Aquaman and The Black Knight: What to expect in the next Nintendo/Nvidia chip!

With the year ending and Switch sales finally slowing down in all regions, it's time to look into the future! Just a few months ago, Nvidia talked about the Orin chip releasing in the first half of next year. According to a known reliable leaker, Nintendo has commissioned a custom chip based on this!

That's right, Nintendo will use a new chip, and one of the most powerful available! The age of bleeding-edge Nintendo hardware is upon us! To remind what Orin's specs are:

• 12-core Cortex A78AE @2GHz
• 2048 CUDA cores at a currently unknown clock speed, but expected to be about 1.5GHz (6.1 TFLOPS)
• 32GB of LPDDR5 RAM on a 256-bit bus @200GB/s bandwidth

I know I've made a similar thread before, but thanks to new comparative info from the recently announced RTX 2050 and MX550, I now see that I was a bit too conservative. It still has to be cut down because Orin is too big and power-hungry to be put into switch, so it has to be cut down a bit into the custom chip, Dane. I'm now confident that we're looking at something very impressive.

• CPU: 8-core Cortex A78C (pretty much the ideal architecture) at up to 1.7GHz
• Undocked GPU: 1536 CUDA cores @ up to 460MHz (1.4 TFLOPS, competitive with Steam Deck)
• Docked GPU: 1536 CUDA cores @ 768MHz (2.36 TFLOPS) or 1100MHz (3.38 TFLOPS)
• DLSS increases performance in docked mode by 50%, up to 5 TFLOPS
• RAM: 16GB LPDDR5, 128-bit bus, 100GB/s, probably some on-die cache
• 256-512GB UFS 3.1 flash storage at 2.5GB/s read and write
• Support for UFS cards for storage expansion
• 1080p OLED screen with HDR10 support
• HDMI 2.0 (sadly, no 4k120 support)

This seems like the most reasonable expectation. I expect that it'll be a premium product at first though, with a launch price of $500 in March 2023. But it'll be worth it! Most powerful ARM handheld ever, and a strong 4k console! Even the Steam Deck will get a run for its money.

Just wait! Even as we speak, Nintendo is working on this wonderful (though expensive) con, and it'll be great. Beastly specs for the formfactor! An amazing library from day 1 thanks to BC! I personally can't wait for it. Though the Steam Deck is amazing, it's just a little bit too big and heavy for a handheld and that will affect market penetration. Even so, there's definitely a place for both of them. Dominating the market is nice, but it's neither the only thing, nor the most important.

Anyway, tell me what you think. Do you think these specs would be enough for strong third-party support?

Lol at Nintendo pricing a hybrid at $500.

$399 is the absolute max.

Good news is hopefully there shouldn't be a problem with BC on the GPU side, assuming they must have built their games around Nvidia's proprietary APIs. As long as they don't opt for a new memory storage. Even if they do move to a different physical media, past Nintendo products at least for first couple years have physical media compatibility features. Wii had GameCube controller ports, memory card readers, and the disc drive could read those cute little Game Cube discs, though they eventually gutted that. The DS too could read GBA games but later models they gutted that too. Guess going by precedent, get an early model if you care for BC if it has different physical media.

Curious if this would even be for a new-new system, what if this just goes toward a the beefy Switch refresh beyond the OLED model, a proper 4K machine that people had hoped for. It seems too early to move on. If sales are slowing it could be Nintendo had not yet been effected by supply constraints. Plus sales peaked quite high during Covid so it isn't like interest is fading. I think it would be prudent to just build off the Switch ecosystem than to start something new. One great feature of the Switch hybrid design is it stopped the console-handheld content split and consolidated their efforts around one product, smart. Introducing something new outside the Switch ecosystem risks fracturing that.

LOL at Nintendo hardware in general. Trash tier performance.

@lamprey263: Nintendo was affected by the shortage. Now they aren't, even in Japan. Demand is just softening, and the market looks like it'll saturate by 2023 unless there are people holding out for price cuts.

I bet in 2016 or early 2017 you would have said that $199 is the max.

@techhog89: No. also, aren’t you the one who was always saying (and hoping) the Switch would fail?

