Rumour: "Switch Mini" handheld coming in June (No joycons or dock, but still compatible with them)

OrangeRKN wrote:I think it looks bad

... ... .

OrangeRKN wrote:...I hate how every Zelda edition seems to be gold embellished. Gold on pretty much anything that isn't jewellery is just tacky.

I do agree about gold; 99% is tacky, but on that machine it just looks and feels so good. Stylish rather than gaudy. But, hey, beauty is in the eye of the beholder and all that.

I'll admit it's better than this:



The reason I don't have a joy-con with a d-pad yet

Balladeer wrote:Sorry Pedz.

Saw the OP with the rumor and was like eugh.

Not including the dock will probably save Nintendo money more for "shipping size" reasons than production savings. Judging by its quality, I reckon the dock costs around £1.05 to produce.

jawafour wrote:Not including the dock will probably save Nintendo money more for "shipping size" reasons than production savings. Judging by its quality, I reckon the dock costs around £1.05 to produce.

The dock form factor could change too, it could simply become some kind of USB/HDMI/AC splitter on a wire.

I'm not sure how a clamshell "Switch Mini" would fit into the dock seeing as the USB-C port would have the be dead centre at the bottom.

Then there's Joycon pairing, thy have to be attached to the Switch console for this to happen currently, I can't see how they'd interface with a "Switch Mini" for this to happen.

I don't think it will be clam shell, too much of a departure from the visual design of the Switch. People can just buy cases like they do for their phones.

NickSCFC wrote:Then there's Joycon pairing, thy have to be attached to the Switch console for this to happen currently, I can't see how they'd interface with a "Switch Mini" for this to happen.

Nintendo Support wrote:USB Connection Pairing.

Attach the Joy-Con to the Joy-Con charging grip (sold separately), then connect it to the Nintendo Switch dock with the included USB cable (model No. HAC-010).

https://en-americas-support.nintendo.co ... ontrollers

That seems like the alternative approach that's currently supported. If you have a mini that doesn't support joy-cons and then buy some, you'd need the charging grip anyway.

OrangeRKN wrote:I don't think it will be clam shell, too much of a departure from the visual design of the Switch. People can just buy cases like they do for their phones.

NickSCFC wrote:Then there's Joycon pairing, thy have to be attached to the Switch console for this to happen currently, I can't see how they'd interface with a "Switch Mini" for this to happen.

Nintendo Support wrote:USB Connection Pairing.

Attach the Joy-Con to the Joy-Con charging grip (sold separately), then connect it to the Nintendo Switch dock with the included USB cable (model No. HAC-010).

https://en-americas-support.nintendo.co ... ontrollers

That seems like the alternative approach that's currently supported. If you have a mini that doesn't support joy-cons and then buy some, you'd need the charging grip anyway.

Great find

OrangeRKN wrote:I don't think it will be clam shell, too much of a departure from the visual design of the Switch. People can just buy cases like they do for their phones.

Support for magnetic screen covers covers like phones and tablets would be a nice touch. Handy little money maker too.

I've no interest in a mini myself but if it brings in more people who have been reluctant so far then that is a good thing. The more the platforms continues to sell then the more support it is going to get.

I can certainly see why some people would want a smaller form factor, and possibly a clam shell design.

The portability of Game Boy is what has made it a phenomenal seller so a small form factor makes perfect sense. I wasn't hoping for a Switch Pro but if there's no news at E3 then I'll buy the standard model.

This is the next logical step for Switch to take, they need to capture the 3DS crowd who have not jumped into the Switch ecosystem as yet. A Switch mini at a good price coupled with a year of titles that have recently been handheld focused (Pokémon, Fire Emblem, Animal Crossing) should help drive up console sales.

The more interesting thing I think is the Switch Pro, it makes sense to have a more powerful Switch system out in time as the next gen systems launch but what form will it take? Will it be a PS4 Pro situation where the devs need to support both the Pro and Standard models in which case the power bump will be wasted? Will they take the New 3DS approach and release Switch Pro exclusives (More 3rd party exclusives, not 1st party really)

It's a good idea as this would be more suitable for folks who only play in portable mode, but preferable I'd like to see a Switch more powerful, bigger hard drive, more apps and improved joy cons.

