Has anyone filled Nintendo in on this? I'm pretty sure they think it's a console first. I mean, I'm only assuming this based on their very marketing of it, that's all.

"Nintendo Switch is a Handheld First, Not a Console" ...not without a proper d-pad its not.

at best its a mobile console , for use with a pro controller and the kickstand.

People just don't get it, we use the word hybrid to describe this type of setup, it's just a word to describe a thing. If we were to use any other word, it would get confusing. It's not just a portable console, and it's not just a home console, so using those words to describe it will only confuse people and it will not do the product justice.

And it can be a portable device first for people who want it to be, for me personally it will be a stationary console first and foremost. I will use the portable aspect when going on vacation but that is not going to be that often. Lets use the word that describes the product best, a hybrid.

Of course its a handheld first! More proof nintendo is full of sh!t. But nintendo says console first so it must be true /s.

Its funny to watch all the nintendo supporters and their lists as to why its a console first! Ill wait...

Make up your mind you Nintendo fans flip flop so much defending this system

Man, I don't care what it is... A console or a handheld whatever... All I want is quality games and great support throughout it's lifespan. I want that for every platform, and this thing is no different

It is whatever you want it to be. If you want it as a home console its a home console. But if you want it as a high powered handheld then it is a high powered handheld.

Nintendo shouldn't have announced the Switch as a home console first. Had they announced it as a portable first, it would be the most powewrful handheld, instead of the weakest home console. The 3DS has a huge amount of developer support, so they would have jumped to the switch imediately. However, as a home console, people will expect AAA games looking like PS4 Pro and Scorpio, which is imposible, which in trun will reduce sales, which in turn will damage third party support.

They want to keep riding on 3DS success, but the Switch works much better as a 3DS successor, than a Wii U succesor. They should have realized that. As a 3DS sucessor, it would have a huge success, just like the 3DS, and that would have given them time to plan a proper home console that can take on PS and MS. Nintendo is making a very giantic mistake.

So Nintendo's home consoles are dead. Got it.

Really? Because Nintendo already confirmed that Breath of the Wild is the last WiiU game so...

"Nintendo Switch is a Handheld First, Not a Console"

... Someone should tell Nintendo then.

A laptop is the same as a desktop except it has all of the components condensed into a compact, portable unit. In like manner, the Switch is the same as a home console, except it has a small form factor that allows it to be taken on the go.

You have folks who don't take their laptops out of the house. Likewise, you will have folks who probably will rarely take their Switch away from the TV dock.

you mean it's a handheld.. console? Of Course it's console, regardless whether it's a mobile or a home.

Portable design and functionality. Mobile GPU and overall hardware. Need a mobile phone/tablet to use online social features. At it's best as a handheld console when measured up to ALL other home and portable consoles on the market. This is just Nintendo playing it safe saying it will not replace the 3DS and that it is foremost a home console just in case it flops completely. Just as they said when the 3DS came out when Gameboy was at it's end.

In 1-2 years if the Switch is successful you can bett that a revised model comes out and the Switch is suddenly Nintendo's new handheld console.

Where is the 39.99 price for games if it's a handheld? Everything about it is overpriced. Even if we consider it a console.

They should have marketed it as a mobile device that could could be docked, with cheaper mobile launch games. And they should have created a robust App Store or partnered with someone. Hell, every mobile phone company in the world has Android on it!

When your lineup includes a new Zelda and Mario, it becomes a home console. When it costs $300 +, it becomes a home console!

If it's a handheld first why is the battery life so short.

How is this thing a handheld 1st with only 2-3 hours of battery life?

Nintendo could have had a massive winner on it's hands, but like MS normally do. They fked up.

720p is fine for a handheld imo for battery life.

But when it's Docked it should have been 3tflops at least and with full 3rd party support.

They did not learn from the Wii u.

People still play COD,BF,GTA, and so on and that will continue.

The Switch is made for Nintendo fans, and that's the only ones that will buy it.

If we're talking about this from an analylitical business model point of view which we are in this article it is most definitely a wii u console replacement. Nintendo has said so and stopped production of the wii u while they are still selling and making games for the 3ds. We also have only seen console style games for this. No 3ds style handheld centric games. Chances are a lot of these games will be like gravity rush or uncharted golden abyss on vita and just not be as playable as they would be on the home console.

Poor battery life tells me it fails at being a portable. Roughly 3 hours isn't going to cut it.

The thing is all nintendo is doing is seperating the line between the fanboys and the "non believers" even more. Had they not done what nintendo has been doing since 2006 we could all be united as gamers that can play nice and all get along... Instead, they chose to do what everyone expected (yes fanboys too) and thats ignore all the complaints mostly everyone had with the wii and wiiu and continue the bullshit... Like woww. I dont want nintendo to fail but if this is a wiiu situation all over again, they deserve it!

Kakashihotake:

So you decided to put your fingers in your ears and look away when they said 3-6 hours battery life for the switch? niiice. And YES even if it only had 3 hours of battery life playing tetris... It would STILL be a handheld...

Windblowsagain:

True that homie...

