Nintendo Switch Pro rumor looks legit, thanks to this Nvidia email
An integral upgrade
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Nintendo Switch Pro rumors have been reignited as anNvidiaemployee seems to have confirmed the existence of the chip allegedly powering the device.
No official announcement of theNintendo Switch Prohas been made as of yet. But an Nvidia leak posted to ther/GamingLeaksandRumourssubreddit seems to all but confirm the Tegra239 SoC (system on a chip) is real, by way of an email from an Nvidia employee.
The Tegra239 has been rumored to exist since last year. Twitter tech leaker kopite7kimi originallybrought the chip to lightin June 2021, when they suggested the next-generationNintendo Switchwould be powered by a “customized” Tegra234.
This also lines up with information found in theNvidia leakfrom March this year, which made reference to ‘NVN2’ (likely the successor to the Switch’s NVN graphics API) as well as specific mention of the T239 chip.
A big boost?
There’s no doubt that the Nintendo Switch’s Tegra X1 chip is an ageing piece of hardware, and certainly isn’t the best fit for large-scale games likeXenoblade Chronicles 3or the upcomingThe Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.
Commenters in the Reddit thread are largely in agreement that the Tegra239 would be similarly powerful to thePS4. That probably isn’t the generational leap you’d be hoping for, but I imagine it’s more palatable for third-party developers and publishers, who might then find it easier to port their games to the Switch Pro without relying on cloud-based versions.
For my money, it points to the Switch Pro being a mid-gen upgrade rather than a new console outright. Not unlike thePS4 ProorXbox One X. I think this would be the right move for Nintendo, and lines up with comments made by president Shuntaro Furukawa earlier this year that the Switch is inthe middle of its lifecycle.
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A potential Switch Pro may still struggle to output4Kresolutions, then, but the rumors suggest it’ll have some tricks up its sleeve to make up for that. That NVN2 leak from earlier in the year makes reference to Nvidia’s DLSS upscaling tech, which leverages AI to boost resolutions and framerates without impacting overall performance.
I’m cautiously optimistic about the Nintendo Switch Pro’s existence now. And let’s face it, Nintendo’s going to need more powerful hardware for its big hitters like Zelda andMetroid Prime 4. And hey, we might even see the Switch Pro launch alongside Tears of the Kingdom, as Twilight Princess did with theWii, andBreath of the Wilddid for the Switch.
Rhys is TRG’s Hardware Editor, and has been part of the TechRadar team for more than two years. Particularly passionate about high-quality third-party controllers and headsets, as well as the latest and greatest in fight sticks and VR, Rhys strives to provide easy-to-read, informative coverage on gaming hardware of all kinds. As for the games themselves, Rhys is especially keen on fighting and racing games, as well as soulslikes and RPGs.
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