Paul Morris on April 14, 2017, 10:45 pm

Nintendo Switch Mini Is In The Works [Rumor]

As expected, Nintendo has a relatively instantaneous hit on its hands with the recently released Nintendo Switch hardware. The Japanese company is not only struggling to keep up with demand for the hardware on a global scale, but is already basking in the glory of actually selling more than one million units last month in the United States alone.

Demand for the innovative console will continue to exist, but it looks as though the company could be planning on releasing a miniature version of the Switch as early as next year.

Rather than simply looking to make minor changes to the hardware, either internally or shaving off a few millimeters here and there with the design, presumably well-placed analysts are suggesting that the company could introduce an entirely new piece of hardware, complete with a miniature design and internal improvements that would dramatically enhance mobile performance.

It’s likely that this introduction would be designed and launched to try and target the youth who want something a little smaller after finding the existing Switch difficult to handle, according to Citigroup:

Although the Nintendo Switch can be used as a handheld device, we think smaller children could struggle to use it comfortably in that format due to its size and weight. Accordingly, we think Nintendo will launch a lighter, dedicated handheld version of the Switch, possibly to be called the Switch Mini.

It’s likely that consumers will continue to want and purchase the Switch as we currently know it. It’s already proven to be an extremely popular gaming console due to the fact that it can function as a standalone console in a home environment, or a handheld portable device on the go. However, as additional publishers continue to pull together and release new titles that demand is only going to surge.

According to the same analysts at Citigroup, Nintendo could be on course to offload 6.7 million Switch Mini units through to March 2019 if the hardware is introduced in March 2018, which would amount to around the 32 million units shipped mark for both variants. Those figures are of course, estimations based on current performance.

The interesting thing about this prediction is that no sources are being cited, so it appears to be a very big “if” at the moment. It makes sense that a Switch Mini could be on Nintendo’s roadmap, but we’ll have to wait to see if it materializes.

(Via: Bloomberg)