If You Recently Bought A Switch, Nintendo Will Replace It With A Revised Model

Be a real bloody shame if you bought it on the 16th 😂

Oh, only after July 17th of -this- year...

Hmm. No further comment.

I wish there was a paid upgrade system for the limited Edition systems

Very cool of Nintendo to do this! Unfortunately for me I got my Switch back in February so no upgrade in my future, though I sure can't complain about the 6 months of fantastic gaming I've gotten out of my Switch so far. =)

"...and purchased an original system any time after 17th July this year"

That is a very important part, I feel like this article pulled a bait n switch on me, lol.

According to my receipt I bought mine at 11.58pm on the 16th July so I'm screwed

@JayJ Hmmm not really... They said "recently" in the head line... Depends on your definition on "recently", I guess

Maybe they should have said "efter January 1st 2019"....

@Godlike_Virus They need to set a date to make the process easier. That said, it's funny that people start complaining already. It's a nice move of Nintendo and people shouldn't take it for granted!

That’s actually really good, a nice, unexpected move. Good job Nintendo.

@mazzel Oh it is a nice move indeed, don't get me wrong. But for those of us that have had to live with the shorter battery life say, since launch or even a year-ish after launch (like mine per say, since February of 2018), it kinda sucks. But eh, it's no big deal. I tend to play docked more so than not, and thankfully my Joy Cons have remained drift free ever since they came out of the box. Good times.

@Godlike_Virus I agree. Like, Nintendo doesn’t have to do this and I applaud them for this consumer friendly option but... as a day one adopter, I can’t help but feel a LITTLE shafted. This “upgrade” surely isn’t enough for me to shell out $300 for a new Switch but it’s still something I wish I had. Or at least that they would do some sort of Ambassador program like they did with the 3DS though really, it’s not like we’re entitled to something like that.

It would be great if they’d be a little flexible with the date though. Like someone said, imagine if you got your Switch July 16th. That person would feel a little ripped off here.

"If You Recently Bought A Switch, Nintendo Will Replace It With A Revised Model"

Maybe you should write "Within The Last Month" instead of "Recently".

People complaing about the period starting from only 1 month ago, they didn't have to do it at all...

If people didn't do their homework on the revised model releasing and still bought one that is their fault. Likely people like that won't even know about this anyway.

I think Nintendo will melt the returned consoles down to make food for our alien overlords, or maybe I'm still drunk.

This is nice of Nintendo. I think people are reaching a bit to expect them to replace their consoles from the beginning of the year or even launch.

Nintendo didn’t have to do this and they would cripple themselves to replace 30+ million Switches (or even a couple million Switches if we are talking about US sales this year).

It would be nice to have free upgrades, but let’s be realistic guys.

@USWITCH64 : I'm no alien overlord (though you are more than welcome to be enslaved by me), but we in the upper social-economic classes (or common thieves) enjoy eating delicious consoles at esteemed establishments far beyond the capacity of your pathetic middle-class comprehension.

I prefer Parmesan with my Switch tartare, but as for the Wii U, I much rather prefer that be pickled (it helps disguise that awful taste of commercial failure).

Now, I'll confess that melted-down video game consoles aren't the most delicious things to eat, but our sense of elitism more than makes up for their lingering metallic aftertaste.

You could still be drunk though, and this comment could be a figment of your frankly bizarre imagination.

@Silly_G how bizarre, although I used to love a deep fried 3ds XL a few years back!

Anyone who bought the system earlier (and still have warranty) might hope something happening to their switches. Nintendo might replace a faulty unit with a new revision.

I bought mine in June 2017 and I'm in Europe, but that's a nice touch.

Bought mine on launch day here in Japan, very last one they had in the last store I thought to check - and the clerk actually thought it was broken because it only had the grey joycons. lol

The better battery life is nice, but not worth going out of my way for. I've been using a brick ever since it came out, and the brick gives me an easy 12-14 hours.

@Godlike_Virus I don't agree. The people who bought the switch earlier could play with it much longer also. It's like you want a refund if the Switch gets cheaper now, which you will not get.
You also will not get any refund or the chance to upgrade if you recently bought a new TV and the brand just releases a new iteration with, let's say, a better display. So why expect this from Nintendo now? Be happy that they upgrade instaed of keeping the same hardware for the same price over years!

Pretty decent of them for anyone who bought one and found out few weeks after theres a newer one.
Does this imply that they will recycle the old ones by upgrading them? Cause if can be upgraded im sure alot of fans would pay to upgrade existing one.