Oh yes its him. He was so mad that instead of releasing a Switch 2 in 2021, they gave him an OLED, that he began raging to severe levels, and began shit talking Nintendo, even tho he was a super sheep before the OLED was announced. It was pretty funny, actually.


Just over a week ago i said this to you: "What i really want to see is some other bullshit rumors THAT YOU WILL 100% TRUST, stating that the Switch 2 will be released sooner than expected (with the chips shortage none the less🤣), and we're to expect a Switch 2 by the end of 2022 or even Winter 2023. You're so damn desperate for any kind of good news related to Nintendo lol. But you ain't getting any. You hear me?"

And here you are, believing everything POSIVITE about some Nintendo related rumors. Expecting bleeding edge tech from Nintendo🤣🤣🤣When you, and every single Nintendo fan ever seen on SW keeps on damage controlling its visuals by saying that Nintendo doesn't need good graphics, and that gameplay is all that matter to them. Second melting incoming, and i can't wait. Please be ready to have that Switch broken in two pieces in your profile picture🤗

Not this nonsense again.🙄 Did you argue about the Switch 2 being release this year and 4k ready?🤔 This belief that Nintendo will make high end console is funny to read, so I will just sit back and watch the show.

@techhog89: you wish buddy. Nintendo has always been about cheaping out on hardware. In fact, pray they don't go with nvidia, because nvidia are known scammers who over price gpus and never give discounts. In fact nvidia is probably still selling their 2015 Tegra to Nintendo at the original price. For nintendo, who doesn't really have a competitor as of yet, that may be ok, but now that the deck is about to release, they can't afford to partner up with someone like nvidia who will sell them a turd for a high price when the deck is going to be decked out with one of AMDs better chips.

The last time Nintendo Nintendo offered something remotely competitive hardware wise was the GameCube. Sadly they got hammered so hard by the ps2, and even the xbox, they decided to go the gimmicky innovative way instead. They took the wrong message from the beating they took...the only real reason they did so poorly with the GameCube is because they insisted on selling a purple color cube with a smiley face on the front. Even the kids didn't want it because it looked girly and kiddy at the same time.

Honestly, I think Nintendo needs to start going back to making competitive hardware because all the other consoles have a streaming option to play games on handheld. Now the deck is on the way. It's best for nintendo to just jump back to strong console hardware, and allow handheld gaming via streaming on the phone.

No, unless you were here for like the week I faked that before getting bored lol.

Lol. Also, I never said that Switch 2 was coming this year.

See above. And again, lol

Actually, I'm curious, what are you expecting? Just an overclock on the X1 for Switch 2?

They need to stick with Nvidia for BC. Also, an AMD APU is too power hungry for Nintendo. They aren't going to make something as massive and heavy as the SD.

@techhog89: no they don't. The switch is so damn weak, even a two bit beat up computer can emulate it already. Not to mention, all their previous hardware was different chips. The GameCube used power pc IBM, the wii used an amd and so did wii u. The switch went with Nvidia but no reason nintendo can't go back to amd or anyone else.

@techhog89: Were you expecting a Pro version? I really don't remember to which copium tank you were plugged in in your melting thread.

One thing you must get through your head is that Nintendo WILL NEVER release a powerful system again, let alone a cutting edge one. 17-30fps and 900p is the future for them, and you must accept that.

All I ask for is that it is fully backwards compatible with the Switch library.

@blaznwiipspman1: GCN, Wii, and Wii U all used the same IBM CPU. The GPU was ATI.

Techhog89 wants the next Nintendo system to be powerful so so so SO bad, but he is simply not getting it🤗Its like me asking good visuals in a Fromsoft title😭

@techhog89: the point is nintendo doesn't stick with any gpu or cpu manufacturer. And those specs honestly look super expensive, far above the target range of $300 to $350 that nintendo normally charges.

Do you know why I know for sure your post doesn't make sense?

1) nintendo has a history of going with the weakest turd hardware, and has done it now 3 gens in a row. They use that turd hardware and package it into a $300 or so price. They rarely if ever go over this pric3. People buy nintendo regardless of crap hardware, because of nintendo games.

2) the oled just released and nintendo has no reason to release another version so soon, especially not when they are supply constrained, with switch flying off shelves

3) nvidia hardware is not cheap, they don't give discounts. Tflop for tflop, amd is much cheaper than nvidia.

