Nintendo Switch 2 will change one of the console's weak points and its size

2024 will be a long year for Nintendo. With the shadow of its next console looming over the current Nintendo Switch, every bit of information appears as a small light under the absolute secrecy that the company adopts. The new chapter in this long road comes from Ruben Mercado of Spanish media outlet Vandal, who previews some of the console’s new features from the first accessory makers who have been able to touch the new model.

Accessory manufacturers have already felt the successor to Nintendo Switch: all the details

Apparently, the size of Nintendo Switch 2 (unofficial name) will be “very similar” to the current model, “a little bigger”, but not at all reach the dimensions of Steam Deck. The hybrid concept would remain, it is a console that departs to play everywhere. But what most caught the attention of the participants is the shift in the approach to the anchoring of the Joy-Cons.

Currently, the two Nintendo Switch models with attachable Joy-Con use a rail solution. You insert the Joy-Con from top to bottom and it stays anchored in them. They sometimes dance when held, so Nintendo has addressed this weakness with a new system. In its successor, the Joy-Cons will have a magnetic connection that allows them to be attached to the console.

This change in the connection system has participants on alert, as it is not clear that the current Joy-Con are compatible, not to mention the possibility that the new models will take advantage of other technologies. The data is in line with a Nintendo patent revealed last year that hinted at this solution. On the other hand, the accessory that will be backward compatible is the Pro Controller.

We repeat the “were able to touch”. Mercado points out that the assistants (at least 4, where his information comes from) had to put their hands inside a black box to keep its appearance secret. In this way, they have been able to elucidate what size it points to and the feel. The manufacturers estimate the console will be marketed in early 2025, “between February and March” of the same year.