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The Nintendo Switch is almost 4 years old and it still costs $300 USD retail. Is it time for a price drop?

The Nintendo Switch is almost 4 years old and it still costs $300 USD. Is it time for a price drop? (Image source: Nintendo)
The Nintendo Switch is almost 4 years old and it still costs $300 USD. Is it time for a price drop? (Image source: Nintendo)
Nintendo has yet to officially drop the original MSRP of its Switch console even after all these years. As outdated as its Tegra X1 chip has become, sales have been so strong that the Switch may not even need any price cuts at all until at least the impending launch of a proper successor.

The Nintendo Switch launched all the way back in March 2017 for gamers in the United States at a price of $300 USD. Now that we've reached the cusp of 2020, the Switch is *still* retailing for the exact same MSRP it did when it launched all those years ago. This fact alone is a testament to how insanely popular the portable console continues to be as if the raw sales numbers alone haven't been convincing enough.

For comparison's sake, the Playstation 4 launched in November 2013 for $400 with an official price drop to $350 in October 2015 (or 23 months post launch). Meanwhile, the XBox One launched in the same month as the PS4 for $500 followed by a Kinect-free version in June 2014 for $400. Microsoft would then drop the price to $350 by November 2014.

The closest the Switch has come to a price drop was the availability of the smaller Switch Lite in September 2019 where it launched for just $200. The original version with docking capabilities continues to be manufactured unlike the original "fat" PS4 or XBox One models.

Nintendo seems to have successfully carved itself a niche as to appear unperturbed by the next generation PS5 and XBox consoles. At this point, it feels as if it would take a direct Switch successor to institute any sort of official price drops for the Switch.

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> Expert Reviews and News on Laptops, Smartphones and Tech Innovations > News > News Archive > Newsarchive 2020 12 > The Nintendo Switch is almost 4 years old and it still costs $300 USD retail. Is it time for a price drop?
Allen Ngo, 2020-12-11 (Update: 2020-12-11)