Nintendo has plans to release two new models of the Nintendo Switch "as early as this summer," according to a Wall Street Journal report citing "parts suppliers and software developers for Nintendo."

One model would be a higher-end system with enhanced hardware akin to the Xbox One X or PS4 Pro, though not as powerful as either, according to the report. The other would be a "cheaper option" intended to replace the aging Nintendo 3DS, whose sales have finally started to collapse.

This cheaper Switch would reportedly cut costs by losing features such as controller vibration. That's a move which would render portions of games such as 1-2-Switch and Super Mario Party unplayable, but Nintendo "judged the new Switch models won't need the vibration feature because there wouldn't be many games released using the full benefit of it," according to a quoted supplier.

An announcement of the new Switch hardware options could come at E3 in June, with a release a few months later, according to the WSJ.

Nintendo often releases slight redesigns of its portable and console hardware a few years into their life cycles. Those releases are usually cosmetic, though, with little underlying change to base hardware features or software compatibility. One counterexample, 2015's New Nintendo 3DS , gave that system a small power boost and second analog nub before being discontinued in 2017

Rumors of redesigned Switch models have persisted practically since the system launched two years ago. The Wall Street Journal previously reported on those rumors back in October , focusing on a new LCD screen supplier for the new model. Another January report from Japan's Nikkei news service suggested a miniaturized Switch focused on portability.

Nintendo of Japan started selling a cheaper, dock-free version of the Switch in that country last May, though the actual console hardware was unchanged from the standard package.