The rumors that broke yesterday about a new Switch console, the Nintendo Switch Pro, are by no means the first time we’ve heard such claims. Since 2018 there have been rumblings that such a release would happen. Rumors about different Nintendo Switch consoles have come about every few months, but have yet to come true. So when rumors revved up yesterday about a new console, you could count me among the more suspicious.
The new rumors come from an anonymous source reported by Taiwan’s Economic Daily News. The source claimed that a new model is due sometime in 2021.
When is a Nintendo Switch Pro coming?
Bloomberg is also adding their own takes, suggesting that their own sources claim that Nintendo wants support for up to 4K graphics on the new model. That would be quite the leap in price and performance, considering the current Switch often runs around the 720p mark on more demanding titles. Witcher 3 makes use of dynamic scaling with a target resolution of 720p in portable mode, with 1080p being the target in docked mode. The framerate often dips into the 20’s in more demanding areas, even though the developers accounted for that and did their best to scale back the number of NPCs and effects.
Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa has added on an earnings call in January 2020 that a new Switch model would not arrive in 2020. He did not say that a new model would never arrive though. And while it’s possible, the timeframe seems a bit suspect. According to current rumors, a Switch Pro could land as early as Q1 2021.
Some sources within the game industry are predicting a surprise Nintendo announcement before the end of 2020. It could be as early as before the end of August, according to VentureBeat journalist Jeff Grubb. It would kind of make sense for Nintendo to come out of the gate storming ahead of the full reveals of the XBSX and PS5 though, as Nintendo would do well to take advantage of its strong sales so far.
