Given how massively popular the 3DS was, I think it's very likely lots of people saw it as a 3DS Upgrade that you can dock as a full console. Or like a Wii and DS in one.

I don't know if I'd call the 3DS "massively popular".

75 million is solid, but it was Nintendo's lowest selling handheld and the Switch has sold more than twice as much.

The public seems to have seen the Switch as a clean break rather than an extension of either of its predecessors, kind of like the public didn't really see the Wii or DS as continuations of Gamecube or GBA but rather as something fresh and new.

Like Curl said, Switch has sold over twice as much as 3DS so I think you’re over simplifying and overlooking what makes Switch so appealing.

Yes, to some people, Switch is the next Nintendo handheld to play its big portable hits like Pokemon & Animal Crossing.

To some, it’s the place to play Nintendo’s ambitious single player experiences like 3D Mario & 3D Zelda.

To some, it’s the perfect device for local/couch-coop games like Mario Kart & Smash Bros.

To some, it’s the spiritual successor to PSP/Vita, a powerful handheld that plays console experiences on the go like Doom & Witcher.

To some, it’s the true successor to Wii that plays motion based games like Switch Sports & Ring Fit.

For lapsed/retro gamers, NSO/eShop have hundreds of the most popular games of the 80s, 90s & 00s.

For fans of Japanese games, it’s the place to play Dragon Quest, Monster Hunter and tons of smaller, niche titles.

For some, it’s the perfect little indie machine to play games like Stardew Valley, Undertale & Hollow Knight.

For some, it’s the place to play the insanely popular mainstream hits like Minecraft & Fortnite.

Switch can be a lot of different things to a lot of different people that offers a little bit of everything and that’s what makes it so popular.

I think people get too hung up on trying to box things into specific categories. Do people view Switch as the 3DS successor or the Wii U successor? Is it a handheld that docks or a console you can take with you? Is Switch 2 PS4 level with modern features or Series S level with some downgrades?

Asking questions like these are semantics and miss the entire point.

We should be able to update this thread after tomorrow. Nintendo’s got their quarterly financial report (5-8 @ 2am EST). I’d imagine they won’t say LTD projections, though we should at the very least hear their expectations for NSW1+2 during FY’26.