The Switch, Nintendo’s upcoming portable-home console hybrid, won’t feature a user-replaceable battery, according to U.S. Federal Communications Commission documents spotted by Engadget.
Not that this is necessarily surprising news, but as Engadget notes, when Nintendo released the Wii U, its most recent home console, the accompanying gamepad was panned for its poor battery life. Fortunately, the gamepad’s battery was user replaceable, and Nintendo subsequently started selling a high-capacity battery for the controller, which users could easily install themselves. If the Switch’s battery life is poor, however, users will be stuck with that reality unless Nintendo releases a redesign down the road.
Granted, the usage paradigm is somewhat different here; some users will likely end up using the Switch almost exclusively in its docked mode, making battery life less of a concern.
In any case, we’ll find out more about the Switch in just a few short weeks. Nintendo is scheduled to reveal the console’s final release date and official price on January 12th. On the following day, the company will host a hands-on event in New York for members of the U.S. media.
In the meantime, the Switch also made its first public appearance on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. You can watch the segment here.
