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Following Nintendo's confirmation that the Switch's momentum is indeed slowing down as we head into FY24, speculation over the eventual Switch successor is naturally starting to grow exponentially.
To add fuel to the fire, tech company Sharp has confirmed that it is supplying LCD displays for a "new gaming console", though it obviously refrained from going into any specific details.
According to Bloomberg (thanks, VCG), CEO Robert Wu confirmed that Sharp is working with an unnamed company on the development of a new gaming console since the R&D stage and that it plans to launch pilot LCD-panel production lines for the device this fiscal year.
Of course, the device in question may not be the successor to the Switch, and the unnamed company may not be Nintendo, but Sharp is known to have worked with Nintendo in the past. Most recently, Nintendo partnered with Sharp to increase production of the Nintendo Switch in order to satisfy growing demand.
For the fiscal year ending March 2024, Nintendo has lowered its forecast for Switch sales, landing on a respectable 15 million. Current Switch sales stand at a remarkable 125 million, putting it comfortably above the Game Boy and the Wii, but still significantly lower than the Nintendo DS.
Do you think Sharp's LCD displays are earmarked for Nintendo's new hardware? Share your thoughts and speculation down in the comments below.
[source bnnbloomberg.ca, via videogameschronicle.com]
Comments 88
And so with every end comes a new beginning.
I'm very much anticipating what comes next.
Backwards compatibility confirmed!
Kidding, of course, but hopeful anyway.
Similar form to the Switch then, no bad thing.
The new device will be identical to Switch but with exactly one extra pixel. 🧐
LCD is not OLED... and I really do hope we don't go backwards from OLED
Suppling? Yikes!
@Samwise7 Oops! 😅
Can't wait for the ire of gaming journalists when this turns out NOT to be for Switch 2 or whatever Nintendo calls it.
At first I though I wouldn't notice much difference between LCD and OLED but then I got an OLED Switch in a sale and now I definitely don't want the next system to have a LCD screen
Does anyone know who supplies the OLED screens currently? I wouldn’t want to go back to lcd
It could be a Nintendo Classic Mini: Nintendo Game Boy System 😉
I could see this being for that rumoured Playstation streaming handheld that Push Square reported on last month:
https://www.pushsquare.com/news/2023/04/rumour-ps-vita-2-dreams-killed-but-sony-might-have-a-handheld-for-ps5-remote-play-in-the-works
An LCD screen would not put me off at all. I've had 6 years' more-than-happy gaming on my LCD Switch. My backlog and and bank balance are more the immediate issue - Switch has more than made it's mark on my life.
Nintendo has already confirmed that there will be no Switch successor until after March 2024. Also it seems suspect it would be an LCD panel.
Could be for the Asus ROG Ally but that's coming out soon so a bit late to tease or any of the Steamdeck competitors. Could also be for the rumored new PSP.
@IronMan30 I don't know why anyone would be disappointed or vexed; we know hardware is coming regardless. Like Grumblevolcano says, it could well be for the new remote play PlayStation handheld. Nothing wrong with a bit of harmless speculation!
@BiscuitCrumbsInMyBed I believe it’s Samsung I remember reading it somewhere but I don’t know if that’s 100% correct
I doubt after OLED Switch, Nintendo would use LCD display again even for non Pro model. Like night and day. Probably for a new cloud streaming/Android handheld from Logitech or something.
I don't think they should do this, but I wonder if they would launch Switch 2 with LCD and OLED variants?
@Grumblevolcano Or a new gaming tablet like Steamdeck and Asus Rog Ally. Floodgates are open now. For every $600 nice gaming handheld there’s sure to be a $200 cheap knockoff. I’m betting on this being in a kids toy from Jakks Pacific or some other off brand. 🤷🏻♂️
@MarioBrickLayer why wouldn't they? You can buy an OLED or an LCD today - both have different price points. Some people don't care about hifi displays.
@Miu Sony used oled for the original ps vita and then later models used an lcd display maybe it’s a cost thing but that’s why the original ps vita is more sought after so it’s not unheard of for that to happen
@Olliemar28 sure. To clarify, that was less aimed at NL than it may have sounded and more annoyance with general discourse online. But I can see why someone may think otherwise.
@BiscuitCrumbsInMyBed samsung I believe. They also supplied LCD for OG switch at launch.
@Cashews I think it could cause issues with production in the 1st year. If they predict demand incorrectly there could be an over supply of one model and an under supply of the other. They need to keep things simple to avoid problems.