I remember the rumors a year or so ago that claimed the switch was a home console and a handheld. Like you know, the home console portion had its own cpu, gpu, ram, hard drive, disc drive (bluray) that kind of traditional console stuff... Could have EASILLY sold for 4-500 and not only have fanboys on board... But everyone else too! That would have insured 3rd party support... If only on the home console version at least... Maybe the super switch will do this... The fanboys will cry from the highest rooftops... TAKE MY MONEY, innovation! you never cease to amaze me nintendo... That kind of stuff

I doubt I ever see one in the wild

Not sure why Nintendo's marketing matters in this. What do you expect them to say? The Switch will obviously be used more as a handheld then a home console. It's not even coming with a real controller. I imagine that there will be a bundle not to far off that doesn't come with the cradle or the grip.

Nintendo themselves say it's a console first. Why would they release a new handheld when they already have the DS line? Doesn't matter. People will spin whatever they want. There's no logic missing when a company says one thing regardless of what we know.

You tell Nintendo to market it like one and im fine with that but they calling it a console is stupid

I have said this many times.

Nintendo told us it is a home console. Case closed.

A handheld is a console.

So a portable console isnt a console just because you decided to use the word "handheld"?

stop being silly, TheGuardian blogger.

Its like the term innovation escapes people... there has to be a ground zero

who gives a shit

And that's kinda a shame, in my opinion, since I'm not looking for a new Nintendo handheld...

So here we go again, the damn thing is just as confusing as the wii u marketing lmfao.

Entirely wrong because the company is still making a new handheld.

If you know my submission history then you know I'm right. Maybe I'll talk about the new handheld soon.

Nope according to nintendo it's a console first.

Ummm.
No.
Its both handheld and home console. That's why it's so great. Honestly it's a bit freaking big to be a handheld... It's more of a tablet then anythin.

So i guess if people view this as tablet sized portable console then so would the surface pro and iPad.

It's a home console designed to be portable as well... Did anyone call the wii u a portable console? You could technically shut off the TV and play on your bed like.... You might do with a portable. But it isn't and hasn't been considered a handheld console.

This is nonsense. The switch is a home console designed to also be a portable console... Dont think people will be playing this while while commuting tho... Unless people can say that they constantly see people playing games on their tablets while out and about.

I just noticed that by reading most of the posts here you can tell who are religious and who actually use their brains and common sense. Those who believe in Nintendo saying the Switch is a console or a hybrid just because that's what Nintendo says for their marketing purposes, then they must believe the universe is 6,000 years old just because the Bible says so. It's so sad.

Some of the people here are so stupid. Why do you believe what Nintendo is saying? It's marketing. A home console that plays home console games on the go sounds amazing. Do you expect them to say what it really is, a portable that plugs into your tv like a bunch of portables before it? That doesn't sound as good, puts the 3DS in a bad position, and its harder to charge home console prices and paid online memberships for portable gaming. It literally comes with a shell to put the joycons in to make a archaic looking controller for home console gaming. Its closer to a portable and more people will use it as a portable.

They should have offered a 200 dollar version that doesn't undock and does 1080p for zelda instead of 900. I have no interest in handhelds, especially ones that cost 300 dollars with no game.

Well that's a sad portable only lasting 2-6 hours with Zelda only being 3 hours long. Nintendo said this is a home console and the fact that the 3DS is still being supported shows that it's not a portable to replace their existing portable.

Reggie (Ol' Reginator) said in an interview with Pro Jared that he understands there's a market for the 3DS as it's a more affordable solution for those wanting a portable system.

I think everyone needs to face the facts that Nintendo dropped the ball on this yet again and everyone needs to stop putting their own spin on what Nintendo is trying to do in order to rationalize Nintnedo's missteps.

As a portable this thing needs far more battery life otherwise playing a game in bursts of an hour to conserve battery life throughout a trip is not ideal for core gamers playing games that require a lot more than an hour of gameplay to progress in.

Uh-huh. Sure.
You keep riiiight on thinking that.
Jesus, people are so offended over the thought of Nintendo NOT making the most powerful console, again, that they'll justify it any way they can.XD
Call it a handheld first once it has more power away from the dock, plays mostly handheld style games instead of stuff like Skyrim and Breath of the Wild, and replaces the 3DS instead of the Wii U, as Nintendo continues making Wii U games while entirely abandoning making future games for 3DS.
Which would all be the exact opposite of what they're doing now.

Until then, it's a hybrid that CAN do both, but is home console first and foremost, even if you treat it like a handheld by only playing without the dock.
If a home console could just automatically be a handheld by playing away from home all the time, then my Wii U is a handheld by shoving it into a backpack alongside a spare battery pack, or a PS4 is a handheld by doing the same while only using the remote play feature of the Vita with a selection of games.XD

And yet Nintendo have said the opposite multiple times.
The ads are of people playing on their TV first & then unhooking to play on the go, not the other way around.
At their conference, Nintendo talked about "features" they took from past consoles, off-screen play with the Wii-U tablet being one of them.

Sure, it would help them if they advertised it as a handheld, but they aren't.
It isn't console "quality" games on the go, it's literally console games on the go.
The specs get downclocked when unhooked, that tells you everything (that the base specs are when it's hooked up).

Portable first but they forgot to make portable designed games for it first then? Sure why not, can't wait for the next Switch spin the fans come up with.

It's not our fault people are looking at it as a console. Blame Nintendo for the message. They're not advertising this as a handheld you can play on the big screen. They are advertising this a console you can take on the go. Fix the message then you can get the proper response from the audience.

I wish they promoted it in that way. That it was a handheld that can be put in a dock to than play games as a console.

The point is the line is being blurred. there really isn't any reason to have the distinction anymore. It's either the most powerful handheld console of all time, or the first home console you can take with you. At the end of the day, they are both game consoles.