4) the steam deck is releasing a 1.8 tflop portable machine next year, with the cheapest base model selling for $399.

Taking into account the above points, it's very unlikely nintendo will sell the console your thinking of. If they do sell a new console next year, it won't be more than 1tflop, maybe just under the xbox one base console so they can fit their target price. This is assuming they go with a handheld console again. If they go traditional console again then I agree with you that it's possible for nintendo to make even a 4tflop console with a price of $299. I mean, Microsoft is selling a $299 console in the series S with 4tflops of power. No reason nintendo can't do the same. But I will bet money on it that nintendo is fishing up another gimmick again.

Nintendo's model is to release hardware at a price of 350$ maximum while also avoid losing money on the HW .. especially that they target the young audience first and foremost, then their hardcore fans come next .. and the parents cannot afford to pay a lot of money for their kids .. So it should be 300-350$ maximum no way it's going to be more than that ..

I think the specs will be a gimped ps4 pro .. basically 8 core cpu, 12gb ram, 128gb storage .. but for sure not the latest in tech for any of these components ..

What you meant to say is a gimped PS4 from 2013, not the Pro. Nintendo will never even approach Pro hardware in a handheld for their next gen system. Ready to bet that it will be delivered with a 1080p screen, but most half demanding titles will be running in 900p and 30fps.

@hardwenzen: nintendo is cheap true, but they can see how possible it is for a traditional console to fit their target price of $300 just by looking looking at the xbox series s. You assume the next nintendo console will be a handheld, but I don't think that's a guarantee either. No doubt nintendo is trying to cook up another gimmick, but maybe they're running out of ideas at this point. We will have to see what the geniuses at the nintendo lab pull out their rear ends.

No such thing as running out of gimmicks. Look at the stupid crap they trade marked in BOTW2. And why would you even consider them making a standard console when not only the Switch was/is extremely successful, but even now, other than the Deck, there is no competition in that market while in the console space you have two juggernauts that would delete Nintendo from existence. Nintendo will only be in handheld space until the competition is so high that it wouldn't make a difference between making a handheld or a standard console. Them being able to farm the console and handheld crowd is the perfect strategy to be as successful as possible.

Nintendo aren't gonna make hardware that is up to date, you silly goose. Doubt anyone would buy a Nintendo console for $500+. If it's to be a hybrid and have up to date hardware, it would cost even more. A monkey could figure out that that wont happen.

Whatever crap they release, I'll be placing a preorder.

This'll be the exact same situation as with Xbox Series and PS5 consoles. Damn scalpers.

@blaznwiipspman1: Actually, the X1 was pretty much the most powerful mobile gaming chip they could get at the time. They've also hinted at a change in strategy.

All rumors are pointing to them sticking with Nvidia. Also, it's really sad how you want the system to be bad lol

Also it has to be more than $350 because that's what the OLED costs. They can't have the OLED and a 10x more powerful system at the same price. That would be silly.

900p native, 1800p after DLSS, yes.

You will not get DLSS on any mode, portable or docked. Nintendo is not thinking of hardware when they're creating a new system. As i was told a million times, Nintendo games don't need good graphics to play Mario and Zelda. Best case scenario would be about 10-20% less powerful than the original Xbone from 2013.

@techhog89 said:

@hardwenzen said:

@techhog89 said:

@hardwenzen said:

@techhog89: Were you expecting a Pro version? I really don't remember to which copium tank you were plugged in in your melting thread.

One thing you must get through your head is that Nintendo WILL NEVER release a powerful system again, let alone a cutting edge one. 17-30fps and 900p is the future for them, and you must accept that.

900p native, 1800p after DLSS, yes.

You will not get DLSS on any mode, portable or docked. Nintendo is not thinking of hardware when they're creating a new system. As i was told a million times, Nintendo games don't need good graphics to play Mario and Zelda. Best case scenario would be about 10-20% less powerful than the original Xbone from 2013.

This was my face when you expected a Switch Pro, but go an OLED that cost almost as much as a PS5🤭

HE LACKS CRITICAL INFORMATION

It's hard to say if Nintendo will even go with nvidia next gen. They are 2 control freak companies. Nvidia have a track record of being difficult when it comes to customising hardware and being as flexible as possible when it comes to custom designs (there are reasons MS and Sony have avoided them). its seems to be a case of "here is our portfolio. pick something, build your product around that or get lost".