Aren't Sony ditching their two model PS5 approach and having a single model with attachable disk drive? - I'm sure Spawnwave has talked about that.
@Gs69 Cheers, I don’t think this is Nintendo but if it is it could be supplying the LCD and Samsung would continue supplying OLED
@Gs69 it is samsung
https://www.ifixit.com/News/53272/nintendo-switch-oled-teardown-more-than-screen-deep
Go down to screen tear down
@Zidentia confirmed when?
@MarioBrickLayer I dunno. Nintendo has a division whose job it is model predictions on demand of SKUs and supply it accordingly. You can look at current demand for the LCD/OLED and make assumptions based on that. They can likely make even more predictions if their hardware allows them to have a data set where they can see end users playing either docked or in handheld mode. Someone playing 80%+ in docked mode, like me, might not care about an OLED so much.
I have both models now. I really like the OLED but stable offering of the LCD at a lower price point may entice me in the beginning of a consoles life cycle. I think one of the key strategies of Nintendo is affordability.
@IronMan30 Ha yeah, online discourse. I'm with you on that one, my friend.
I think I'm with the majority on this one. I don't think this is referring to the Switch's successor. The marketing for a second hybrid console modelled close to Switch is already going to be a nightmare for Nintendo with so many iterations of the Nintendo Switch on the market today.
To release a system with no OLED screen would make the system feel inferior to what is already out now to the average consumer. If I know this, I have a hard time believing Nintendo doesn't see it too.
@BiscuitCrumbsInMyBed yeah that makes sense I suppose but I really don’t wanna go back to lcd after having oled the difference is quite staggering
@OfficialHigeDan I think that’s the article where I had seen that it was Samsung cheers!
With the amount of Switch clones coming out all the time I think they are talking about one of these. Because yes, going back to LCD would be stupid move.
@OfficialHigeDan
You can do a quick search. it is everywhere now.
https://www.tomsguide.com/news/nintendo-confirms-no-switch-2-this-year-despite-hardware-sales-slowdown
@Olliemar28 Harmless speculation doesn't exist on the internet. Only facts and lies. By that I mean that facts are things that you agree with and lies are things that you don't.
Hmm. I would hope that if they stick with the hybrid model moving forward, they would at least have an oled.
The PSVita2.
More words to say.
LCD? This is definitely not Switch related. It'll be that doomed Sony Remote Play device - that is utterly pointless because we all have an ipad and a mobile phone already doing the same thing "for free".
Absolutely no way Nintendo launches a Switch successor with anything other than OLED.
Does anyone really deep down believe they'd go LCD? I 100% doubt it.
Incidentally, remote play on PS5 is actually very good. I use an iPad and it works really, really well for me. No need at all for another device - tablet screen is perfect.
The next one has to be an oled, or else i will wait till there is an upgrade.
Has anyone considered this is NOT a Switch upgrade, not a Switch pro, Not Switch+, Not Switch 2, and not Super Switch... but is actually a budget system without a cart slot and is a eShop bare-bones Swlitch Lite type entry level, push 'em out the door at a low-priced console?
Like a Switch "Wii-mini" type.
I betcha.
I think Nintendo's next handheld is going to be 2 versions at launch: an LCD mini and an OLED default.
@msvt I thought that, but the Switch Lite already exists. The only thing I would "expect" to see is the Switch Lite going from LCD to OLED - but this is LCD so it isn't that either.
It's that Sony device. Confident.
Really hope this isn't for Nintendo's next console. I also don't want to go back to LCD.
@Zidentia I misread your comment as 2024. there could still be announcement for 2024 this year.
Well, this should be around the time when Nintendo releases more details about Metroid Prime 4, which is probably going to be the last mainline Nintendo game for a while.
@OfficialHigeDan That is true because even though Nintendo said they're not released new hardware throughout now until 3-31-24, they didn't say they were going to announce new hardware in this new timeframe. We should expect a announcement of new hardware in the winter months.
Also, I think Sharp could be working with Sony. I don't think Nintendo would downgrade to LCD.
@GreenNinja500 It isn't a downgrade. The LCD Switch is being manufactured today - and it sells/will sell millions of units per/year - including the year 2023.
It could be for any one of these:
Personally, I'd be fine with an LCD screen. The original Switch IPS screen was absolutely fantastic, in my opinion, and I've been happy with it all this time. I used to be really fussy about screens too, with the blur of the original Game Boy and the low-res of the DS, but a top quality IPS genuinely is good enough, I think.
Sharp and Nintendo have had a close relationship since the Famicom days in the mid 80s. Sharp was the only company to get the privilege of building TVs with Famicoms and NES’s hardware built into them.