@Marios-love-child It would be worth still trying. Guessing by that time, did you buy it online? Surely you wouldn't have received it until the 17th at the earliest, so you could argue that.

Also for anyone moaning about this with like launch day switchs etc get over it. (If youre just off the dates id chance it and contact them worst can say is no) Been out over 2 years and this well its a minor nice upgrade . They didnt have to offer it at all and its not like playstation or xbox give you upgraded consoles everytime a new version comes out. Its a business.

@ShadJV Ohhh yeahhh, I almost forgot about that 3DS Ambassador Program thingie. I got my first 3DS early on to be a part of that, was rather fab of an deal they did with that.

So much for that "no further comment" thing. XP

Great move by Nintendo. Obviously annoying for those who just miss out but they have to set a cut off point otherwise everyone would want an upgrade....

@Andigaming Thank you. That’s absolutely fantastic news, but still people find something to complain about. They really didn’t have to do it, and after reading those comments, they shouldn’t.

Some entitled snow flakes genuinely believe that Nintendo should replace 1+ year old game systems... basically suggesting that around 15m consoles should be replaced.

Someone told me that the gap between expectation and reality is where stupidity happens.

You can upgrade for $75. If you trade your old switch at GameStop. They give you $225 for the trade in. I bought my original on 6/1/19 so I couldn't get the free upgrade. Here is the link. How To Trade In Your Old Nintendo Switch And Get The New Model For $75 - GameSpot
https://www.gamespot.com/articles/how-to-trade-in-your-old-nintendo-switch-and-get-t/1100-6469055/

I qualify but won't do it. I mean if it were a 6 hour gain then maybe but it's not worth the time and effort to do so. I don't have a problem with the battery life. I don't play undocked for 3 hours at a time. If I did, I would just sit with it plugged in. Not to mention I like to play on a tv as well..plus, "where did I put my receipt!?" Unless you guys really give me something to think about.

I got mine on the 26th of July. Though, I am not trading my Switch for a Switch that won't connect to the TV.

That's nice but replacing defective joy con sticks with another would type would be better.(yes I know about the free replacement that only is only a temp fix.)

@biglittlejake
???

They’re not offering you a Switch Lite, they’re offering the NEW MODEL SWITCH, Which is exactly like yours but twice the battery life.

Another punishment to day one buyers.

@biglittlejake

Try reading the article , they are not replacing it with a lite, it's the newer model with better battery life and joycons

@JaxonH
I see. I really don't want to mess up my games that their save isn't compatible to be backed up to the cloud( Pokemon, Splatoon). I mean, I don't want to deal with getting Meltan and Melmetal again...

@suikoden Okay, thanks. I guess it's too early for me.

This is a great move IMO, and the cut-off date makes sense. Hopefully this option is opened up to other regions as well.

Sadly, I'm not surprised that people have found a reason to complain about this.

Wasn't expecting this at all and I'm shocked that somebody at Nintendo even mentioned the idea out loud. Maybe Bowser has Japan's ear?

Sure people are always going to complain about random cut-off dates and there will always be a couple of folk who miss it by a day or 2, but the consoles are so similar to each other I'm surprised they bothered doing this at all, so good for them, take the win.

How dare Nintendo not replace the switch I bought just two years ago.

I traded in a bunch of games to Gamestop and upgraded my launch edition switch for the new model. Can’t wait to play Fire Emblem and Witcher 3 in longer bursts away from my dock now

@Marios-love-child Oh no, you could plead and beg?

Whilst I wouldn't qualify for this anyway it's a little annoying that there is no consistency between different regions of Nintendo. Are Nintendolife planning on bugging Nintendo UK as to why none of this applies to us. Have joycon drift issues but not wanting to pay over the odds for a repair when the US are getting them free. Also not wanting to buy anymore until they make a statement about fixing it...

@Yoshinator here, here!

I find it very suspicious! I have a feeling that they just do this to coverup joy-con drift, meaning that the new models also have better analogue sticks. Why else would they do such a expensive move?!

March 3rd 2017 surely counts as recent no? Seems good to me

No I am not, because I bought ours this February. This was awfully nice of Nintendo though.

Traded my old one in at Gamestop and got the new one for a pretty good deal. Was a launch switch so wouldn't have mattered anyway, but this is really cool of Nintendo, good on them.

The boost is pretty significant as well, played FE for well over 5 hours and it still had a bit juice left when I docked it. Well worth it for me.

