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The Nintendo Switch is both a home and handheld console in one device

By James Lu & Vijay Anand - on 21 Oct 2016, 2:21pm

The Nintendo Switch is both a home and handheld console in one device

After more than a year of rumors and leaks, Nintendo has officially unveiled its latest console: the Nintendo Switch

Nintendo changed gaming when it pioneered motion-control gaming ten years ago with the Nintendo Wii and the Switch looks to do the same with a revolutionary hybrid design that is both a home and a handheld console all in one.

When you're using the Switch at home, you connect it to a docking station that will hook it up to your TV. The sides of the system can be removed to make a controller, which allows you to play games on your couch like a regular console. 

When you're going out, you simply take the system from its docking station and plug in the controller parts again. The game that you’re currently playing will seamlessly transition from the TV screen to the handheld device’s screen.

Previously known by the codename of "Nintendo NX", it looks our last reported leak in July was spot on various aspects - from the form factor, to the target market (mobile audience),  to what's powering it underneath its hood and how you would likely be loading new games. As reported previously that NVIDIA's Tegra X1 was powering the development kits, NVIDIA has confirmed that a customized variant of this Tegra processor has been employed in the Nintendo Switch.

This effectively also suggests that the Nintendo Switch will benefit from Tegra’s power efficiency while used as a portable gaming console, but would not match up to the Xbox One or PlayStation 4 in terms of raw performance throughput. Even so, we don't think it's much of a concern given the target market of the Switch, plus the fact that NVIDIA's own renowned Tegra Shield Android TV consoles and Shield Gaming Tablet use their Tegra K1 and X1 processors and we see no issues with the community who've bought into it for the purposes of gaming.

The Switch will launch in March next year, but Nintendo hasn't announced any pricing so far. We also don't know what's powering the Switch, but based off of its portable size, it's likely to be weaker than the hardware inside both the Xbox One and PlayStation 4. Specs-wise, the most crucial piece of information that's yet to be revealed will be what battery is inside the Switch, and how much battery life we can expect from it when used in handheld form. 

In terms of games, Nintendo's trailer for the Switch showed a new Legend of Zelda game, a new Mario game, a new Mario Kart game, and a port of Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim.

Source: Nintendo and NVIDIA

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