Such rumors have made the news every so often: Nintendo plans a new Switch model. Back in 2019, The Wall Street Journal reported that Nintendo was working on two Switch models: one with enhanced features targeted at avid gamers and the other towards more casual gamers. Later that year, we saw the launch of the Switch Lite but we have yet to see the "enhanced" version. Earlier this year Nintendo said that it has no plans for a new Switch model in 2020. So maybe they have plans for one in 2021? That might be the case according to a new report from Taiwanese newspaper, United Daily News.

According to translations from Resetera and Google translation of the news source, the new Switch model will begin production in Q4 2020, with an expected launch for Q1 2021. The biggest changes to the upgraded model will include improved 'interactivity' and display quality. United Daily News cites its source as numerous hardware manufacturers that work on parts for current Switch models. But as always, take these news with a pinch of salt.

Would you like to see an upgraded Switch model akin to the DSi? Or would you rather have Nintendo's new console compete directly to the PS5 and Xbox Series X?

[UPDATE]

A new report from Bloomberg also claims that Nintendo plans "an upgraded model of its Switch console next year" that will release along with "a lineup of new games".

The report notes that while specifications haven't been finalized, Nintendo is looking to include "more computing power and 4K high-definition graphics" in this upgraded model.

Bloomberg claims its sources are people briefed on Nintendo's strategy but asked not to be identified as it’s private, but its news seems to corroborate that made by United Daily News earlier.

SOURCE
UPDATE SOURCE

 

[Viri]

I'm sure it'll release on the same day as Persona 5 Switch port, Metroid Prime Trilogy, Starfox Grand Prix, Mother 3 localization, and Pokemon Stars.

 

[Jayro]

No handheld mode haha your kidding me right. This thing main force is being a handheld aswell as console.

They already made the Switch Lite, and guess what? It doesn't "switch". Handheld only. So it's entirely possible to have docked only as an option, but pretty stupid if they do. The new one should just come with pro controller style joycons, similar to what Hori did.

 

[kudofan]

I wish people would stop with this rumor.
It's getting old.

 

[CompSciOrBust]

Too bad TX burned the SX Core vulnerability, although if the new model has a different SoC maybe the random timings will actually be random which would stop the Core from working anyway. Maybe Scires' hypothetical bootloader hack will work (the one he thought TX was using) if Nintendo doesn't add random timings in the firmware. If that is possible it will still fall on TX to make a solution because ReSwitched have taken a stance against developing their own mod chips.

 

[Xzi]

I wish people would stop with this rumor.
It's getting old.

It's entirely possible that it never was just a rumor, they may very well have started working on this revision a solid year or two ago and run into multiple problems with the design where size constraints/thermals/battery life/etc were concerned.

 

[x149te]

More games just hitting 60fps rather than 30?

Even for PS5 and Xbox SeX already anounced 30fps games...

 

[Silent_Gunner]

It's entirely possible that it never was just a rumor, they may very well have started working on this revision a solid year or two ago and run into multiple problems with the design where size constraints/thermals/battery life/etc were concerned.

And then you have the pandemic and all of the shit that's caused.

As for thermals though, would it really cost companies that much to just use thermal grizzly and conductonaut for their thermal solutions?

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

Even for PS5 and Xbox SeX already anounced 30fps games...

 

[ombus]

Just keep making games for my old normal console and i will be happy... and lets wait like... 5 more years to make another console..

 

[LightyKD]

It's just graphics/power envy. They want one console for first-party Nintendo games and also complete third-party support across the board. The reality is that Switch is most appealing as a companion device for core gamers that already have a gaming PC or dedicated home console, and the younger audience doesn't care about having the best possible graphics or performance. Nintendo has found its niche and there's no reason to stray too far from it.

Again though, offering more options isn't necessarily a bad thing, so long as there aren't any games exclusive to the new hardware revision. Just give it slightly sharper graphics or slightly better performance across titles. Personally I'd only be interested in the latter.

