Topic: Do you want Switch Pro holiday 2020, or holiday 2021?

On the one hand, the Playstation 5 and the X Series Xbox One X-inator XXX-edition X-tra releases holidays 2020, and it would be beneficial to have an offering from Nintendo. If they release a Switch Pro in 2020, that can run PS5 and X-series games at lower settings, Nintendo has a much better leg to stand on with third party developers.

On the other hand, if they wait 1 more year, the prices will go down on the technology. Other than a better and more efficient chip, a Switch released in late 2021 could benefit from cheaper SD-cards. A 1 TB card could potentially cost as little as $50, and be enough for most people. There's also the advantage that existing Switch owners would get more years out of their Switch before it's no longer the current system. There's a rumor that the Switch Pro will have it's own proprietary games, while also supporting original Switch games.

What is your opinions?

@Agriculture The idea that a Switch pro will have pro only games is nothing but a slander from haters. I argue that Nintendo clearly learned from their mistakes in recent years. They saw the low sales of DSi and New 3DS only titles and will not make that mistake again. PC games have been being released for over 30 years designed to work on a large range of computers. There is no reason that console games cannot do the same. Furthermore, literally every app on iOS and Android are designed to work on a range of devices. This sort of programming is an industry standard and well established.

I fully expect Nintendo to tout the Switch Lite as their entry level/budget device, the OG Switch as their base model and a Pro as their "premium" version.

My prediction/hope for Switch Pro would be a slight overall graphical buff, but mainly, a nicer screen for portable, 1080p most likely, significantly better battery life (6-8 hours instead of 3-6) native Bluetooth headphone support, and a generally nicer build quality, something more like modern smartphones and tablets. And possibly, though I think this is unlikely but possible, a 4G/5G version of the Switch.

It makes the most sense to me, to release it this year, and to release it before PS5 and Xbox Series Cube are released. If they wait until next year, it will have a hard time convincing people because even if Nintendo bent over backward there's no way a hybrid device could come anywhere near the power of dedicated home consoles.

That's my take on it anyway.

Not at all for me. I’ll take the successor rather than a stopgap upgrade to split the library.

@Agriculture I'd have to wait until the model is revealed to decide. I've been wondering if there would be an unforseen Nintendo-twist with a revised model - be it software or hardware related, or unique edition/color bundle.

If they focus resources on more power, maybe they'll cut cost elsewhere and use a labo cardboard for the console shell instead of fancy-pants metal

@Heavyarms55 "The idea that a Switch pro will have pro only games is nothing but a slander from haters."
This is their underlying message but will never admit to this. If they said was true then a ps4 and ps4 pro can only play pro games but notice they never mention that but when it comes to a Pro Switch then it can only run Pro games. Looks like they ratted themselves out as haters.

I can see Nintendo releasing an updated Switch that runs at docked performance in handheld mode with a 1080p display (ideally with a button to switch to regular 720p handheld mode to conserve battery for less demanding games, and also for compatibility purposes as some previously-released software may not function as intended if the software detects the software as being docked, such as Brain Training), but considering Nintendo's history, and the fact that they themselves almost never bothered to optimise their games for the New 3DS, I'm not filled with confidence that they would enhance any of their games specifically for the much and annoyingly fabled "Switch Pro".

The next consoles are rumoured to be relatively more powerful than the Xbox One and PS4 were when they launched, meaning that power is more important for Microsoft and Sony (and users) than in 2013. Whether the Switch Pro releases this or the following year, it will struggle to get good-looking and good-performing next-gen ports but that also happened to Switch this generation and Switch still has performed well commercially.

I'd argue the opposite to be true. If Nintendo allows the next iteration of the Switch to have exclusive games, then games like GTA 6 has a chance of making it to the Switch. If developers are forced to also support the original Switch, then the Switch Pro won't get any new AAA-games. People criticized Microsoft over just this, when the Xbox One X didn't get any exclusive games of it's own, developers said it was held back.

