Look, the hardware ALONE costs more than the MSRP of $300. So there is no way anyone can reasonably say that this is what the price SHOULD be. They're already losing money. You're already getting more than you're paying for at full price. You can get the 3DS handheld for $200, but the full HD living room experience WITH Gamepad support is going to run you an extra hundred bucks, AS IT SHOULD. Wii U should be $200 just like PS4 should be $250. Yeah, right.
Second, a console is not "dead" from one year of bad sales. That's ignorant. Even if the console had a repeat of 2013 for the next 5 years straight, it will STILL hit Gamecube numbers. And no one threw a fit or had a panic attack about that. Nintendo home consoles are a more niche product than the 3rd party consoles, and this one's had a rough start. That doesn't mean it's dead. In fact, it's just warming up. And sales are irrelevant anyways, because whether it sells 20 million or 100 million, it's going to play out the same as always- limited 3rd party AAA support, full 1st party Nintendo support.
Third, I own a Vita and a Wii U, and I'm sorry but the Vita doesn't even come close, it just doesn't. I like my Vita, and I'm glad I bought it. I'm a gamer, and I appreciate all platforms. But when Killzone is one of the top titles, and there's only 3 major releases scheduled for the year (all of which are ports), you've got a serious problem. Wii U is critically acclaimed exclusive after critically acclaimed exclusive. Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate, Super Mario 3D World, DKC Tropical Freeze, W101, Wii Sports Club, Zelda Windwaker HD, New Super Mario Bros U, Pikmin 3, etc... Say what you will, but I actually own both consoles and can make a fair assessment. I also own a PS4 and 3DS. And guess what, my Wii U sees more play than all my other consoles combined. The games really are THAT fun.
I don't mean to rag on you, but I hate it when people presume to insult the Wii U simply because the sales have been disappointing its first year. Sales and quality of product are two separate things. Unlike Sony, Nintendo never has, and never will, be a mainstay for AAA 3rd party support. They don't DEPEND on 3rd party support to sell consoles. Sony does. Which is why Vita may never recover, but Wii U will certainly go on to match the success of it's grandfathers, the N64 and Gamecube. You can't get around the fact that Nintendo consoles sell based on Nintendo games, and Nintendo to this day continues to make some of the funnest games in the world, and Wii U is no exception- in fact, it's the best home console Nintendo has ever made imo.
Now, whether or not the majority of gamers choose to realize this is irrelevant. The console is still fun, and it's a great buy for your money. If you can get it cheap, that's great. But please don't act like the console is worthless just because it's unpopular. Some of the best games I've ever played IN MY LIFE, have been on the Wii U. Unfortunately, don't think I can say the same for the Vita (although I am excited for FFX/X-2 and Borderlands 2), And it's still got 5 long years ahead of it with even more on the way. And for the record, Vita isn't dead yet- as long as games are coming, the platform is alive and well. The day no more games are scheduled for release, THEN you can say a platform is dead.