Semantic Nonsense: New Switch and old tech

New Nintendo Switch

(Yes, I know Switch Pro and Switch Plus are more popular names on the Internet, but you KNOW what Nintendo is going to name it, so just give up now.)

After getting it half right on last year’s introduction of the Switch Lite, the rumor mill has kicked back into high gear saying the other part, an enhanced version of the Switch, is coming THIS year for real. What gives this rumor more credec ne is that it’s more confident in providing details.

In addition to a larger, 7″ screen (which, in a wild “coincidence”, just happens to be the size of the bezel around the original Switch’s screen), the Switch would be powered by a newer, beefier SoC… though just which one remains an exercise to the reader. I assume it won’t be the latest and greatest Tegra, as Nintendo has always been VERY price-conscious on its components, and I don’t see why they’d be jumping into loss-leading when regular Switch sales are still in the same range as hotcakes.

More interesting is a major update to the dock: A hardware-based upscaler to convert the New Nintendo Switch’s video output to 4K. And because it’s part of the dock, I can’t help but wonder if I could just buy a new dock for my old Switch and take advantage of the upscaling by itself. This dock sounds like a handy cheat to give a console that was never competing on graphics access to 4K output without needing to actually produce 4K visuals.

I, for one, am hoping that the rumors strike true. The Switch has needed a bit more horsepower from the get-go, really. The unsteady frame rates and dynamic resolution zipping of the flagship launch title Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild was, frankly, a confession that Nintendo hit the limits of the console immediately out of the gate.

And perhaps that’s why Nintendo is holding off on showing more of Breath of the Wild 2. It’s going to be a showcase game for the New Nintendo Switch, so they don’t want show more until they’re also ready to announce the hardware. Conversely, perhaps wanting to improve BotW 2 of the original is what led to the design of a more capable New Nintendo Switch to begin with.

That all being said, there are as of yet no indications whether a New Nintendo Switch includes any durability improvements to the kickstand.

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Say goodbye to the iMac Pro and the Homepod

As I suspected back when Apple made it’s big reveal of their new Mac lineup, the iMac Pro was on borrowed time. And that quiet end-of-lifing has just been made loud with an official announcement that the model is joining the choir invisible.

Officially, Apple is still manufacturing the iMac Pro, but only to use up excess supplies. It remains on the Apple Store for now, but no customization can be made and only the lowest of the three base models remain in stock. It doesn’t look like supplies will last long at all.

But we probably should have known that the iMac Pro pushing up the daisies was inevitable; after all, it came into existence in 2017 explicitly as a placeholder until the all-new Mac Pro was ready for launch. It received no meaningful updates over its 3-year lifespan other than boosting the processor in the base model from an 8-core Xeon to the 10-core currently offered. Those 3 years of ageing weren’t kind to that processor, either, with the most recent 27″ regular iMac able to go toe-to-toe with the Pro just using a 8-core i7 for $1,500 less when otherwise identically spec’d.

There might be some amazing and rare person who desires ECC RAM in an iMac, but there’s just no other purpose to the product without updates.

But that’s not the only high-end item Apple made an ex-product last week. The HomePod has been so thoroughly embarrassed by the sales for the HomePod Mini that it has ceased to be, despite boasting capabilities the mini just can’t replicate. I mean, how many single-unit sound systems out there can produce Dolby Atmos?

But I suppose that was the issue. The HomePod was never going to make inroads with any serious audiophiles and the $300-$350 price tag was too high for casual customers looking for something that was plenty good enough and somewhat nice.

And while there has been much talk about the mini-sized version of the iPhone 12 underperforming (5 million units sold is a disappointment? Must be nice.), word on the street remains that mini-iPhones are getting a second chance instead of the ax.

But we’ll see.

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Kit Kat of the week: Hojicha Tea

Another tea Kit Kat, another bold, yet smooth flavor. I’m not going to bother reviewing tea Kit Kats any more; these all must read the same.