Nintendo Switch consoles will now be made in Malaysia in addition to China and Vietnam. Curious on why this is so? Nintendo Co has actually added Sharp Corp as an assembler of the gaming console. This was done to stabilize production and hedge against US-China trade tensions according to people directly involved in the matter. 

The Malaysia factory involved in the production line is owned by Sharp, according to sources that asked not to be identified. Nintendo’s main assembly partner Foxconn Technology Co, a key unit of Foxconn Technology Group, owns a Sharp stake and helped connect the two Japanese companies, they added. 

While the coronavirus outbreak initially disrupted production, Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa said that output has returned to normal this month and that the Switch will now be made in Malaysia, in addition to existing China and Vietnam locations. He added that those assembly lines aren’t running at full capacity at the moment and that the first batch of consoles will hit store shelves soon.

Nintendo has been diversifying its supply chain since before the COVID-19 era and mentioned at this month’s press conference that the Malaysia addition is part of the effort. Bloomberg News also reported that Nintendo plans to release an upgraded version of the console. It will likely support 4K graphics to help extend the Switch’s life cycle. 

We condensed a rather financial / business heavy related article for you eGGlets. For the more curious and inquisitive, the full article can be perused over at Bloomberg’s website.

Amidst the current new norm, picking up a Switch may not sound like a bad idea if the price is just right for Malaysians.