1. That was the same reason that the 360/PS3 life cycle was so long. With inflation being nuts on everything and wages stagnating, we might not be ready for a new console drop next spring.
2. I hope that they follow the Switch's lead and make it another hybrid system. However, they might just release a new console only system and keep the Switch around to use a as portable. for a few years before debut the new portable.
1. Granted, but it feels like Nintendo has already pushed back an update/revision/new iteration of the hardware for some time now. I legit feel that the OLED update was supposed to be part of a broader update that got scrapped due to continued strong sales and issues related to the pandemic and crypto (leading to getting new generation chips impractical). Perhaps the better question is...if not soon, then when? Many of the concerns raised, while valid, aren't going to just "go away" in a year. And it's not going to stop Microsoft or Sony from revealing new iterations and updates top their own 4 year old console hardware. And as stated already, the existing Switch hardware, while proving exceptionally capable even at this age, it still reaching a point where more and more "major games" are getting increasingly difficult to port to the console in presentable way. Yes, developers can still cram games to the system, but Stray and MK1 and Hogwart's Legacy show the limitations of the platform.
And then you got titles like Robocop, Midnight Suns and Pillars of Eternity 2 where the ports were cancelled due to lack of time or resources or extreme difficulty in getting the titles onto the aging Switch hardware. (Remember, the Tegra X1 powering the Switch dates from 2015).
As is, a LOT of the remakes/remasters from Nintendo feel like they were put into production to compensate for the fact the internal teams were working with next gen concepts and Nintendo didn't expect to support the platform AS LONG as they are doing.
2. I see no reason for Nintendo to even TRY to release a stand alone console in that manner. Regardless of the technical updates, the next Nintendo console will remain a solid generation behind in raw power to the current crop of consoles (which have been building market share for 4 years, now). Further, the success of the Steam Deck has likely eaten into the "console quality on the go" market the original Switch managed to tap into. They don't have the tech or resources to compete in the console race against Microsoft and Sony, and they have a host of "handheld PC" devices starting to nudge into their handheld dominance.
The Switch's hybrid gimmick is what sold it. A big part of the success was that Nintendo didn't have to split their resources between different platforms. While I think the original Switch will remain as a budget option, I don't see the "Next Switch" abandoning the key fundamentals that made the first so successful.
