Oh man, where do I even start? So, Trump decides to whip out this trade deal with Vietnam, slapping a 20% tariff on their goods. How do we even feel about that? At first, it sounded like a sweet thing, ’cause before, it was this gnarly 46% thing hanging over us. But then again, in a surprising twist, Trump threw a curveball and paused all the tariffs for 90 days. Dropped those babies down to 10%. I can’t lie. It felt all sunshine and daisies for a quick minute. But then, Nintendo got caught off guard. They were using that 10% deal when they kinda dreamed up their Switch 2 console earnings. I mean… what does that even mean for them now?
The Switch 2 launch… wow, it blew up. Like, 3.5 million units sold just like that—zap! Poof! The original Switch never stood a chance. But here’s the rub: While the U.S. and U.K. folks are all set, people elsewhere are cranky about not getting their mitts on it. Some kind of shortage shenanigans. Shuntaro Furukawa, the big Nintendo honcho, had to give the ol’ sorry speech to shareholders. Who knew they’d be so desperate for Nintendo magic!
And then the twists keep on coming. April 2, 2025—mark that day. The consoles outed themselves to the world. But guess who shared the spotlight? Yeah, Trump with his “Liberation Day” tariffs. Boom—Vietnamese products get hit with huge taxes. So, that $449 price tag on the Switch 2? Probably a pipe dream now. Must’ve given Nintendo headaches, figuring out how to deal with the whole pre-order thing. But hey, they froze those tariffs again for a while. Gave everyone a breather. Come April 24, pre-orders rolled out with the price untouched. Accessories, though? Slight bump – can’t win ’em all.
Nintendo, fingers crossed and all, banked on the 10% tariff sticking around. But reality bites, doesn’t it? No official word yet, but if this nasty 20% thing hits for real, we’ll see prices shooting from $450 to maybe $500 for the Switch 2. Ouch. Nintendo’s probably holding its breath, waiting for the ink to dry on that document. Until then, we’re all just hanging in suspense.
Oh, and a heads-up: if you’re the gadget aficionado type, make sure you’re following Tom’s Hardware on Google News. They’ve got all the juice.
