Samsung’s upgraded 8nm chip manufacturing process could give Nintendo and NVIDIA the technology they need to build a cheaper Nintendo Switch 2 Lite, according to a report cited by Wccftech. The report, posted on the website Nintendo Patents Watch, says Samsung is scheduled to present its second-generation 8nm process, called 8LPU+, at the International Electron Devices Meeting (IEDM) 2026. The idea comes at a time when console prices are under pressure. The Switch 2 launched last year, shortly before the prices of components such as RAM and solid-state drives rose sharply, and Nintendo raised the console’s price last month after holding it for as long as it could. Wccftech lists the console at $499.
Samsung’s new node is described as offering a 12 percent improvement in performance and a 15 percent reduction in power use, along with an 8 percent smaller area and about 10 percent less input/output area, as well as lower standby leakage. According to the Korean publication Electronic Times, 8LPU+ is aimed at existing 8nm customers in Samsung Foundry’s ecosystem and at chipmakers that want automotive qualification. Nvidia and Nintendo fall into the first group, since the T239 processor in the Switch 2 is made on Samsung’s current 8nm process. That means a move to the improved version would be a step within the same manufacturing family and would not require a redesign for a different foundry.
Wccftech argues that the new node’s features would suit a cheaper handheld-only model. A 15 percent drop in power use would help a portable-only device, which has to run on battery, while an 8 percent smaller chip area would increase the number of usable chips from each wafer and lower the cost of making each one. A smaller, dedicated handheld without a dock could in theory be sold at a lower price than the current console, and the site says offering a cheaper entry point to the Switch 2 generation is the main goal of such a product. The article is clear that this is speculation, and it notes that there is no indication that Nvidia and Nintendo will use 8LPU+ for a Switch 2 Lite.
Nintendo has not said that it is considering a new model. The first hardware revision of the Switch 2, which has a removable battery, has already reached the market, but its differences from the launch version are limited to that change. Wccftech says this leaves room for further changes that could make the console more affordable at a time when high prices for electronics are keeping many potential buyers out of the market. For now, the report shows what the new process could allow, and whether Nintendo uses it will depend on its plans for the Switch 2 line and on the cost of memory and other components that have pushed up the console’s price. Samsung’s presentation at IEDM is expected to give the first technical details of the process.
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