There were already signs for it, and Nintendo didn’t make us wait a lot for its announcement: they will launch a newer model with a better battery life shortly.
The current model, the HAC-001 has a battery life between 2.5 and 6.5 hours. The biggest launch title, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild can be played for about three hours with a single charge. The new version’s model name will be HAC-001(-01), which will be more durable, as it will have 4.5-9 hours of usage, and, according to the official data, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild will be playable for 5.5 hours before the Switch’s battery raises the white flag. We don’t know when the new Nintendo Switch will launch, but the Japanese Nintendo site claims a late August, while the French page claims an early September start. The North American launch window is not known yet. The more durable model is a very good idea, as you don’t have to put the Switch on a charge early, as it – on average – could be used for two hours before it drains.
Meanwhile, Nintendo of America’s Twitter account announced that the Nintendo Switch will get two new pairs of Joy-Con colours. Starting from October 4 with an 80-dollar price tag, you can buy Joy-Cons with Blue and Neon Yellow, as well as Neon Purple and Neon Orange colours. Wouldn’t it be a better idea to release the Joy-Cons both with the same paint? There have to be people out there who’d want say, two purple Joy-Cons. Meanwhile, the European Nintendo Twitter account has not published details about these new Joy-Cons yet. We might get them in November or December.
So the Switch is picking up strength: by the end of September, we might see a worldwide availability of the stronger battery-having Nintendo Switch, and the new Switch Lite, which we discussed before, will both launch at that time. These moves might help Nintendo retain its leading position with the Switch while Sony and Microsoft work on their next-gen consoles.
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