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Doctor_MG on 19 March 2021
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Pemalite said:

It's not both.

The Switch is a mobile device first and foremost with the functionality to output it's display.

It is built 100% around mobile hardware, battery, screen, processor, ram, storage... Everything is mobile.
It just has a dock that can pass video onto a seperate display...

* My tablet has a dock that allows me to output to a TV via HDMI to a display. STILL a mobile device and not a hybrid.
* My phone has a dock that allows me to output to a TV via HDMI to a display. STILL a mobile device and not a hybrid.

I even have an Android powered gaming tablet with built in physical controls that also outputs to a display via HDMI... Still a mobile device 100%.

Just because it has a dock does not mean it's not primarily a mobile device.

The fact there are variants which use the *exact* same hardware, the absolute exact, right down to the CPU and GPU type, that are mobile-only, just further reinforces the fact that the Switch is a mobile device, not a fixed home console.

The Switch is an absolutely fantastic mobile device, it's actually a really really terrible fixed home-console from a hardware point... But being able to dock is a value added incentive that sadly not everyone gets thanks to the Switch Lite... Well. Existing.

Do your phone and tablet increase clock speeds when docked in order to provide increased resolutions? Anyway, the phone and tablet argument are ridiculous because they aren't even dedicated gaming consoles. 

The Switch's entire design was based upon it being both. The hardware is mobile hardware because that is the only way to make it both (The PS4 and Xbox One APU's draw too much power to become as portable as the Switch). You're suggesting mobile hardware = a portable game console, but this couldn't be further from the truth (especially when the PS4 and Xbox One consoles are based on laptop chipsets, yet they clearly are not portable consoles). 

The variant point is ridiculous. Is the Vita a home console because of the PS Vita TV? Does the GBA player make the GBA a home console? Heck, if they made a dock only Switch unit would your point become moot? I mean, your last sentence makes it pretty clear that the dockable incentive is driving purchases, meaning people are using the console for more than just portable gaming (there was some statistic out there that showed docked and portable play was almost equal amongst players). 

This isn't even taking into account that Nintendo themselves stated that they consider the Switch to be a home console first and foremost (which you can see from their software lineup). All in all, I just disagree with you.