We're only a few days into the New Year, and now that the holiday season and Nintendo Switch Lite launch window is over, news outlets are back to claiming that the release of yet another Nintendo Switch hardware revision is imminent. This time, it's not just the Wall Street Journal, but also a Taiwanese news site called Digitimes, who are claiming that a new Switch model will be out by mid-2020. These claims come from sources within the related hardware industry, who state that Nintendo will be ramping up production for a new Switch sometime before the end of Q1 2020. From there, this theorized Switch would release around the middle of this year, and would feature a new CPU.

Nintendo launched Switch Lite with friendlier pricing in late September and signifcant increaes in its overall Swtich console sales in the three-month period ended September 30, 2019. Now the Japanese vendor is reportedly planning to launch a new Switch model in mid-2020, qwith volume production for the new device beginning in first-quarter of this year. In China, chipmakers have been keen on developing high-performance AI chips and high-end CPUs, which will prompt suppliers to expand their ABF substrate production capacity to meet their needs. In Taiwan, startup team BeVi, is ready to showcase at CES 2020 its CarePLUS, a 360-degree AI-based environment recognition system for eldercare.

Nintendo new Switch to enter mass production in 1Q20: Nintendo is reportedly planning to release in mid-2020 a new model of Switch, which will begin volume production at the end of first-quarter 2020, according to sources from the related upstream supply chain.

These claims should always be taken with a grain of salt, but it does pose a question: With PlayStation and Xbox poised to release their powerful next-generation hardware for the holiday 2020 season, will Nintendo follow suit, in a bid to extend the Nintendo Switch's lifecycle with a more powerful system? We're already seen them do a hardware refresh with the new red box Nintendo Switch, and the Switch Lite. What do you think about this longstanding rumor?

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[KingVamp]

Switch Pro let's GOOOOOOOOOO!

Just hoping it's not stationary-only, that'd be silly.

To be fair tho, they could do both.

 

[Jayro]

They better at least give it the X2 chip this time around, to keep compatibility AND beef up the capabilities of newer games.

 

[Teletron1]

It's more their target audience that demands a low price point, a lot of parents aren't going to buy $400+ electronics for their children. Especially given the possibility of breakage. That's why dividing Switch into different model tiers with different prices is probably the smartest move.


I mean basically, yeah. There's a reason Vita is capped at 540p and a lot of its games don't even hit that resolution. You can only cram so much power into a truly portable form factor. That said, I picked up an OG Vita a couple months back for $50, and it's a pretty nifty little system. Its lack of power was obviously not nearly as much a problem as its lack of first-party support.


Meh, the trade-in deals at launch are usually pretty decent, and half-gen upgrades have become the norm even for Sony and Microsoft.

To some degree how many kids know Indy devolpers ? Or parents coughing up almost $400 for a handheld system add in the fact outside of the handful of Nintendo games most games are adult games. Nintendo knows their target audience with this system because they send me surveys all the time and it had nothing to do with kids except for the one asking if I would buy a more affordable one for my kids. Most core gamers bought a Switch 40mil + and parents who grew up with Nintendo because thats the next wave of parents. I would say their target audience for this system is 20 to 40 now. Also add in the fact that Nintendo is allowing some adult bouncing and skimpy outfits .. now give us better system so we can enjoy some better 3rd party games

 

[weatMod]

TV-Only model this time around?

Wish List Mode engaged: With beefier hardware and room-scale VR

that would be perfect and MP trillogy and MP4 VR more
also i don't really game on the go but i don't see why they couldn't do a remote play option with a home only switch and the switch lite
that would give the most flexibility and the most HW sales for Ninty , OG switch , switch lite , switch pro , switch VR headset

 

[TerminatR]

Just hoping it's not stationary-only, that'd be silly.

Is it?

How many professional gamers do you know that play mobile?

 

[DarthDub]

May I remind people that before the Switch was revealed, back when it was simply known as the NX. I can't remember if it was Iwata or someone else, but they mentioned that the NX would be a family of consoles, so I guess what I'm trying to say is that there will yet be another model coming.

 

[Buttermilk]

Dell have announced their Alienware UFO, which is the Switch Pro we're all hoping for:





Competition is good for us customers, Nintendo need to catch up now.

 

[ombus]

just keep making games for original switch and i am happy.. the life of the console is young.

 

[DuoForce]

I can see a very cheap Switch TV-Only model coming out this year instead of a pro. Imagine if it only costed $149

 

[Bladexdsl]

fucking called it switch pro will be shown at e3

 

[Spider_Man]

Probably hardware change to block tx modchip

 

[Xzi]

Is it?

How many professional gamers do you know that play mobile?

I don't personally know any professional gamers. It's entirely irrelevant anyway, as even professional gamers can appreciate a hybrid device for use on road trips or the toilet.

I can see a very cheap Switch TV-Only model coming out this year instead of a pro. Imagine if it only costed $149

Not sure why you think it would cost less than the handheld-only Switch Lite...docked mode requires better performance, not worse.

 

[Lodad]

that would be perfect and MP trillogy and MP4 VR more
also i don't really game on the go but i don't see why they couldn't do a remote play option with a home only switch and the switch lite
that would give the most flexibility and the most HW sales for Ninty , OG switch , switch lite , switch pro , switch VR headset

I don't think it would be such a terrible idea. I think realistically it should still be dockable and portable if there is a hardware revision. I know room-scale VR would most likely take a lot of power and advanced display tech with very high resolution though. I can't really tell if Nintendo is pushing for people to have multiple switches between the Lite and OG versions.

