Every fan of handheld gameplay and in particular the Nintendo Switch family will be glad to hear that the company just announced the coming of a new console, the Nintendo Switch Lite.

As the name clearly suggests its meant to be a lighter version of the original in terms of size, weight and even wait for it… the cost. Scheduled to launch on 20th September, the console is set to sell at $199.99 (approximately Ksh. 20,600) which will be $100 cheaper than the original Switch console’s price. So, do the math.

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The reveal of this new family member, however, comes a little as a surprise to some since the company decided to keep any details about it under lock and key and even the E3 audience never got to see any teaser whatsoever.

Nevertheless, the new Switch Lite, that comes two and a half years after the original console’s launch has been made as a strictly handheld console, which might be a bummer for many. What this then means is that you cannot connect it to a TV and the Joy-Cons are explicitly not detachable.

If that doesn’t hurt you enough, you will be crushed to realise that will only work with Switch games that can be played in handheld mode. One may try to get a digital game that doesn’t support the mode and force play it in the console but Nintendo eShop will alert them to that fact. Of course, it is possible to play an incompatible game in the console but issues will soon rise up which includes the smooth graphics run among others.

Players will still be able to wirelessly sync the console to a Switch Pro controller or a pair of Joy Controls but with the system lacking a kickstand, one will be forced to improvise it somehow. Do not give up on it though as the console comes with some significant improvements considering it’s the “lite” version with a major factor being how light it feels. Reviews so far from anyone lucky enough to have tried clearly prove the better weight it has especially after you pick the original Switch afterwards.

Other than that, Nintendo has promised that the Switch Lite features improved battery life due to a more efficient power chip layout even though the 720p resolution is the same as the predecessor and the lack of additional batteries for in the built-in controllers.

More to being just a nicer and sturdier piece of hardware, the Switch Lite will come in yellow, grey, and turquoise colour variations at its launch alongside a special light grey Pokémon Sword and Shield edition that will unfortunately, not include a copy of Pokémon Sword or Pokémon Shield, which won’t be released until Nov. 15.

Switch Lite Pokemon edition

Not much is known about whether saved games or Nintendo Switch Online accounts will sync between this version and the original Switch but as of now, a single account can be registered under multiple Nintendo switches. This is, however, sort of watered down by the lack of save games sync.

The two consoles may be made to have significant differences between them but they do have plenty in common as well. This includes the facts that games run the same in both systems, as guaranteed by Nintendo, the support of Wi-Fi, NFC and Bluetooth, as well as built-in gyro controls.

More to being compatible with all Switch controllers, both feature 32GB of storage with an expansion slot option for microSD card.

So what do you think? Is it worth the money?