Nintendo Switch is $300, it's coming March 3 and you can preorder now
Nintendo finally spilled the beans on its new console and transforming controller.
Nintendo's president Tatsumi Kimishima announced at a press conference on Thursday that its upcoming Nintendo Switch -- originally codenamed NX -- would finally be hitting stores worldwide on March 3. Nintendo also let us know how much it'd cost. The entry-level Switch will run you $300, £280 or AU$470.
For those keeping score at home, that price tag means the Switch sits very comfortably under the rival Sony PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.
The entry-level Switch package contains the Nintendo Switch console and screen hybrid, left and right Joy-Con controllers, a grip to use them like a traditional controller and some classic Nintendo "pls don't sue" wrist straps to use them as separate Wiimote-style motion controllers. It's available in black or a red and blue variant, both at the same price. Additional Joy-Con controllers will sell for $80 (about AU$105 or £65).
The Nintendo Switch is part tablet, part console and even part portable tabletop game system, but above all that it looks like the most novel piece of hardware to come from Nintendo in years. Most impressively, it'll be usable as both a home console and a portable handheld device with 2.5 to 6.5 hours of battery life.
While in its dock the console will also allegedly deliver double the graphical processing power, so there's still good reason to use it with the TV at home. Early reports put the portable screen at 720p, whereas you'll hit 1080p resolution while docked. There's more in terms of technical scaling, but the idea is the same game library will work at home and on the go.
If you're not entirely sold on the Switch's transforming Joy-Con grip controller, Nintendo also announced a more traditional gamepad for $70 (around AU$90 or £60, converted). Other big news from the show included scrapping region locking of software and a paid subscription service, with more details to come.
If you're based in the US, you can also preorder the console right now.
It's Nintendo's first home console release since 2012's Wii U. Like the Wii U and the Wii before it, Nintendo isn't being coy about controller design. An announcement trailer released last year showed off the Switch's modular, portable controller further blurring the lines between a home gaming console and handheld, on-the-go gaming, an area Nintendo has dominated since the first Gameboy was released in the late '80s.
CNET's also got you covered if you want to know more about the games that will be available at launch or the Switch's accessories. For our full coverage roundup, head here.