Summary
- Nintendo is possibly working on Switch 2 Joy-Con wrist straps that attach magnetically to the upcoming console’s controllers.
- The Switch 2 Joy-Cons may also receive a new charging stand designed to lie flat on a surface rather than standing upright, like the official charging station for the original Switch.
Nintendo may be working on a new iteration of Joy-Con straps for the Switch 2, according to some recently surfaced patent documentation reviewed by Game Rant. The purported Switch 2 accessory could hit the market as early as 2025.
The Switch 2 was officially announced on January 16, with Nintendo confirming plans to release its next console sometime in 2025. Since the company has scheduled multiple hands-on preview events for fans throughout spring, the Switch 2 is unlikely to be available for purchase before early June 2025, when the last of these events is set to take place.
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In the meantime, Nintendo has recently secured a patent describing what appears to be a new Switch 2 accessory. The accompanying documentation, reviewed by Game Rant, shows a pair of Joy-Con attachments with wrist straps. In terms of the end-user experience, the gadgets look similar to the official Joy-Con straps for the original Switch, as both the existing product and this recently emerged concept are equipped with SL and SR buttons, helping transform every individual Joy-Con into a standalone gamepad. The big difference between the two is that the new patent envisions a gadget that attaches to the controllers magnetically rather than relying on a mechanical slider mechanism.
Nintendo’s New Joy-Con Attachment Patent
Nintendo Possibly Working on Horizontal Charger For Switch 2 Joy-Cons
While the wrist strap attachments are the focus of the patent, its accompanying documentation also includes several illustrations of what appears to be a charging stand. Unlike the official Joy-Con charging station for the original Switch, this device seems to be designed to lie flat on a surface instead of standing vertically. Since the patent doesn’t explicitly mention the charger, it’s possible that these drawings are merely illustrative rather than being an early look at a commercial product. Even so, it’s a given that Nintendo will have to design a new charging stand for the Switch 2 Joy-Cons because its next console’s controllers will use a different connection mechanism than their immediate predecessors.
The first-ever Switch 2-focused Nintendo Direct is scheduled for April 2. While the upcoming event is bound to yield new information about the much-anticipated device, it’s dubious whether Nintendo will spend much time talking about the console’s accessories on that occasion, especially since it has yet to answer some much more pressing questions concerning the Switch 2 feature set and launch game lineup. It’s hence possible that the company will save accessory reveals for a later date. However, the Switch 2 is still likely to hit the market along with a variety of first-party accessories, based on Nintendo’s track record.
Nintendo Switch 2
- Brand
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Nintendo
- Original Release Date
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2025