The popularity of the Nintendo Switch shows no sign of waning. Despite being three years older than its next-generation rivals, the family-friendly console still remains one of the most popular games consoles ever made. In 2022, it sold millions more units than Sony’s PlayStation 5 or Microsoft’s Xbox Series X, both of which launched in 2020.
But while the Nintendo Switch still reigns supreme, the console is getting a bit long in the tooth, lagging behind in terms of technical hardware. It’s been six years since the Switch was first launched and, in an earnings call in May, Nintendo’s president Shuntaro Furukawa admitted that “sustaining the Switch’s sales momentum [would] be difficult in its seventh year”.
While we’ve seen the launch of the Nintendo Switch OLED in the intervening years, it was a fairly minor upgrade. The console we’re all really impatiently waiting for is the Nintendo Switch 2, a true next-generation follow-up.
Although there’s been zero confirmation of its existence at all, rumours about the Switch 2 are gathering speed. We’ve taken a dive through the green warp pipe, and have rounded up all the Nintendo Switch 2 rumours currently swirling in the ether, including details on price, features, specs and more. Take everything here with a pinch of salt. Nothing is guaranteed until Nintendo confirms it.
The latest Nintendo Switch 2 rumours
We’ve just received our first rumour about the price of the Nintendo Switch 2, and if true, it could be significantly more expensive than the original Nintendo Switch’s launch price. According to leaker Zippo and their “numerous sources” at Nintendo, the Nintendo Switch 2 will cost $399, which works out to about £314. That’s roughly the same price as the Nintendo Switch OLED, which cost £309 at launch.
“It's the price that works in terms of the power of their new system, it's the price that works for them making a decent profit, and it's the price that they think works for the audience that they're trying to maintain. No more. No less,” the source told Zippo in their report.
More leaks and rumours about the potential release date and specs of the next Nintendo Switch 2 system lie ahead.
Nintendo Switch 2 release date rumours: When could the console launch?
Rumours about the Nintendo Switch 2 have been swirling for years – literally. The moment the Nintendo Switch came out, leakers were already discussing a second machine. For ages, many leakers thought Nintendo would release a new Switch console in 2021. Called the Nintendo Switch Pro, it would have upgraded hardware.
Nintendo did announce a new console that year, but it wasn’t the Switch Pro. On 6 July 2021, Nintendo unveiled the revised Switch OLED console, a modest upgrade over the OG model, with a slightly larger OLED display. This wasn’t the Switch Pro we’d hoped for. So, where do we stand today?
With Furukawa’s admissions about the Switch’s flagging sales at Nintendo’s May earnings call, the Nintendo Switch 2 is almost certainly in the pipeline. As for a release date, we know the Nintendo Switch 2 won’t be released until at least April 2024.
At the same financial earnings call, Furukawa stated that no hardware would be coming this financial year, which concludes at the end of March 2024.
On 31 July, Video Games Chronicle released a report claiming the Nintendo Switch 2 would be released in the second half of 2024 and that sources had informed the publication that development kits of the console are “now with key partner studios”, in an effort to “ensure it has ample stock available on day one and to avoid the kind of shortages seen with PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S”.
That second-half window release date would line up with what Nintendo’s president said in the earnings call in May. We’re speculating here, but we’re leaning towards a July announcement and a September release date, given the Nintendo Switch Lite and Switch OLED were both announced in July and released in September.
Nintendo Switch 2 specs and features rumours
Rumours about the Nintendo Switch 2’s specs and features are still fairly thin on the ground, but here’s what we’ve seen so far.
There was some commotion in late 2021, a month before the launch of the Switch OLED, when Bloomberg released a report stating a number of developers were in possession of a 4K Switch kit. Nintendo swiftly denied these rumours, stating that it had no plans for any new console beside the Switch OLED.
We also want to restate that, as we announced in July, we have no plans for any new model other than Nintendo Switch – OLED Model, which will launch on October 8, 2021. (2/2)
— 任天堂株式会社（企業広報・IR） (@NintendoCoLtd) September 30, 2021
The tinfoil-hatter in us questions whether Nintendo wanted to quell rumours so it wouldn’t impact sales of the Switch OLED, but that’s just conjecture on our part.