I am thinking of trading my March 2017 for the 2019 revised in Game Stop and putting that towards the new one. But I've have to transfer my account in-store before I trade in so I have my saves and account setting ready to go on the new unit.

@Henmii "I find it very suspicious! I have a feeling that they just do this to coverup joy-con drift, meaning that the new models also have better analogue sticks. Why else would they do such a expensive move?!"

I wouldn't put it past that either.

Nintendo didn't have to do this, especially when it's a relatively minor update that was never officially announced. So if you're able to take advantage of the offer, you're lucky 👍
I'll bet Nintendo are pissed off now that their act of goodwill is being spread on news sites. Now they'll get a bunch of people that want the upgrade "just because", abusing the offer and costing them a lot more money.

Protecting retailers for massive returns/complaints and making consumers very happy! Ace Nintendo, ace!

Hmm....According to Engadget via The Verge this is not happening
https://www.engadget.com/2019/08/17/nintendo-denies-switch-exchange-program/

LOL of course not. Nintendo didn't even mentioned the Lite or this upgraded Switch at E3, they don't want you to wait for the better hardware. Why would they exchange old units now? They are happy you are unwittingly clearing up the old inventory for them.

This is one of the things I hate about Nintendo. Unlike other tech companies, they will never tell you when they put out new hardware. They don't want people to stop buying and wait for the new ones.

Never believe everything you read. Let this be a lesson.

Posting again after the update

I did post yesterday joking about buying one 2 minutes before midnight on 16th July. I think judging by some replies 1 or 2 people took my comment seriously.

I'm actually a day one buyer and I'm based in the UK so wouldnt have been eligible anyway had in been true. But even if I had been eligible I very much doubt I'd have bothered with the hassle.

You can count on one hand the amount of times I've taken the Switch out of the house (mainly when I go on holidays) and when I have I've found the battery life to be more than adequate for my needs.

I'd say it spends a good 95% of its life docked and hooked up to the TV

Well, duh, since when does Nintendo do anything so nice?

Cya
Raziel-chan

Makes you wonder who at Digital Trends reached out to whom at Nintendo and how they concluded this was the real deal to begin with...

@Marios-love-child
Where did you buy it at damn near midnight?

Such bad journalism on account of Digital Trends. The first red flag is “According to Reddit users...”, and they should NEVER have published without hearing back from PR. They mention they reached out for comment but nothing about what that response was. They essentially ran a story corroborated by a subreddit and a call centre employee. Is that the best this industry can do for journalism?

@commentlife

This annoys me. Games journalism has been buried by the “journalists” themselves over the last ten-or-so years. Today, what’s left, is a handful actual journalists fighting for readers’ screen time with the “journalists” screening Twitter, Reddit, and other “news” outlets for new stories. Nintendolife is as guilty as anyone else, sometimes better, but also sometimes way worse.

"Digital Trends even reached out to Nintendo and confirmed this offer does in fact exist."

"The Verge got in contact with Nintendo of America"

Here's a thought, maybe somebody at NL should try to find out the truth about a story before running it rather than relying on DT and the Verge? I know the site is UK based but surely you know somebody in the US?

I can't see as this could be true. The revised Switch offers little more than better battery life over the original. Why would Nintendo see fit to upgrade people for free because they purchased the wrong one? It's not like you can't play all the newer games on it as smoothly. It's not a case of New 3DS having exclusive titles launched for it. They've never offered free upgrades to people who purchased older versions of hardware after a new version is out in the past, either.

NintendoLife... PLEASE do at least the minimum amount of research before posting an article like this... which is false information... Did you really use Reddit as your source?

Complete lack of integrity.

If they both reached out to Nintendo then what's the truth? This article is confusing.

Edit: Okay, apparently support is authorized to do this if you contact them but it's not an "official program" hence the conflicting information. Would be nice if these articles were more thorough.

Well, many retailers already have 30 day or longer return policies... Best Buy does for sure. Walmart probably would take it too... So, if anyone purchased the older unit within the last month, there should be no problem returning and exchanging it via the retailer. I think this is better anyways because then you don't have to pay shipping or wait for anything.

DOH my joycon gave so many problems syncing issues connectivity issues and REALLY bad drift😖😭😭

If only you could

@holygeez03 Technically it's not false information. GameXplain confirmed that in the U.S they will exchange consoles for free (provided shipping costs).

I always thought this was a strange story.