Nintendo has insisted they have no announcements for new hardware related to the Switch. They confirmed this ahead of the E3 Direct and that was the case. Yet, analysts in the industry have insisted something must be coming. It’s easy to imagine what they are: A bigger, stronger handheld with refreshes to Nvidia’s Tegra chipset and a mini model for handheld play.
That last idea seems to be real. Look no further than Chinese accessory maker Honson: a category entry has appeared for the “Nintendo Switch Mini”. We’ve got some strangely perfect shots of the purported hardware model:
If you’re skeptical there’s also this image for a plastic shell being made for the Switch Mini. This is obvious a different color scheme and the placement of the buttons are off relatively to the more realistic image. There’s also two slots on each side of the USB-C port, suggesting you can still dock this thing. This one looks more like a render of the product, especially that completely different D-Pad.
Even if this is a fake it feels almost inevitable to happen. The Nintendo 3DS has bowed out with the release of Persona Q2. The biggest seller of the handheld was definitely Pokemon in the long run, and Sword/Shield versions are moving to the Switch.
