Looking through history, we see various examples of pieces of tech getting smaller as time goes by.

Computers in the 40s took up entire rooms. Now they can fit in our laps.

Mobile phones were brick-sized in the 80s. Today, they can fit in our pockets.

Televisions also saw a similar transformation: I recall a time when my widescreen was quite bulky. Now they're thin and designed to hug the wall.

Consoles get these sorts of updates themselves: PS4 and X1 got smaller versions released not long ago.

Now why might this be? I think the answer is simple: convenience. Things that are smaller are easier to handle: they can be transported more easily meaning companies can ship more of them per shipment and more of those units can fit in a single household for example.

So might we see a similar transformation for consoles in the near future? Might the Switch be the first step towards this new trend for consoles?

Now some would object by stating "hold on, the Switch isn't a console" and that would be true but pay attention to the marketing that introduced the Switch to the world:

What's the message? Is the Switch a portable or a console? It can be both really and it seems to have reached a great deal of people: 31 million+ views and over .58 million likes in under a year. Some remarkable numbers.

Buy a Switch and you get the best of both worlds. Two for the price of one: that's convenience.

Is convenience a big selling point when it comes to tech? After all, what's the point of technology? Convenience surely? Does convenience dictate trends in tech? If we look at history, I think the answer is yes.

Just some thoughts swimming around my head at the moment. What do you guys think?

I think the resolution crap will end with 4k.... it should be a long time until we go higher.
Much rather they spent additional resources on other graphical aspects than just the resolutions.

Maybe at some point in the far far future, a mobile phone can do that stuff.
However I have my doubts.

Why? Physics.
There are laws of physics that could make it impossible to advance that far ahead.
We re reaching the end of how far down we can shrink these chips (ei. 5nm might be as small as we can make things)

Anyways thats a far ways off, and even then, there will be advantages to BIGGER systems, than smaller ones.
Does this mean a Switch 2? is a bad way to go? not at all.

I just dont think thats the route PS5 or XB2 take, or the future of consoles (other than nintendo).

Those are some really good points. The trade off is power. Once people can have similar power in a device like the switch as they are used to from high end consoles, convenience be the major factor in choosing what to buy. But for now, many are not satisfied with the trade off

Hold on, the Switch isn't a console.

Its a moveing target though, as soon as the next switch is out (and a big improvement) so too will the next playstation  & xbox be.

And as I mention in my post above, theres a limit to how far we can shrink these chips.

That hurts a handheld more than it does a home console thats just laying there, that doesnt care about power draw / heat.

You can always improve cooling, and just give it more juice, and improve that way (not so for a handheld).

Unfortunately, I think that once 4K is established the companies will start promoting 8K. It's like a never ending cycle.

It cant be never ending... at some point screens will be better than our human eye's can perceive.... then it should stop.

But there could be a placebo like effect, where there's no perceptible difference, but the people are made to believe that there is, which makes it actually seem like there is.

1/2 the size of a Switch is that dock, which could be 10X downsized to a flat 3 port/plug setup. Like a WiiU charge dock. In fact a Switch is a WiiU gamepad without the actual console in terms of size.  And remember just 7-8 years ago as everyone got excited when a 40" 720p HDTV fell under a $1000 for black friday? Now a TV like that is given away free as a incentive to buy a $500 couch...

What is the limit and how do we know? Also, does the consumer care?

Do sales trends support this? In my house, we have several laptops/tablets and only one PC but that's very much anecdotal. What have sales trends told us?