Nintendo also tend to be uncompromising unless they really really have to (and they really really had to be more flexible at the time the switch was being developed). i mean they stuck with the IBM in the CPU despite it being a 15 year old dead architecture. They dug up the DMP Pica 200 in the 3DS because they didn't want programmable unified shaders in a handheld at the time.

I think they just worked with them because the X1 was the closest to meeting Nintendos requirements at the time (i mean the SOC in the switch is very much an off the Shelf X1). I don't see Nvidia customising their stuff to the degree Nintendo would like and this time Nintendo don't need to be flexible. They have options and time.

Looking at the specs of the Orin and the TCs suggested modifications: the cuts are not enough.

• 8 cores is too many. 4 would make more sense.
• still too many cuda cores....drop it closer to 1024. clocks kept similar to the switch in docked/portable mode.
• 16GB of ram....not a chance. 8 Max (and, memory controller willing, in terms of ideal amount 6GB would be preferable to Nintendo).
• DLSS would be a nice win and, if it can work with 32ish tensor cores (half the orin spec) then happy days. if not they wont bend over backwards to get it.

I wouldn't be at all surprised though if Nintendo are looking to see how the Samsung RDNA2 based SOC (Exynos 2200?) works out for their phones/tablets while they also look at scaling up a Mali, PowerVR or Adreno GPU instead of going with Nvidia.

Exactly, they really don't care about CPU and GPU performance past a point. That IBM architecture was so bad, the Wii U couldn't even handle the Arkham games well. I remember playing that on a 2008 iMac with a 3Ghz C2D.

I read that developers even warned them about that CPU choice, but they were stubborn.

Over and over and over again they prove they don't care. Yet every time people come out expecting something from them.

Anyway, the smart move imo is for Nintendo to focus more on software and services than hardware. They're way behind in online play and services.

@osan0: You think they're gonna stay with 4 cores two generations in a row, basically telling third-parties that they don't want support? Will they stay at 4 forever in your mind?

Nintendo games have such simple visuals, its just geometric shapes and colors. 4 cores until the next generation is all what they need🤭and then they will upgrade to 6cores when 12+ will be the norm. They're stuck ten plus years behind competition, its time to accept that.

The reason to use more cores is that it's more efficient. With 8 cores they can keep the same speeds as Switch (1.0 GHz base, 1.7 GHz boost), but with 4 cores they have to increase clockspeeds unless they keep the GPU basically the same like the miserable child is implying. That's my logic.

As for sticking with Nvidia, it's required for BC. That and the fact that Nvidia said it would be a long-term partnership makes me confident it'll be Tegra. Kopite also has a near flawless record, and the Bloomberg article earlier this year that nailed the OLED Model said that the next chip will have DLSS.

You're such a silly goose Techhog89

You're not getting what you want from Nintendo. You will never get what you expect from Nintendo. Time to accept the fact that the SD is as good as we'll be seeing in the portable space.

...? The specs here are overall worse than SD in portable mode anyway. Also, the AYANEO Next is going to be better than both. All of that in terms of power anyway. Switch 2 will still be lighter and have better battery life.

Please ask Nintendo to hold your beer. Look at them going with some cheap shit battery just like they currently have.

@techhog89: Assuming nintendo are making a Switch 2, literally, and are releasing in 2023 for 300-350 bucks at launch:

On the CPU: Sure. 4 cores with a more buffed up ARM architecture running around 1.7-2.0GHz sustained is plenty for nintendos own games. They make hardware to meet their, and only their, requirements. At the end of the day developers have ported functionally complete PS4/X1 games to the switch even though the PS4/X1 has 8 cores and the Switch has 4. I mean technically The tegra X1 in the switch has 8 cores. 4xA57s and 4xA53s. they are physically on the SOC on the switch. nintendo just switched the A53s off (maybe for yields, maybe just to make development and task scheduling simpler). Will they stick with 4 for a very long time? possibly. fewer stronger cores is generally preferable to game developers over many but slower cores. a 4 core 2GHz CPU would be preferable to an 8 core 1.2GHz CPU.