ITSMILNER wrote:This is the next logical step for Switch to take, they need to capture the 3DS crowd who have not jumped into the Switch ecosystem as yet. A Switch mini at a good price coupled with a year of titles that have recently been handheld focused (Pokémon, Fire Emblem, Animal Crossing) should help drive up console sales.

Good point, as I've mentioned in other threads, the first couple of years of first party Switch games picked up where the Wii and Wii U left off, focusing on iterations to the big Mario and Zelda adventure series.

The focus this winter will be on new iterations of the DS/3DS's biggest games (Pokémon, Fire Emblem, Animal Crossing and 2D Zelda)

ITSMILNER wrote:The more interesting thing I think is the Switch Pro, it makes sense to have a more powerful Switch system out in time as the next gen systems launch but what form will it take? Will it be a PS4 Pro situation where the devs need to support both the Pro and Standard models in which case the power bump will be wasted? Will they take the New 3DS approach and release Switch Pro exclusives (More 3rd party exclusives, not 1st party really)

Watching several DigitalFoundry videos, it seems like Nintendo have been preparing for this since the beginning as many of their games use dynamic resolution (which makes sense anyway as Switch games already have to support two configurations). We could see games running in 1080p in both docked/handheld modes without the need to software updates on a hypothetical Switch XL.

NickSCFC wrote:

ITSMILNER wrote:This is the next logical step for Switch to take, they need to capture the 3DS crowd who have not jumped into the Switch ecosystem as yet. A Switch mini at a good price coupled with a year of titles that have recently been handheld focused (Pokémon, Fire Emblem, Animal Crossing) should help drive up console sales.

Good point, as I've mentioned in other threads, the first couple of years of first party Switch games picked up where the Wii and Wii U left off, focusing on iterations to the big Mario and Zelda adventure series.

The focus this winter will be on new iterations of the DS/3DS's biggest games (Pokémon, Fire Emblem, Animal Crossing and 2D Zelda)

ITSMILNER wrote:The more interesting thing I think is the Switch Pro, it makes sense to have a more powerful Switch system out in time as the next gen systems launch but what form will it take? Will it be a PS4 Pro situation where the devs need to support both the Pro and Standard models in which case the power bump will be wasted? Will they take the New 3DS approach and release Switch Pro exclusives (More 3rd party exclusives, not 1st party really)

Watching several DigitalFoundry videos, it seems like Nintendo have been preparing for this since the beginning as many of their games use dynamic resolution (which makes sense anyway as Switch games already have to support two configurations). We could see games running in 1080p in both docked/handheld modes without the need to software updates on a hypothetical Switch XL.

I wonder though (depending how powerful a Pro model would be) will they allow anyone to release Pro exclusive games and make use of the extra oomph? Otherwise, if devs still need to support the original model then it will still hold back some games coming to the system.

They also mentioned Nintendo Switch Online increasing in price but ‘strengthening’ the service. I hope this dosen’t Just mean chucking SNES games onto the service. They really need to improve the actual features of the Online, better chat and messaging features, parties, better connections..that type of thing.

Pretty sure they stated part of their Switch strategy was to have multiple Switch consoles in each household. This looks like it would support that strategy even if their operating system doesn't.

Hopefully it won't look as cheaply made as that mock up if it is real.

Sandy wrote:Pretty sure they stated part of their Switch strategy was to have multiple Switch consoles in each household. This looks like it would support that strategy even if their operating system doesn't.

shots fired

And quite correctly

Personally I have very little interest in a Switch Mini but if it sells more Switch consoles and makes more developers release games for it then I’m all for it. Same with the Switch Pro (although I do have a slight interest in that one but it’ll definitely be a wait and see approach) if that releases at some point down the line.

The worry if they do release a Switch Pro, which only applies for those who don’t buy it (natch), is that they may then release games that play on the Pro but not the regular, distracting resources from all-Switch titles; or that run like gooseberry fool on the original version. This happened with the 3DS to the small extent. So if you don’t plan to get a Pro, you’re better off if one never shows up.

To be honest it’s getting to the point where, so long as it still has a handheld mode, I’d likely get a Pro to avoid the software split. But I wouldn’t be happy about it!

Maybe, or maybe they could do what PS4 pro and Xbox one X do and enhance the games.

Sooooooo would this sync with my existing Switch? So I could leave that one permanently docked and take the mini version mobile?

Coz otherwise, definitely no intention of swapping.