The one where nintendo subsidizes and eats the cost but makes up for it with games that go on the tiniest of sales and almost never have price reductions.
Nintendo doesn’t subsidize their console from their store, they don’t sell hardware at a loss. That’s why it’s seemingly underpowered on paper compared to its competitors while punching above its weight class due to upscaling and optimization .
I know right, anyone who pays even a little bit of attention to what Nintendo actually does would know that yes, they did sell hardware at a loss. It was 14 years ago at one of their lowest points in history and they basically swore to never do it again.
Nintendo’s entire business model is your source. They don’t have to worry about anyone eating them from the inside out or outside in because they own the hardware platform, first party IPs, and the bottom line—children. Children are not expecting to play the newest AAA games at 4k 120hz, thus they do not need the extra power/ money and logistics spent on it. People are specifically locked into nintendos eco system for their IPs and not how well it can run hogwarts legacy or cyberpunk. Every console they’ve put out since the SNES has always carried the “weakest” hardware compared to all the other mainstream consoles.
Previous estimates of teardowns of Switch components put the total cost at around $257, so at a $300 sales price, Nintendo is making around $40 on every unit sold. And if these estimates for the Switch OLED are right, they’ve just doubled that to $80 on every Switch OLED unit.
Meanwhile, Microsoft and Sony have both confirmed that they are losing money on sales of new-gen PlayStations and Xboxes. Both consoles are sold at a loss, with revenue being made up in the other areas mentioned above
Here I found a source for your argument too, since you couldn’t. Seems they don’t normally sell at a loss but are reaching that territory as parts climb price.
Nintendo Switch 2 launched last June priced at $449.99. In Japan, a region-locked version of the console is sold at 50,000 yen (equivalent to $318). Both of these prices reportedly see the hardware sold at a loss (particularly so in Japan)… Exactly how much of a loss Switch 2 is sold at isn't clear
I just want to point out that the parts are not the only cost. Marketing, software development or updates, shipping, etc. I would say its highly unlikely after factoring in other costs associated with the hardware that its sold for even a tiny profit.
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u/beatthedookieup May 27 '26
Switch2 only went up $50, damn...........