It looks like the Switch Lite isn’t the only new hardware coming from Nintendo in the near future. The base Nintendo Switch may also be due for some changes as well. A new FCC filing hints that a Switch hardware update may also be coming in the future.
According to a report by the Verge, Nintendo recently filed a Class II Permission Change request with the Federal Communications Commission in regards to the Switch. This basically asks the FCC for permission to change the hardware of the system.
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The filing requests for permission to change the Switch’s SOC as well as its NAND memory. The former is short for “System On a Chip,” and refers to the Nvidia Tegra chip that contains both the Switch’s CPU and GPU. The latter on the other hand refers to the system’s flash storage.
Now, since the filing refers to the existing model, this doesn’t confirm the rumored, more powerful version of the Switch. The filing actually contains the same model number as the original, whereas a new, more powerful model would have a new model number.
With this filing, Nintendo is most likely looking to fix some bugs with the current Switch hardware. The original Nintendo Switch hardware does occasionally suffer from temperature management issues when docked.
Another possibility could be increased battery life. The Nintendo Switch Lite does come with an updated version of the Tegra that supposedly consumes less power. Perhaps Nintendo is looking to put that in the base Switch as well.
Of course, this filing could mean nothing significant for the Nintendo Switch. The company could simply be using it to slot in more cost-effective versions of the components in question just to save on manufacturing costs. In this case, any differences with the original release would likely be minuscule at best.
