More Details Point Towards an Upcoming Nintendo Switch Pro
Rumblings of an alleged Switch Pro have been circling around for some time now, and today’s report from DigiTimes adds more to these claims. The article opens with:
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.
The article also goes on to claim that the aforementioned Switch Pro will have a magnesium alloy body instead of the plastic that we see on the current models. This will supposedly assist in both the consoles weight and heat management, making it less prone to overheating and therefore allowing for more advanced internal components.
The Switch Pro is also rumoured to have a better CPU which I would say at this points comes as a no-brainer, but coupling that with the magnesium alloy body strengthens the plausibility of this upgrade. Considering the recent runaway success that Nintendo have had with the Nintendo Switch and its hybrid nature, it seems unlikely that they would go back to a stationary home console. Therefore, it seems that this new body allows for this upgrade in hardware horsepower which then allows Nintendo to continue maintaining the hybrid at home and on the go play style that us Switch owners have grown accustomed to.
Touching upon the article stating that this upgrade would be ready to release in mid-2020 is interesting as there are both pros and cons to this approach. The Nintendo Switch Lite was announced on July 10 last year and launched on September 20. This was likely orchestrated to be a hot new item right before the holiday season and according to reports, that was certainly the case. However, the Nintendo Switch Lite catered to a more casual market, so Nintendo may yet have a different approach the Switch Pro model. Releasing in mid-2020, this would allow for a lot of hype to be drummed up at E3, which we all know caters to us dedicated gamers. Also for more hardcore gamers, it wouldn’t really matter when this upgraded hardware would launch as it is something that they would be more inclined to buy for themselves rather than wait and see if they receive it under the Christmas tree.
Only time will tell at this stage, but it looks like the rumour mill is already turning at a rapid rate in 2020.