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In a brief moment of half-asleep stupor as I opened Twitter yesterday morning, I thought that the Switch 2 had been revealed. The very first thing I saw upon waking up was a video of what looked like a larger Switch, with someone detaching and reattaching its magnetic Joy-Con controllers. However, things weren't quite as they first appeared, as it turned out to be an allegedly faithful mock-up console shown off by accessory maker Genki at CES 2025.
This mock-up has been going viral following reports from the likes of Numerama, which shared the video that originally caught me off guard. In the same report (translated using Google and DeepL), it was also alleged that Genki had indicated that an optical sensor would be included as a new feature – something which had already been speculated about in recent days following a supposed leak of the left Joy-Con. There was a whole lot to unpack, but speaking to IGN, a representative for Genki has rather amusingly stated that they "didn't expect this much media attention, to be honest."
VIDEO — La Nintendo Switch 2 en avant-première au #CES2025. L'accessoiriste Genki indique posséder la vraie console et expose une maquette 3D + des accessoires. Les détails ici : https://t.co/5LDlnR2zC1 pic.twitter.com/IJ6taQggIQJanuary 8, 2025
Reportedly, the representative was surprised that the mock-up had caught so much attention because they felt they weren't offering any new information, having thought that it'd all already leaked. To be fair, they have a point – the Genki mock-up seemingly matches up with certain existing rumors, such as the apparent inclusion of magnetic Joy-Con, but it's not like it showed something that looked nothing like what previous claims had suggested. With that being said, it's obviously still a big deal if it's accurate because it could offer our first proper glimpse of what we can expect the real thing to look like.
IGN also reports that the Genki representative has given a few more details about the console, but they claim not to know the technical specs, and say they don't have any info to offer about a mysterious new button which features on the right Joy-Con.
Curiously, they suggest that the Switch 2 looks like it'd fit in a regular ol' Switch dock, but apparently there are indentations that look like they'll prevent it from being usable. Also, while it's clearly not confirmed, Genki is reportedly "assuming" the Switch Joy-Con will work with the new console, despite not being able to attach to it – it's apparently thought that they'll be able to work as wireless controllers, instead.
On top of that, there's said to be an additional USB port on the top of Switch 2, although it's not clear if it can be docked this way around. IGN also measured the mock-up, and report that it's notably larger than a current Switch OLED – it states it has an 8-inch screen (that's an inch bigger than the OLED), is an inch wider at 10.5", and half an inch taller at 4.5" (they're apparently the same thickness).
Obviously, we'll have to wait and see what the real deal ends up looking like when Nintendo finally announces it – two former Nintendo marketing leads are convinced that the company won't change its plans from whatever date it already has planned, despite the "wild" leaks.
