In a sudden announcement from Nintendo, the release of a Nintendo Switch with longer battery life has confirmed!

As shown on Nintendo’s website, the new version of the Nintendo Switch boasts a significantly improved battery life. Set to offer around 4.5 – 9 hours of battery life, it easily beats out the 2.5 – 6.5 hours offered by the current Nintendo Switch model.

However, despite, these improvements in battery life, Nintendo has warned that the overall duration of the console’s battery depends on the game being played. One example would be The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, which runs on 3 hours on the current Nintendo Switch, and will run for 5.5 hours on the upcoming Switch consoles.

Are there any other differences?

With rumours of there being a “Switch Pro” circulating a while back, there may be expectations that this is it. However, this is just a minor upgrade – the only change to the console is it’s battery life and packaging (which will now be bright red). All other functions of the console will remain the same.

Since it’s pretty much the same, the only way to differentiate the old and new Nintendo Switch consoles are the model numbers. Switch hardware units with the model number HAC-001(01), and serial numbers beginning with XKW, are the models which have extended battery life.

How does the Switch Lite fare?

By comparison, Nintendo’s newly announced, portable Nintendo Switch Lite doesn’t lose by much. With an expected battery life of about 3 – 7 hours, the Switch Lite stands at a mid-point between the old and new versions of the original Nintendo Switch console.

The new version of the Nintendo Switch will be available from mid-August onwards, in both grey and neon blue/red colours. It will retail at the same price as the original Nintendo Switch.

A sleepless cryptid with a sweet tooth, who spends most of her free time on the internet. Sheryl loves binge-watching shows on Netflix, Persona 5's Joker, arcades, and all her emotional support K-Pop boys.