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A second Nintendo Switch upgrade could still be on the way, an analyst has speculated.
Yesterday on July 6, shortly after the Nintendo Switch OLED model was unveiled, Bloomberg consulted Tokyo-based games industry analyst Serkan Toto on the new model. "This new Switch looks more like an interim model than a real upgrade to me," said Toto. "This might just be a dummy upgrade until Breath Of The Wild 2 is ready and the component shortage is over next year."
It's an interesting take from Toto. When the Nintendo Switch OLED model was finally revealed yesterday by Nintendo after months of speculation, many were somewhat underwhelmed by the console's limited improvements on the existing Nintendo Switch model. The main features offered by the new console are the bigger OLED screen, expanded internal storage, better audio quality, an improved kickstand, and wired ethernet support through the new dock (which will be available to purchase separately).
This runs counter to what many outlets, including Bloomberg, reported as far back as August 2020. Previously, the outlet reported that Nintendo was investigating a 4K-capable Nintendo Switch upgrade, and later on in March 2021, Bloomberg again reported that the 4K-ready Nintendo Switch upgrade would be available before Holiday 2021 later in the year.
With all this reporting from a very notable outlet, many were left puzzled at the lack of a 4K-ready Switch yesterday. Toto clearly believes that there's another model of Nintendo Switch in the works, however, which might have taken a backseat to the new OLED model thanks to the worldwide chip shortages we've seen over the past year.
It's not hard to believe that the global chip shortage really could have thrown Nintendo's best-laid plans up in the air. We've reported on how console manufacturers have been facing shortages of chips over the past year, and Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa even said earlier this year in April that the Nintendo Switch would likely remain hard to find over the remainder of 2021. On the Xbox Series X and PS5 side of things, the global chip shortage got so bad in recent months that the U.S. government even stepped in to investigate earlier this year in February.
Right now, there's only speculation to go on about a second upgraded model of Nintendo Switch. What we do know for certain is that the Nintendo Switch OLED model will launch later this year on October 8, and it'll retail for $349.99/£309.99 when it eventually launches.
If you're looking to reserve your version of Nintendo's new console for launch later this year, head over to our Nintendo Switch OLED pre-orders guide for more.