But I can’t imagine the Switch 2 with an LCD panel. It’s got to be OLED.
This is probably for some company’s new handheld PC gaming device.
OLED with HDR or bust, Nintendo.
It really needs to be 100% backwards compatible as there is no way that I'm rebuying my Switch library again.
I really hope this isn't for the Switch Pro/2, I don't want to go back from the OLED D:
@Banksie I agree. This better not be the Switch 2. It needs to have an OLED, not an outdated LCD.
@GreenNinja500 Nintendo has made it clear it loves our money, so they might just release a new console with an LCD so that they can eventually release an OLED version at a higher price.
I can’t go back to LCD, after having OLED
The presence of a Zelda release, especially one as big as TOTK is a clear indicator we have 3 years before any true generational upgrade to the Switch. If a new Nintendo console was anywhere close to ready, TOTK would be on both systems, like almost every other flagship Zelda title.
The last Nintendo console to launch without a dual console Zelda title was the N64.
No way this will be for a new Switch. LCD would be a massive step backward.
@Serpenterror
As someone who played most of my wiiu time using off-tv play but didnt have much luck with ps4 remote play i am curious about that Q-lite thing.
I did hear that ps5 remote play is an improvement over ps4 but i dont really have any device that can take advantage of it since vita isnt supported on ps5 (yes vita, there are dozens of us!)
I'm still wondering what Switch SKU will be coming out this summer. We saw the Lite in 2019 (plus v2) and then the OLED in 2021. A Switch Lite with OLED? Shield-TV Switch? Doubtful any "successor" is coming until 2024... If something is coming out this year, I wouldn't hold my breath on anything shying away from the existing hardware that is being used.
Could be the Sony handheld streaming device. Hopefully Sony will show more later in the year.
@Banksie OLED hurts my eyes more than LCD. I don't believe it's safe for viewing long term. No one seems to care and it's strange.
@Bloodmetal @awaltzforvenus - Same. I think I'd give up on Nintendo, or at least try to, if they don't support the Switch's games. Now that I have an Xbox Series X, it is just a way better console than the Switch. I can even play many original Xbox and Xbox 360 games. I only have a Switch for exclusive Switch games. As great as they are, it would be a huge insult on all of us who spent so much money on their games.
I don't want to keep multiple consoles just to play previous games. We still have a Wii U for that. Nintendo has to stop this.
Making the same game multiple times, at the same high price, and acting like they can't make it backward compatible when PS5 and Xbox have done so for years now is a deception.. and it shows how greedy they are.
I really like cartridges and hope they stick with them though, and perhaps add 2 slots. That would let us play Switch games.
@Banksie If they want to price the deice competitively they might have to. They probably want to keep it under $399.
@Banksie The only real acceptable reason to go back to LCD is if they spend a considerable amount on the chipset and they upgrade the screen resolution.
It's for the all new Switch U! The screen can detach from the controllers, creating a fun, fresh form factor! Pass it round so your friends can see what you're playing, or join multiple screens together, for exscreen entertainment!
LCD, yes, this makes me so happy. I can’t stand the headache inducing OLED on the switch. That is the worst OLED I’ve ever seen in my life. If they can’t do Super Amoled then they need to go back to LCD.
If it knocks 50 quid offthe price of a Switch 2, this is great news.
Hopefully they make it 2k - QHD minimum, with a graphics card equal to at least an Xbox Series S. They'll probably stick with that machine for 4-8 years so they can't cheapen out. It will still be out of date when and if they launch it next year, but at least it will be powerful enough for their games and many others.
The biggest issue is what will they do with all the low FPS-games they gave us in the past 5 years? Some Kirby games, Zelda, etc. I truly hope they have a solution where the graphics will be improved by a lot and FPS raised. I'm hoping they just need to enable those in the code via an update and not have to redo games and engines and so on.
Aren't there a million Switch clones and Android gaming handhelds? Sharp is pretty ubiquitous, I think it's just as likely, if not more, that they'd be working on any of them.
@HeadPirate Dual console Zelda only happened twice(Twilight Princess and Breath Of The Wild) that's hardly anything to draw conclusions on. You said the last time they didn't have one was N64 to GCN transition. What about Wii to Wii U transition?
@Grumblevolcano
That's what I was thinking too; in order for Sony to keep costs down a bit. I hope this rumor is true. Icould really use a GamePad for my PS5!!!
This could be for Sony's dumb new streaming device that they're working on. Who knows.
