When the 5.0 update for the Nintendo Switch first came out last week, we got a lot more than a fix for the play time bug and some new avatars. However, some smart people have been diving into the 5.0 firmware and finding bits and pieces of code that strongly suggest a slight revision to the hardware. Now additional details have come to light.
These people have found bits of code that reference a new System on a Chip (SoC) with the codename Mariko. The offshoot of Nvidia’s T214 chip, itself a fork from the Tegra X1, also brings with it a new PMIC and new PCB. In layman’s terms, it’s a rebuild. But the interesting part is that it seems to be packing on 8GB of RAM instead of the current 4GB.
While this is all just hearsay, and Nintendo might have played with the idea of including more RAM to help run OS functions, we don’t know until a revised system hits the wild if they actually go through with it, or if they do whether it will really show any user side benefits. Given that the Nintendo Switch is just over 1 year old and is still selling like crazy, it’s hard to imagine a revision coming so soon.
5.0.0 included hw bringup for a new SoC called Mariko. nvidia calls it t214 (it's a fork of tegra X1), it has a custom nintendo bootrom, new key material, new pmic (and new pcb!). however it will probably look identical from outside 😉 @hexkyz
— plutoo (@qlutoo) March 18, 2018
Interesting fact: Tegra systems are code-named after Marvel characters. TK1 was "Logan", TX1 was "Erista" and now T214 SoC's name "Mariko" comes from Mariko Yashida, Wolverine's lover. Whether this symbolizes Nvidia and Nintendo's scorching "romance" remains to be seen. 😉
— Mike Heskin (@hexkyz) March 19, 2018
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