This rumor adds fuel to the fire that Nintendo's next platform is an iteration of the Switch.
A new rumor has emerged supporting suspicions that Nintendo will be launching a new platform this year.
As shared on Reddit by user KelvinBelmont, Bloomberg reports on a rumor from Omdia analyst Hiroshi Hayase. Hiroshi’s specialty is research on small and medium sized displays, having access to information on their supply chain. Based on this information, he makes predictions on upcoming products.
Hiroshi claims that Nintendo will be launching their next platform this year, and it will come with an eight inch screen. According to the article, Hiroshi said that:
“The new device from the Kyoto-based games maker will be responsible for a doubling in shipments of so-called amusement displays in 2024.”
This lines up with other rumors that have popped up about the Nintendo Switch successor. As we had reported last May, Sharp Corporation announced in an earnings call that they were working in R&D with a company making a game console, without identifying the company.
Circumstantially, Sharp and Nintendo have been working together for decades. Sharp made products like the Twin Famicom all the way back in 1986, and have been supplying parts for Nintendo through the years. That relationship presumably continues today that Sharp is owned by Foxconn, who also have a business relationship with Nintendo.
Earlier this month, analyst Dr Serkan Toto predicted that Nintendo would make an iteration of the Switch for their next platform. On the side, most gamers also would want Nintendo to keep making a hybrid home/portable console, as the format has proven popular.
Now, it’s one thing to read that a device has an 8 inch screen, but what would that look like? It would definitely be bigger than the Nintendo Switch OLED’s 7 inch screen. In fact, it would also be bigger than the Steam Deck’s 7.4 inch screen. For those who have seen these devices, it will be smaller than the ROG Ally’s 8.8 inch screen, and around the same size screen as the AOKZOE Z1.
But we know most people haven’t even heard of the AOKZOE Z1. The closest familiar comparison would be to the iPad mini, which most gamers will agree isn’t much big for a tablet, but would be substantial for a gaming portable.
Now, Nintendo can put weaker hardware in a bigger sized device. But this bigger screen does suggest that Nintendo is planning for more powerful hardware, that won’t be as compact as the Switch Lite. Otherwise, what would be the point of that bigger screen?
So the screen size may seem like a minor detail, but it carries a lot of implications for what Nintendo’s successor will be like. If this rumor holds true, we won’t have to wait that long to confirm it.
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