Nintendo Has Some Other Hardware Cooking That’s Not the Switch 2

Nintendo spent years keeping the Switch 2 console under wraps. It took months of badgering before the Japanese gaming monolith finally confirmed it had new hardware in the works. As much as we wish the speculation would end, a new filing with the U.S. Federal Communications Commission seems to hint there’s more hardware on the way that may be an upcoming accessory for the console—or something else entirely.

Nintendo filed an application with the FCC on Friday, Sept. 20. The FCC requires companies to get authorization for new devices that will use wireless technology. Unfortunately, none of the application documents share much in the way of details. It’s not listed as a game console, but instead a “wireless device.” What we do know is that the FCC’s required notation will appear “in a depression area on the bottom” of the device, according to one of the filings.

It doesn’t seem to be a high-powered device. Instead, the filing notes it will have a 24GHz mmWave sensor. It’s a type of radar that can detect the presence of an object within a relatively wide area around a device, whether stationary or in motion. That could be used to turn on a console, perhaps a Switch 2, when you get near enough. Such a sensor might also be able to recognize gestures. 

As first noted by The Verge, it won’t support Bluetooth, which hints it’s not some kind of wireless controller. There’s no sign of a 5 GHz or 6 GHz radio, which would be a basic requirement for any device looking for a speedy WiFi connection. That means it’s probably not a console. It will instead support a 2.4 GHz WiFi antenna, the bare minimum for modern WiFi standards. The console supports a WLAN and 24 GHz transceiver. 

Our guess is that it’s a peripheral of some kind for the Switch 2. The original console came with a docking station, but perhaps the new version will sell it separately like today’s Steam Deck or Lenovo Legion Go. Nintendo would probably add some extra support capabilities to make it worth spending extra cash. My first thought is it could potentially support the new console wirelessly and connect it to a TV without needing to slam it into the dock. This would be akin to the PlayStation Portal, though running in the opposite direction from handheld to TV.

Still, the unknown device’s limited WiFi range implies it’s relying on some more powerful hardware for better connectivity. At the very least, it likely has nothing to do with Amiibos. Nintendo’s statues rely on NFC technology. We’ll simply have to wait and see for anything beyond speculation. We have a long wait ahead for the Switch 2. Rumors hint Nintendo will wait until at least April 2025 before it gives us a first look at the new console. 

Previous FCC filings helped us learn about SNES games coming to the Switch and the first rumblings of new console hardware like the Switch OLED. The fact there’s so little information about Nintendo’s next console has us jumping at every little detail that slips out from Nintendo’s impenetrable shell. The Japanese game maker is instead happy for folks to keep buying the last few Switch consoles before it drops the Switch 2 bombshell next year.