The Nintendo Switch Lite is now available for pre-order

By Gabe Gurwin July 31, 2019

Image used with permission by copyright holder

The Nintendo Switch Lite system isn’t scheduled to release until September 20, but you can make sure you get the system you want on launch day by pre-ordering it in advance. Pre-orders are currently available at multiple retailers, but we don’t know how long they’ll be in stock.

On Amazon, you can currently pre-order the Nintendo Switch Lite in all four of its available styles — gray, turquoise, yellow, and the Zacian and Zamazenta Pokémon edition. Aside from the color and visual design differences, the four consoles are otherwise identical and are all priced at $200.

If you prefer to shop at another retailer, you can also find the Switch Lite available for pre-order at Target and Best Buy, as well as GameStop. Regardless of your choice, it should be obtainable at the same price, and retailers with brick-and-mortar locations should also allow you to pick it up in the store on launch day.

Image used with permission by copyright holder

The Zacian and Zamazenta Pokémon console is being released to celebrate the upcoming games Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield. They will be the first full-fledged Pokémon role-playing games on the Switch. The simpler adventure games Pokémon: Let’s Go, Pikachu! and Pokémon: Let’s Go, Eevee! were released in 2018, and blended elements of Pokémon Yellow with those from Pokémon Go.

The Nintendo Switch Lite launches just a few months before Black Friday, but don’t count on its price being slashed during the holiday shopping event. Nintendo is notoriously stingy with its console sales, so you are risking very little by purchasing the system at launch.

Just prior to the launch of Switch Lite, Nintendo is also releasing an updated version of the original Switch system. It isn’t more powerful and doesn’t include any unique features, but its battery life has been improved to a maximum of nine hours. The system that launched in 2017 could only manage around six hours. For those who want to dock their system, this is the preferable purchase, but younger kids will appreciate the smaller size of the Switch Lite. On top of that, its fixed controls mean that the directional pad has replaced the buttons found on the standard left Joy-Con.

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Gabe Gurwin has been playing games since 1997, beginning with the N64 and the Super Nintendo. He began his journalism career…

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