On sticking with Nvidia in the future for BC: BC is not enough for Nintendo to stick with them. As many publishers have demonstrated this gen: many people are willing to buy the same game again going from gen to gen. I'm not saying Nintendo are definitely going to dump Nvidia (maybe Nvidia are interested in doing more custom work for companies now) but it most certainly is not a guarantee. Nintendo have broken BC before and they will have no issue doing it again if required. They have plenty of options on the GPU side.

Don't expect any announcements especially with the global chip shortage occurring. Nintendo is a conservative company and will want the chips readily available and enough silicon to mass produce.

@techhog89: dude you keep saying bc bc, but nintendo stuck with amd for their gpu from the wii gen, and the wii u, before dumping for nvidia in the switch. So you see, they have no problem with dumping BC if they feel like it. They just dumped 2 gens of BC when they went from the wii u to the switch. Theres a good chance nintendo sticks with Nvidia but don't be surprised if they go elsewhere either.

@osan0: Higher clocks means higher voltage and more heat. Adding more cores and keeping the clock speed the same is way more efficient. 4 cores at 2GHz will run hotter and use more power than 8 at 1GHz. Also, the reason the A53s are disabled is a technical limitation. You can't use the A57s and A53s at the same time on the X1, so they had to pick one and obviously went with the faster cluster. The Shield TV does the same thing.

And Nintendo keeps BC when they iterate on hardware. The only way they switch is if they get offered an insane deal that Nvidia doesn't counter.

There was one rumor suggesting that they were in talks about the Samsung chip, but everything else points to it being a custom Orin. The chances of them switching are similar to the chances of them going back to two pieces of hardware for the sake of a new console gimmick.

@blaznwiipspman1: Switch having BC with Wii U was impossible. There was no chip they could use that would have worked, and it would have required expensive accessories for GamePad compatibility. It doesn't count.

Why is there always this idiotic assumption that Kidtendo cares about third party support.

Look at their sales without third party support.

@osan0: Forgot to mention something about the RAM. Yes 6GB is actually doable with LPDDR5. However, a 1.5x boost in RAM would be the smallest we've ever seen, even from Nintendo. For reference, even going from 3DS to New 3DS doubled the RAM. It's going to be at least 8GB. 10 and 12 are also fair game.

Now for the miserable child to say they'll stick with 4GB.

@techhog89: 4 cores at 2GHz would be far preferable to 8 at 1GHz though from a developer standpoint. its a more dev friendly setup. it's one of the reasons the deck went with a 4 core/8 thread Zen 2 CPU instead of an 8 core/16 thread CPU (the other being cost and die size). the difference in power draw wouldn't be large enough to offset the pain it would be to make their games scale across 8 very slow cores + the cost of the extra silicon needed for 8 cores.

Nintendo have, historically, been very selective about when they keep BC. BC, or the lack there of, will have absolutely no bearing on nintendo choices regarding their future hardware. They didn't choose the CPU in the wiiu to maintain BC. that was just a happy side effect. They chose that CPU because it was the CPU they knew and were tooled up for already.

As for the Ram. it will probably be 8GB depending on how the memory controller is setup. i was thinking 6GB if the memory controller would be problematic with 8GB (like the GTX 970 and having slow access to the last 512MB of Vram due to the way the memory controller worked). 8GB with 6.5GB-7GB available for games is likely though (I doubt they will go mad on the OS and have it take up a big lump of memory).

I mean overall i think nintendos objective, hardware wise, will be to make a portable/hybrid X1S/Ps4 for 300-350 quid at launch.

Again this is all assuming Nintendo are making a switch 2.0 literally. they may not be.

Interesting. I image that Dane will be similar. Mobile ray tracing!

It's not going to be 2GHz. You really don't understand voltage scaling. It's logarithmic, not linear. The difference in heat between 4 cores at 2GHz and and 8 at 1GHz is massive for ARM chips. That's the entire reason why the current Switch is clocked so low in the first place. We also don't know that they would have stuck with 4 cores on Switch if they used a custom chip.

I'll drop the BC point though, since you're adamant on that clearly. I'll just say that everything now pointing to Tegra.

Current Switch OS uses less than half a gig of memory.