E3 2012 | Nintendo Reveals Final Name for Wii U Tablet - The GamePad

All this time we've referred to the Wii U tablet controller as the "tablet", however Iwata has revealed its final name.

The peripheral, key to the Wii U strategy, boasts a multitude of functions - analogue sticks, touch screen, camera, traditional buttons, speaker and supposedly the ability to toast bread and make tea. It can even control your TV now, according to Iwata.

But what name should be given to such a beast? Nintendo has officially christened the Wii U tablet as the Wii U GamePad. It simply, does it all.

The origins and decisions behind the name hark back to the 80s, where ickle players were describing their NES controllers as "Game pads", and much like "Wii Remote" has become commonplace, it seems Nintendo wants to do this once more with the GamePad.

But onto the more juicer tidbits - like the rumoured and recently leaked images of the final hardware, the GamePad now touts conventional analogue sticks as the consensus was that the low profile cicle pad used in the Nintendo 3DS was more suitable for portables.

The controller still allows for stylus/finger input, motion control, camera etc - even letting players "post" content from your browser to the big screen behind a curtain. Just don't get caught!

The back of the pad contains more hand-friendly grips, a more comfortable form for those longer play sessions.

Finally - that mysterious, much talked about square on the left side of the Game Pad. It's not there for cosmetic reasons - the spot will be used for NFC - Near Field Communication - to import objects, like action figures, into your games and apps.

What do you think of the revised, final look and layout for the Wii U GamePad? What about the name itself? Be sure to share your thoughts in our comments section below.