparable to the 2006 Wii launch model, reports Eurogamer's Digital Foundry.

According to Digital Foundry's report on dismantling the system, the Wii Mini's casing is two large plastic pieces held by four mini screws. The optical drive is in the lower part of the bottom half above a a metal heat-shield. Beneath the heat-shield is the mainboard containing the CPU and GPU chips.

The Wii Mini does have a power draw significantly below the Wii and Wii U, drawing 13 watts of power while running a game. The hardware also comes with a 12 volt, 3.7a AC adapter power supply.

The hardware has a small fan that does not make much noises mounted on the back, according to the Foundry, and the console gives off very little heat. There is also support for some Wii peripherals, including the Wii Fit Balanced Board.

Last week Nintendo told Polygon the lack of online functionality, SD slots and GameCube game compatibility is to keep the price point low and attract consumers who have not yet bought a Wii and those who have one and want a second.