You're right, the Switch is a great companion device. I would much rather have the Switch with much more original titles. It doesn't need to be a port machine or to keep trying to get games that are also available on competing platforms. What's the point of a Switch if it tries to be like everything else? Kinda like Microsoft's current issue of "no exclusives". I wish things were like the Wii days. The Wii actually received competent PS/360 ports along with a LOT of original games that leveraged it's platform.

 

[xatzimi]

Tbh I really like my Switch Lite, having a TV only switch could be great too. Now, if only those two connected in a way to roughly equate the mode switching...

 

[Rahkeesh]

-Gesture support on new joy-cons.

You THOUGHT following the prior rumor that BotW2 was the launch exclusive for this upgraded switch. Turns out it's Skyward Sword.

 

[djnate27]

then it wont be a switch since it cant actualy switch lol, it will be just a nintendo console

Couldn’t the same be said about the Switch Lite? It can’t actually ‘switch’ either.

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

All a ploy to stop the mod chips.

Remind me again, why am I modding my Switch?

 

[gameboy]

WiiU3 or Wii4. When Nintendo said they merged 3ds and WiiU game development into 1 I was hoping they werent just going to make ports of old games that didnt sell well on WiiU and Wii as Switch Games....... Turns out they did.

 

[Moon164]

Because you are a consoomer. Consoomers have told the marketing and budgeting departments at every big name publisher in the industry that the more money spent making a game look "realistic" and "cinematic" will translate to more sales. What's that? Spin-offs? More games that offer varied experiences and that aren't just a numbered sequel or a game with a subtitle that totally isn't confusing to those who haven't kept up with the series?

But yeah, nowadays, because each and every game is a giant risk for a company, that's why, after the PS2 era, you saw ATLUS putting out more Persona and Shin Megami Tensei and less Raidou Kuzunoha, Digital Devil Saga, Devil Survivor, or other games that are more experiments than they are sequels, prequels or whatever to the rest of the series.

Like, Devil Summoner is a part of the Persona series. It might not interact all that much outside of Tamaki in the PS1 games being one due to her basically being the canonical MC of Shin Megami Tensei If...

But you aren't gonna see that anymore, it seems. Hell, before we got the trailer months ago, some were thinking that Shin Megami Tensei V was straight up cancelled due to this trend.

Stuff like this is why I personally believe that the days of classic gaming started to come to an end around the 6th/7th generation of consoles.

Capcom is much the same way: whereas before, you had Darkstalkers, Marvel Vs. Capcom (which is dependent upon the former wanting to work with the latter unlike what happened with MVC: I, and is why I think they should do their own Capcom crossover fighter), Cyberbots, Rival Schools, and Power Stone, now, the closest you might get is a Darkstalkers costume in SFV, all because Capcom was seriously betting the value of making a new Darkstalkers game on selling glorified arcade roms with a menu, versus, and training mode and some borders and using that to judge the value of making a new game. In general, a company decides that they have their library of brands that represent various genres, and maybe make a port here and there for this and that to prey upon someone's nostalgia, while still throwing money at the main genre representative of that company.


All I know is that Power Stone would work wonderfully as a Smash guest character given how the game plays.

Do you remember how the Game Boy lasted from 1989 to 2003 even with a black and green screen and still received games until 2001 in the sixth generation of consoles? and not to mention that even Game Boy Color games like Toy Story 2 or Pokémon Gold/Silver that came in 2000 were compatible with it.

Or how did the NES last from 1985 to 2003 in full sixth generation even though it was just an 8-bit console from the 80s?, Nintendo itself continues to make games for him until 1994 and that was when the PS1 and Saturn were already knocking on the door.

I always wondered why consoles can't last that long nowadays, I think the last one that we saw last that long was the Playstation 2 that lasted from 2000 to 2013 and received games until 2013, it even received a version of Netflix here in Brazil and that was active until 2011.

 

[Lodad]

Honestly, they should just resurrect the Wii U style as a non-portable handheld with a stronger dedicated base station and take a page out of the PS4 Pro book and have it play older games and let new ones benefit from a little bit beefier upscaled graphics capabilities.

Also I want a higher resolution screen on the handheld and get some good VR with 6DOF. Joy Cons would be amazing for VR if the shoulder button slide-on things had a wrap-around for your hand so you could use each in one hand more easily.

