Nintendo Switch Pro confirmed? Nintendo says it's working on 'the next platform'

(Image credit: Future)

published 11 May 2021

In a call with investors last week, Nintendo confirmed that they were already investing in the next platform. Meanwhile, Universal Display Corp also added their names to sources supporting rumors that the upcoming Nintendo Switch Pro will feature an OLED screen.

Twitter user David Gibson summarized the Nintendo investor call on his feed. According to Gibson’s translation, when asked about R&D, the Nintendo representative stated that although mid-way through the Switch cycle, “it is necessary to invest in the next platform.”

Halfway through the cycle gives only vague clues as to the next release. If this was related to the 2017 Switch, a new version could still be four years off. More likely though, would be the Switch Lite, or the upgraded Switch, which both launched in 2019.

This would still mean that the new model could be at least 18 months away. The upcoming Switch Pro however – considered more of an upgrade than a new model – could be with us far sooner, and more details seem to be leaking every day.

A transcript from Universal Display Corps investor call highlighted a section in which Steven V Abramson, President/CEO of Universal Display Corp, confirmed their part in the upcoming Nintendo Switch Pro. Abramson stated that “Nintendo has selected an OLED screen for the new Switch Pro due to OLED benefits of higher contrast of faster response times.”

We’ve had rumors of the Switch Pro’s upgraded OLED screen as far back as October last year but with this level of open discussion, It can’t be far off now. With E3 just around the corner, there’s hope that we will get more info on the Switch Pro in June – or maybe even a full announcement.

As T3's Editor-in-Chief, Mat Gallagher has his finger on the pulse for the latest advances in technology. He has written about technology since 2003 and after stints in Beijing, Hong Kong and Chicago is now based in the UK. He’s a true lover of gadgets, but especially anything that involves cameras, Apple, electric cars, musical instruments or travel.