Despite approaching five years in the gaming marketplace, the Nintendo Switch remains in hot demand. All three models—the original design, the Switch Lite, and the OLED Switch, are flying off shelves; the latter of those appears to be sold out basically everywhere. However, if you want any one of them for Christmas, you should really start cracking down on finding one. Today.
Chip shortages mean fewer Switches for the holidays
In case you weren’t aware, the world is currently experiencing a semiconductor shortage. This pinch on the chip market is affecting just about every industry that uses computers in its products. You might have heard about countless unfinished cars sitting idle, waiting for available chips to power their computer systems, for example.
This shortage has not spared the video game industry, either. Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa confirmed Thursday that semiconductor chip shortages have put a strain on the company’s ability to produce new Switch consoles. Nintendo previously estimated it could ship 25.5 million units, but that number has dropped to 24 million, a 6% dip.
As it stands, there will likely be about 1.5 million fewer Switches on the market this holiday season than previously anticipated. If you thought finding one to gift to your child, friend, or even yourself would be difficult, just imagine competing with over a million extra Switch-less customers. Yikes.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like there will be a Christmas miracle happening here, either. Nintendo’s president went on to say that there was no reason to believe that the production slowdown would change before the high end-of-year demand:
We can’t produce enough to meet the demand we are expecting during the upcoming holiday season ... Currently there is no sign of improvement and the situation continues to be severe so I can’t say how long it will continue.
Industry experts are split on exactly how long this shortage will last. Some take a depressing outlook on the situation, anticipating a return to normal by 2023 or 2024. Others are hopeful that by 2022, demand will fall enough to bring things back on track. However long this situation lasts, it won’t kick in fast enough to save the Switches this holiday season.
How to find a Switch for the holidays
Your best bet is to start shopping now. Like, right now. Fire up your browser, and get to sleuthing.
The most in-demand version of the Switch is the new OLED model. This product runs $350, $50 more than the traditional Switch, and features a larger, OLED display. Because of its novelty, you’re more likely to run into “sold out” banners when researching this one. You might want to use a tracking site like Restockify, Stock Informer, or HotStock (or all three), which can send you alerts when a store has the OLED Switch in stock.
If you can spare the time, checking with stores in-person can also be helpful. A store might say they are totally out of stock, but they might have received a new shipment without having a chance to update their online records.
As of this article’s publication, it doesn’t appear too difficult to find a regular Switch or Switch Lite. Amazon, however, isn’t a good option right now, as they have low inventory and are jacking up prices. Other options like Best Buy or Target seem to have these devices in stock. That depends on your location, of course.
If you find your local stores have Switches in stock right now, don’t be lured into a false sense of security. Once that stock runs out, it’s impossible to tell how many Switches will actually find their way to stores near you. If you want a Switch, and you see one today, buy it; that decision could be the difference between a Nintendo Christmas and a sad IOU.