Rumors of a Nintendo Switch Pro or successor console pop up every few weeks but rarely do they build upon each other from reputable sources like the massive Nvidia leak from back in February. And now, more than six months after the initial leak, we seemingly have confirmation the custom Nvidia chipset powering whatever console Nintendo has coming next is real.
The Tegra239 (T239) was mentioned in a new patch pushed through the Linux kernel listed by several Nvidia employees, which not only seemingly confirms the system-on-chip (SoC) does exist but also makes direct mention of other features rumored to be possible because of it.
Based on the details from the listing, we now know this T239 set will have an 8-core CPU for certain.
Pairing that with information from previous leaks that remain relevant with the current details, deep learning super sampling (DLSS) or image upscaling technology will be supported. The specifics of that are still not known but DLSS 2.2 and raytracing are both mentioned in other reports.
This essentially means the next console can offer higher frame rates and resolutions with tech that uses AI learning to lessen the graphical load. Unfortunately, it does look like true 4K will not be in the picture based on this information, and whatever the new Switch is will instead likely offer 4K upscaling when docked, which is something that was previously speculated.
Fans will be excited to see tech-savvy users dissecting this info and pointing to the new Switch essentially being equal in power to an Xbox One or PlayStation 4 while in handheld mode—and a docked performance that could end up better than a PS4 Pro thanks to the DLSS and other improvements, hence the 4K upscaling. It also looks to be more powerful than the first Steam Deck model too.
A lot of the positioning and wording has leakers thinking this will in fact be a successor console rather than a pro model like many have thought in the past, though we will have to wait for confirmation or more details before that becomes more concrete.
All of this is still speculation based on one update, but the excitement surrounding such an upgrade potentially coming to a Switch successor in the not-so-distant future will keep that hype rolling, even should the next leak end up being fake.
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