Finally, I'd like to see a consolidated classic gaming / virtual console experience with some old handheld games added into the mix instead of having just two separate apps for NES and SNES. The draw could be huge if it was in one suite with a single interface and an influx of quality games from more consoles and handhelds. Couple that with the VR idea and recreate your childhood living room to play some Mario on a giant box TV while you sit on shag carpet and a Mii of your mom brings you pizza bagels and a root beer (alternately, play some DS / game boy games on a long VR car ride).

 

[RichardTheKing]

I'd rather have a TV console with a controller similar to the Wii U Pro Controller - that is to say, aligned sticks, and maybe also how it bows into the middle and stuff; I love holding my Wii U Pro, so comfortable.
Also, maybe change the damn UI to something more akin to the 3DS - neatly-arranged grid of boxes, with the ability to zoom in and out to see varying number of boxes. Folders would be nice, as would different background themes (I've bought a few 3DS themes in my life, before using homebrew for ones made by fans - Xenoblade 2 theme, Professor Layton theme, Pokemon through the ages theme, etc.).

 

[TomSwitch]

View attachment 222707​

Such rumors have made the news every so often: Nintendo plans a new Switch model. Back in 2019, The Wall Street Journal reported that Nintendo was working on two Switch models: one with enhanced features targeted at avid gamers and the other towards more casual gamers. Later that year, we saw the launch of the Switch Lite but we have yet to see the "enhanced" version. Earlier this year Nintendo said that it has no plans for a new Switch model in 2020. So maybe they have plans for one in 2021? That might be the case according to a new report from Taiwanese newspaper, United Daily News.

According to translations from Resetera and Google translation of the news source, the new Switch model will begin production in Q4 2020, with an expected launch for Q1 2021. The biggest changes to the upgraded model will include improved 'interactivity' and display quality. United Daily News cites its source as numerous hardware manufacturers that work on parts for current Switch models. But as always, take these news with a pinch of salt.

Would you like to see an upgraded Switch model akin to the DSi? Or would you rather have Nintendo's new console compete directly to the PS5 and Xbox Series X?

SOURCE

Nintendo strength has always been customer loyalty and one way they achieve that is to be loyal to their existing customers. You can be sure to be first class for a longer time as far as Nintendo platform is concerned without buying new machine.

 

[RichardTheKing]

Honestly, they should just resurrect the Wii U style as a non-portable handheld with a stronger dedicated base station and take a page out of the PS4 Pro book and have it play older games and let new ones benefit from a little bit beefier upscaled graphics capabilities.

Also I want a higher resolution screen on the handheld and get some good VR with 6DOF. Joy Cons would be amazing for VR if the shoulder button slide-on things had a wrap-around for your hand so you could use each in one hand more easily.

Finally, I'd like to see a consolidated classic gaming / virtual console experience with some old handheld games added into the mix instead of having just two separate apps for NES and SNES. The draw could be huge if it was in one suite with a single interface and an influx of quality games from more consoles and handhelds. Couple that with the VR idea and recreate your childhood living room to play some Mario on a giant box TV while you sit on shag carpet and a Mii of your mom brings you pizza bagels and a root beer (alternately, play some DS / game boy games on a long VR car ride).

NES and SNES? Meh; I want to experience Stadium, Stadium 2, and some other 64 titles. I dunno if this could work, but seeing as how Pokemon RBY/GSC are on the 3DS Virtual Console, maybe make it possible to link those VC titles to Stadium/Stadium 2?

 

[Rail Fighter]

A new way of playing Wii U games, yay.

 

[Lodad]

NES and SNES? Meh; I want to experience Stadium, Stadium 2, and some other 64 titles. I dunno if this could work, but seeing as how Pokemon RBY/GSC are on the 3DS Virtual Console, maybe make it possible to link those VC titles to Stadium/Stadium 2?

Yup, I mentioned more handhelds and consoles. Would love to see gamecube, I think emulation has been done on Shield tablets in... China? I don't remember where so if a new hardware revision was more powerful I'd like to see something happen.