Nintendo strongly hints new Switch Pro model is coming

Nintendo's latest corporate strategy brief strongly indicates that a new Switch model is on the horizon.

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Rumors of an upgraded Switch Pro or Switch 4K have been circulating for years now. Reports say the Switch OLED was supposed to be a Pro version, but the beefier 4K-ready console was delayed due to chip shortages. Official details are scarce, but Nintendo's latest documents inadvertently suggest the new upgraded Switch is indeed coming.

There's one particular section in the report that talks about how the new Switch models have changed consumer purchases and habits. Switch hardware is diversified across the Switch Lite, 2017-2019 Switch model, and the new premium Switch OLED. Gamers are buying multiple Switch consoles to fit their needs and adoption of the Switch Lite and Switch OLED has been steady.

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The implication here is that unit sales increase as Nintendo offers more variety in hardware. The Switch Lite led existing Switch users to buy another unit for dedicated on-the-go play. Households are now buying multiple Switch consoles to fit specific needs, and gamers who bought a launch Switch systems are "now interested in replacing it with the new Nintendo Switch."

Nintendo says it will "strive to expand our install base to one Nintendo Switch per person. We believe there is even further room for the Nintendo Switch install base to grow."

The logical conclusion is that another Switch hardware revision targeting a specific sub-set of gamer would lead to more sales. Diversified hardware leads to diversified sales, and official Switch sales charts data supports this theory.

Right now the Switch is catered more to young gamers who find semi-casual graphics and performance more acceptable. Nintendo could capture a more enthusiast-level market by releasing a more powerful Switch Pro model capable of 4K gaming with upgraded graphics, visuals, and frame rates.

This would round out the Switch family and by Nintendo's own findings, potentially drive up sales due to diversified hardware offerings.

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What we know about Switch Pro:

• New Switch OLED dock can output native 4K 60FPS resolution output
• New SoC required for higher-end 4K gaming
• Game developers have Switch Pro devkits
• Nintendo spends R&D cash on deep learning
• Switch 4K gaming could be added with new dock chip swap, AI upscaling

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Another part of the document outright mentions hardware but the wording is predictably fuzzy and nebulous.

"Nintendo plans to continue to expand its business around the core concept of creating unique integrated hardware-software products."