One of the big things people seem to talk about is AI, and how Nintendo needs a more powerful Switch to be able to run the same AI as next gen games will have. The one thing preventing Switch from being the main console people have is that there is always doubt on whether or not big third part releases will come to it.

In an ideal world, Switch Pro would get released the same time as Grand Theft Auto 6, with that game being a launch title.

For me, not at all. I'm content with the Switch V2. Unless this supposed newest iteration changes the joy-con mechanism to something different, somehow eliminating my concerns with joy-con drift? At that point I would be very interested.

But a mid-gen marginal increase in computing power won't change publishers opinion of the Switch as a platform. The introduction of a Switch Pro wouldn't guarantee that Switch owners will then be able to play Grand Theft Auto V, Madden, Call of Duty, Monster Hunter World, Resident Evil 2 Remake, Devil May Cry 5, etc.

OG Switch does everything I really need it to do. Whatever comes next will need to offer some innovation, or go hard in on VR, for me to get motivated enough to buy within the next 2 years.

I think I'm more interested in a price cut so that it becomes more affordable and widespread.

But this comes from someone who has deliberately been building a backlog (across about 12 platforms) the size of Jupiter for the past 5 years and could easily last 10 years without another video game being released, so I'm in no hurry.

Id want it summer 2020, so Switch can get additional momentum before Xbox Series and PS5.

There is so much on the Switch and so much that could still potentially be ported, I don't think they need a big jump yet to remain competitive. If they release some kind of pro model this year then I hope it does not have any exclusives, but only has improved performance and resolution for games. I would wait another year or two for mobile chipsets to continue to improve before releasing a true successor to the Switch.

Once you start having different versions of the same console with different power capabilities, it isn't a console anymore, it's a PC

I hate the lite and the idea of a pro. There only needs to be one.

That's why I want the Pro to have exclusive games. That way it's just the next console, but with backwards compatibility. But I don't want them to stop selling the original, so it would be unwise to call it Switch 2, because that gives the impression that the first one is no more.

Nothing wrong with games that will run on a higher power CPU/GPU Switch. They should make the game updates where it can switch(pun) between higher system to lower system should you insert the cart into a 1Gen Switch. That way they can still have the game and play it and should they insert into a 2Gen then the fun begins. Limiting the games and system to each other is a recipe for backlash. Unless they specifically on the box state "For Pro System Only" so buyers know how to choose correctly.

Glad to see I'm in agreement with so many here: no Switch Pro at all, for me. Focus on the Switch, forget any kind of mid-tier console, and release an entirely new, but backwards compatible, Switch 2 no earlier than 2022 (preferably 2023), launching with bespoke Switch 2-only software. Phase out new Switch 1 software over the next 12-24 months, before focusing wholly on Switch 2 software, before the inevitable Switch 3 in circa 2028.

Sony has shown the way forward for iterating on a successful model, by using a clearly progressive naming convention for its new systems. Consumers understand this - certainly more easily than they understood New 3DS or Wii U.

However, this doesn't need to rule out Nintendo doing something bat-guano crazy and coming up with a completely different console instead of Switch 2 or Switch 3. I'm down for that, too.

@Krull
For example Nintendo HDS or Nintendo 1DS ? 🤣

Let's be honest the people who don't want a pro or a sequel just don't want to spend more money on hardware. As Sony would say. Get a second job.

Pro is gonna be fine; at most, it's gonna be just like the New 3DS and have a game or two exclusive and that's it. Otherwise it'll be something you can totally ignore if you want. I'm a HUGE Zelda fan and I ignored the New 3DS even with Major's Mask. You'll live.

Anyway, summer 2020 would be best release time. Right around E3 when MS/Sony are talking about their next consoles. If you release holiday 2020 against PS5 and Xbox Whatever, sales are gonna suffer. Get it out there in the summer or fall to give it a few months' head start.

No reason to even start thinking about a Switch 2. Switch is killing it right now, and with Lite and Pro, this thing can go for another 3 years solid, no questions asked.