The coronavirus pandemic has led to a massive shortage of the Nintendo Switch, as well as the Nintendo Switch Lite. There are a couple of reasons for the same. First being the challenges faced in the supply chain hindering the production of the console, and secondly, the massive increase in demand of the console due to the popularity of Animal Crossing: New Horizons. It’s been a while since the shortage started, and while the situation has got a bit better now, many gamers are still struggling to get a console for themselves.
While some retailers have the console, the price is way higher than the normal price. For instance, the $200 Nintendo Switch Lite is selling for over $300, while the Nintendo Switch, which sells for $299 normally, is going as high as $500, that too, the base edition. Given the current scenario, the premium for getting the console is way too much. However, for people who are looking to get the console, there is good news as Nintendo has confirmed that the production issues will likely be fixed very soon. In a shareholder meeting, Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa said, “We could not manufacture (Switch) as planned until May but production has been largely recovering from June. We expect it to normalize around summer.” This means that the shortage is pretty much temporary and the prices should be back to normal in the coming few weeks.
For those who can’t wait for prices to be normalized, the Nintendo Switch Lite is a decent buy at the price. It might not have the bells and whistles of the Nintendo Switch, but it is still a pretty solid console on its own. With the only downside of not being to able play on your TV, you will end up saving almost $200, according to current prices, so it is pretty much justified. Given that new stocks at standard prices deplete pretty fast, getting a Nintendo Switch Lite seems like the best deal at the moment.