I can definitely see Nintendo going back to LCD if it continues with the hybrid model.
They refuse to sell hardware at a loss so will have to make some cutbacks if they want to keep it below the cost of the PS5 and XsX.
If they don't manage that, I cant see it being a success.
Who (apart from hard-core Nintendo fans) will pay more than current gen consoles for what will effectively be a handheld PS4?
Without a large user base I imagine 3rd party support would dry up quickly and we will end up with another Wii-U situation. No wonder Nintendo are hesitant to announce the next system.
No way to know. So many Steam Deck knock offs entering the market, it may not have anything to do with the Switch. Knowing Nintendo, if you even eluded to anything related to them, they'd fit you for cement shoes.
Except Nintendough just said they aren't making a new console soon lmao. Probably for one of the endless steam deck rip offs.
It could be a Switch successor. It's also possible it could be the rumored PlayStation streaming handheld, as others mentioned, or even an unannounced Xbox competitor to the Steam Deck.
LCD, not OLED?
I doubt this is the next console. Nintendo wouldn't downgrade from their "Pro" version of the Switch when going to the Switch 2, even if their mantra is withered tech.
Chances there'll be both an LCD and OLED option, for me OLED is kinda pointless (unless they fixed the damn drifting issues) since my TV is an OLED. Besides LCD is less prone to various problems such as burn-in and dead pixels and such. My TV tends to have plenty of pixel problems but right now they're not too distracting right now.
Anyways, Switch 2, considering Nintendo's pattern it makes sense. I do wonder if they'll do anything new with this, though, like with the Wii U having the gamepad. No idea what they could do, though. lol (besides the usual better specs)
Classics GBA SP loaded with 100 of the greatest titles from the GBA library.
Take my money.
Why LCD? Why not LED or OLED? Why downgrade the resolution and colors from the Switch OLED's? Why not QLED as an upgrade? What are we getting anyway? A new GameBoy that can stream to a HDTV via a wireless streaming stick?
I can't see Nintendo using an old LCD when they already have an Nintendo Switch with OLED. The new Nintendo system probably have an OLED screen and An Hz of at least 120 refresh rate.
I hope it's the LCD for the "Playstation handheld"-stream thing and not that Nintendo considers going back to an LCD-display for Switch 2. I love the Switch Oled-screen, can't go back go grey blacks
@NTELLIGENTMAN
Don't fall for the marketing tricks. LED-TV:s are LCD, QLED is LCD with a Samsung-developed layer for the LED:s of an LCD-screen.
@Robbie1Robbie
Just think an 1080p Oled for Switch 2, with VRR support. Would be truly great if the really demanding games that can't really do the jump to 60fps at least could bump up from 30 til 40fps with the screen fully in sync
@Ramouz "Nintendo has to stop this" except that their previous handhelds have always had backward compatibility with the previous one and the home consoles too since the Wii, the jump between the 3DS/Wii U and the Switch is the exception because they put together the two kinds of consoles so I'd say it's at least premature complaining about it considering Nintendo's history in that regard (not to mention that Nintendo consoles have much bigger differences between each other than Xbox's and PlayStation's ever had - try playing a DS or 3DS game on Switch with only one screen instead of two as is for example - so no, it doesn't show "how greedy they are").
Ideally they'd continue with the Switch formula for the console after the next one and you'd be able to play your Switch games on that one too, but let's worry about that when the time comes, shall we?
I think they will make a LCD model and a more expensive OLED model side by side. But what do I know?! 🤷😁
@JohnnyMind - Greediness: charging the same amount for a game that started on the Wii and has had multiple re-releases. They're the only company that charges 79.99 CAD after 5 years, and their sales are only a few dollars off. I'm happy to pay for them on sale because most of their games are replayable, but I would have much preferred paying a lot less, especially for games that have been re-released.
I'm well aware of the Wii working on Wii U. GameCube on the Wii. But that's where it ends, only 2 consoles.
Seriously, don't fight against me. I'm sure we all agree here we want to see Nintendo supporting games on consoles 18 years from now, like Xbox does. There are so many Wii games I wanted to be able to play on the Switch. Fishing Resort, all the Mii games like Wii Party, Wii Music, Wii Play, Wii Sports/Resort, MySims series, Mario Party series, etc., and would have liked quite a few from GameCube also.
I'm sure the next "Switch" will have backwards compatibility but for how long.. so we'll see. Again, we all want to see them supporting it for nearly forever. What's more pathetic is their graphics capability. Not much has changed since the GameCube.
@msvt
Flopped when Sony tried it, so I'd doubt it.
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