Nintendo has been rumored at least since earlier this year to be working on a smaller version of its Switch video game console meant to be more portable than the regular model. That rumor claimed that the new Switch model dubbed Nintendo Switch Mini would naturally have limited functionality, although Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa previously said that the company wasn"t planning on a successor to the console or a price cut in order to achieve its sales target of 20 million units for its 2019 fiscal year.
That said, a new report seems to corroborate recent speculations about the future of the Switch. Citing sources familiar with Nintendo"s plan, The Wall Street Journal claims that the Japanese consumer electronics company may be launching two models of the console this summer.
One version will supposedly have stripped-down features meant for casual gamers and will likely succeed the 3DS. The report indicated that the detachable Joy-Con controllers will be a no-show with the cheaper Switch variant, obviously to cut costs.
On the other hand, the higher-end model is said to include a number of improvements both to its features and performance, with no clear details about what they may be. However, this version might not be expected to surpass the PlayStation 4 Pro or Xbox One X.
The upcoming Switch models are likely to debut at E3 in June and roll out a few months after that.
Source: The Wall Street Journal (Paywall) via The Verge