I've been using samsung galaxy phones' dex mode recently to hook up to any TV in my house (I can confirm that the switch original dock and the insignia switch dock work with S9 and S10 series phones to activate dex mode) and run steam link with pretty great success locally on 5GHz wi-fi (across the internet is very poor but I only have about a 20mbps down/up connection at home).

On that, I'd like to imagine Big N coming out with a graphically powerful base station that it could stream gameplay to portable models. You wouldn't have to manage DRM, or download the same game multiple times for each piece of hardware you own (or have to buy more SD cards for that matter), while having powerful hardware render the games and your handheld only having to deal with processing inputs and the video stream, and hopefully improving battery life.

It would be even better if you could do that all through an android app as long as I'm dreaming big here.

Edited a line break in there

 

[Xzi]

Dell have announced their Alienware UFO, which is the Switch Pro we're all hoping for. Competition is good for us customers, Nintendo need to catch up now.

It's definitely intriguing, but it's just in the concept stage for now, and it's also far from the first attempt at a handheld PC. Finding the right balance between size, power, and price is not easy. Alienware laptops have historically been fairly overpriced, and that looks incredibly bulky at the moment (like at least 1.5x the size of Switch and 2x the weight). Not to mention a lot of people buy Nintendo consoles for first-party titles, and Dell obviously doesn't have that advantage. We'll have to wait and see how the final product turns out.

 

[Silent_Gunner]

TV-Only model this time around?

Wish List Mode engaged: With beefier hardware and room-scale VR

At that point, I'd rather them just release a new standard console that fixes all of Nintendo's problems post-Wii: having powerful hardware, no gimmicks, an online infrastructure that just works and has everything you'd expect, with no need for a stupid app on my phone for voice chat. They get all of the third parties on board, have several exclusives people expect and some new ones to inject some fresh new life into the Nintendo brand, have a good name and advertising that appeals to all ages, but particularly adults, and you'd have a formula for success!...

...that Nintendo isn't going to even consider.

--------------------- MERGED ---------------------------

Nintendo switch XL.
%40 bigger screen and battery life for both system and joycons.


(Then we get New Nintendo Switch XL, just like 3DS)

I'd rather they try to slim it down more and increase the battery life. Carrying around two non-lite Switches is kind of a PITA atm. (Psst, @Gavin_Darkglider, you have the potential to make Lakka the #1 emulation solution on the Switch! The lack of sleep mode suppprt is the only thing that killed L4T-Ubuntu for me personally)

 

[Xzi]

At that point, I'd rather them just release a new standard console that fixes all of Nintendo's problems post-Wii: having powerful hardware, no gimmicks, an online infrastructure that just works and has everything you'd expect, with no need for a stupid app on my phone for voice chat. They get all of the third parties on board, have several exclusives people expect and some new ones to inject some fresh new life into the Nintendo brand, have a good name and advertising that appeals to all ages, but particularly adults, and you'd have a formula for success!...

...that Nintendo isn't going to even consider.

Lol yeah, maybe if Switch had been a huge flop they would've done a massive shake-up like this, but it's on track to be a big success and sell close to Wii's lifetime numbers. I'm not expecting much from Switch Pro other than a modest performance increase, the improved battery life, and perhaps a bezel-less handheld display.

 

[Blue]

With one model being a less-expensive "downgrade" of sorts, it was a reasonable assumption that the other was going to have upgraded performance, but it was still just an assumption. There is the possibility that Nintendo did intend to release Switch Pro along with the improved battery, but they ran into an unexpected hardware/software conflict at the last minute.

It's also likely they want to release a newer model closer to the release of the PS5/XB1SX to compete with them. Even if it manages to do something like upscaled 4k when docked, still better then now.

 

[DANTENDO]

So curious what the name will be

Switch Pro
Switch Plus
Switch Advance
Switch U

Nintendo hav banned any word with the letter U in but switch advance a possibility as with gameboy advance

 

[Silent_Gunner]

Lol yeah, maybe if Switch had been a huge flop they would've done a massive shake-up like this, but it's on track to be a big success and sell close to Wii's lifetime numbers. I'm not expecting much from Switch Pro other than a modest performance increase, the improved battery life, and perhaps a bezel-less handheld display.

Yeah, but it makes you wonder how long Nintendo is gonna keep up this strategy of being behind the mainstream PCs (that's...well, what they've been since the 7th generation of consoles, IMHO) that Sony and MS put out every console generation before it comes back to bite them in the ass. I think Nintendo threw the baby out with the bathwater after the GC trailed behind the Xbox, uhhh...umm...*coughs as I mentally facepalm at the Xbox 4's chronologically confused naming scheme* ahem...Xbox. The big reason that I think the GC trailed those systems was the lack of a DVD player the PS2 had with the models that weren't produced by Philips, the afterthought of online multiplayer support, and of course, those discs being as compressed and proprietary as they were to "combat piracy". That last one has me all like:

Either way, I can't say that I hate the Switch idea, but I wish that it didn't require a damn carrying case, you know?

 

[Xzi]

It's also likely they want to release a newer model closer to the release of the PS5/XB1SX to compete with them. Even if it manages to do something like upscaled 4k when docked, still better then now.

It's good to dream I suppose, but Nintendo hasn't cared about truly competing in terms of hardware performance since GCN. They move at their own pace and it always seems to work out for them (except with Wii U, but that had nothing to do with performance). Switch Pro will probably give us a little extra RAM and enough extra oomph to get a consistent 30 FPS in demanding games like DOOM 2016, Witcher 3, etc, but I expect at best it'll still land right around XB1's output of 1.3 TFLOPs.