The Nintendo Switch currently uses Nvidia’s (now very old) Tegra X1 chip, which features a 256-core Maxwell GPU. The rumours so far suggest Nintendo will be sticking with Nvidia for the Nintendo Switch 2, despite stiff competition from AMD, which provided the chip for Valve’s powerful Steam Deck.
There was a big Nvidia data leak in March 2022, and data miners found files referencing “NVN2”. NVN is the Nintendo Switch’s graphics API. At the time, “NVN2” hinted at a second-generation version for the rumoured Switch Pro.
even more evidence it's a delayed Switch Pro and not a next gen platform, especially since the president said the Switch is in the middle of its lifehttps://t.co/CRjSQEDn0w
— Nikki™ (@NWPlayer123) March 1, 2022
The files were from 2019, providing credence to the theory that the Switch Pro was in active development but was axed, suggested by Digital Foundry.
In September 2022, an Nvidia employee furthered the idea that the Nintendo Switch would make use of a new Nvidia Tegra chip, specifically the Tegra T239 – a previously unconfirmed circuit that older rumours suggested the Switch 2 would use.
Nvidia employee has confirmed by accident the existence of the Tegra 239 SoC.
— Centro LEAKS (@CentroLeaks) September 21, 2022
This has been rumored since 2021 to be the SoC that will power the Nintendo Switch's succesor.
This is the first time we have official word for Nvidia that it actually exists. pic.twitter.com/JXbWqIxunt
The most recent rumours about the Nintendo Switch 2 came in late July. Video Games Chronicle (VGC) released a report stating the Switch 2 development kits were now in the hands of Nintendo’s biggest studios. The publication claimed that, according to multiple people with knowledge of the next-generation console’s plans, it “would be able to be used in portable mode, similar to the Nintendo Switch”.
Disappointingly, two of VGC’s sources also claimed the Nintendo Switch 2 would have an LCD display instead of an OLED panel. A huge step backwards from the Nintendo Switch OLED, if it’s true.
Sharp itself, who currently supplies the displays for the Nintendo Switch, previously stated in May 2023 that it had been working on an LCD screen for an unnamed gaming console, as per a Bloomberg report. This could, of course, be PlayStation’s Project Q, but with the VGC report and the close ties between Nintendo and Sharp, we wouldn’t be surprised if this one turns out to be true.
As well as rumours of the release date and display, VGC stated the Nintendo Switch 2 would have a physical cartridge slot, like the original model. Its sources did not provide details on backwards compatibility, however.
There has been no word on 4K support, but a 2021 patent filed by Nintendo suggested it was working on 4K upscaling.
Nintendo Switch 2 price rumours: How much could it cost?
Based on the rumoured specs of the Nintendo Switch 2, we expect Nintendo’s next console could cost as much, or even slightly less, than the Nintendo Switch OLED which costs £309.99. This speculation is based on the rumour that the Switch will have an LCD panel to help keep costs down. But we’ll be able to make a better guess as more rumours drop. The rumour at the top of the article suggests that it could cost slightly more than the Switch OLED, despite potentially not having an OLED panel.
The best Nintendo Switch deals
Nintendo Switch OLED: Was £309.99, now £299.99, Amazon.co.uk
If you’ve still yet to pick up a Nintendo Switch console and you don’t think you can wait an entire year for the Nintendo Switch 2 (which hasn’t even been confirmed, mind). We’d recommend picking up the Nintendo Switch OLED, which is discounted by £10 at Amazon.
It is the best version of the console you can buy right now. With a 7in OLED display and a sturdier kickstand, it’s a perfect companion for gaming on the go. In our review of the Nintendo Switch OLED model, our tester said: “The larger display is fantastic and playing games in handheld mode is an absolute joy. The kickstand feels so solid and makes us never want to look at that little toggle on the back of the original Switch ever again.”
Voucher codes
For discounts on games and offers on consoles, try the links below:
Looking to upgrade your machine? Have a read of our round-up of the best games consoles
