Nintendo’s Portable-only Switch Lite will release this September

Nintendo has officially revealed their Switch Lite console, a new version of their Switch console that’s dedicated to handheld play, removing the system’s detachable joy-cons and features like HD rumble to offer a low-cost, portable-only design. 

Yes, this is a Switch that can’t switch between the original system’s handheld and home console modes, dropping support for TV/docked play to deliver a lower $199 price tag. 

This new variant of Nintendo’s Switch will release on September 20th and come in Grey, Yellow and Turquoise colour options, with a specialised Pokemon Themed version of the console coming on November 8th, one week before the release of Pokemon Sword and Shield. 

With this new console, Nintendo offers a marginally increased battery life over the company’s original Switch model, providing users a smaller 5.5-inch touch screen which delivers the same 720p screen resolution as its predecessor. The console is also significantly lighter than the original handheld, weighing 275g instead of the original console/s 398g (when controllers are attached).

The Nintendo Switch Lite supports all Switch games that support handheld mode, with games that lack handheld mode support requiring the use of external joy-con controllers. The Switch lite supports a 3-7 hour battery life, which is a modest improvement over the original’s 2.5-6.5 hours of battery life.