According to
Rich at ReviewTechUSA on The YouTubes, his source said it's a more powerful Switch. It's an 18 minute video so here are some details:
1. Nintendo wants hardware capable of competing with next generation consoles from Sony and Microsoft.
2. Nintendo is prioritizing third party support. A hardware revision would allow Nintendo to get some ports of third party titles on those consoles similar to how Switch gets some current generation ports.
3. Nintendo has been working on this for three or four years, concurrently with the current Switch. Nintendo waited for the tech to be cheaper.
4. MSRP $399.99.
5. 512 GB of internal memory.
6. Custom SOC.
7. Same hardware performance as PS4.
On that last point, the first thing that came to mind was:
For BlackNMildRich's source speculated that Nintendo will announce the revision in January, launch late 2019. Also, Nintendo worked with the Wall Street Journal to leak some of the details.
There's a lot to unpack here. Most of it does not sound like Nintendo. Then again, Nintendo has been doing a lot of atypical Nintendo things since launching Switch.
I still think Nintendo should aim down and focus on dropping the price. I've also bought Nintendo revisions so perhaps I'm not one to talk. Maybe Nintendo's strategy is to have a lower-cost entry level Switch and a top of the line Switch. Several years ago, Satoru Iwata spoke about iOS and Android as "common platforms."
Here's the exact quote:
Apple is able to release smart devices with various form factors one after another because there is one way of programming adopted by all platforms. Apple has a common platform called iOS. Another example is Android. Though there are various models, Android does not face software shortages because there is one common way of programming on the Android platform that works with various models.
I mean, if Rich's source is correct, that certainly sounds like what Nintendo is planning. Seems complicated. Then again, Nintendo has done a lot of things I didn't think could or should be done. At this point, I'm more willing to bet on Nintendo than against it.