The Nintendo Switch Pro could run a new Nvidia GPU running on the more famous “Ada Lovelace” architecture. In theory, this technology could make the new Switch quite powerful; in practice it is one rumor stacked on top of another.
The information comes from VideoCardz, a website that primarily deals with news about GPUs and CPUs. After VideoCardz released a report on the next Switch that potentially uses Nvidia’s DLSS technology (in short: optimizes game graphics without using a lot of system resources), a pass called “kopite7kimi” responded on Twitter with three letters: “ada”.
At first glance, this looks like the Twitter equivalent of a rear dial. But dig a little deeper and you’ll find that kopite7kimi is something of an established Nvidia leak. Prior to that, kopite7kimi accurately revealed many specifications for Nvidia’s current Ampere GPU architecture. When they say “ada,” it refers to “Ada Lovelace,” the alleged name for Ampere’s eventual replacement.
From a practical perspective, it’s hard to say what this means, because Ada Lovelace (if that’s the correct name) still doesn’t have related statistics. We can assume that, in general, it would be more powerful than the Ampera GPU – but which GPUs? It doesn’t seem likely that a handheld console would have anything on par with Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 3090. On the other hand, the console’s GPUs often use creative architectures due to space constraints. A switch GPU probably wouldn’t be directly comparable to anything that would live on the best gaming PCs.
However, keep in mind another important thing. kopite7kimi is not just the person who suggested that the next Switch would hire Ada Lovelace; they are also the person who “discovered” the architecture of Ada Lovelace. They could be right in one, in both cases, or right at zero – in which case Nvidia may not call its next GPU architecture “Ada Lovelace” at all.
As is often the case, how much stock you put into this rumor depends on how much stock you put in the leak. kopite7kimi was right in the past, but the rumors are, in general, much more likely wrong than right. Furthermore, even if kopite7kimi called Ade Lovelace’s name correctly and his inclusion in the next Switch, those isolated facts don’t necessarily tell us much.
Just yesterday, we learned that the Switch Pro will likely offer a 4K upgrade via Nvidia DLSS technology, and could sell for around $ 400. Check out our Nintendo Switch Pro hub for more information and leaks as we approach launch, which will reportedly be later this year.