Some other changes include a large red power switch, and the controller ports being located on the left side of the console instead of being centered like in the final production model. There’s also what looks like the console’s docking station located on the front, rather than on the bottom as in the final design. The panel around the controller ports looks yellowed – it wouldn’t be part of the SNES series without it, would it?
Here is a gallery of pictures from the auction:
Compare with the final version:
We ended up with terrible things in America:
These design touches were thrown out of the window with the US release of the SNES, which ended up with a thick, boxy design with a purple sliding switch on top instead of a rounded, sloping, compact design. Nintendo released a revamped version of the SNES in 1997, the new Super NES, which was closer to a console but featured a pill-shaped power switch and a circular reset button.
A few years ago, another lost Nintendo prototype that also had a headphone jack turned up among the Nintendo/Sony PlayStation purchased at auction by Pets.com founder Greg McLemore. Two years ago, an unreleased wired version of the Wiimote connected to GameCube sold for $660 at a Japanese auction. As of this writing, the Super Famicom prototype being auctioned today is priced at just over 1 million yen (just under $7,000), with just over five days to go.
