Handheld gaming is back, baby. No more messing with a GPD Win like it’s 2018 and praying for LowSpecGamer to save you. These wonderful little machines have come leaps and bounds in the past few years, with manufacturers such as Valve, Asus, and Lenovo all joining the fray. There’s currently a bevy of options in the market, each bringing something different to the table. We might even see Sony return to the sector if the rumors about a handheld PlayStation 6 companion hold any weight.
The point is, there’s no better time to invest in these compact consoles and play games the way they’re meant to be played – while lying flat on your a**. And for my money (quite literally), the best handheld you could purchase right now is the Nintendo Switch.
That’s right, the Switch, not the Switch 2. The original hybrid handheld, whose Joy-Cons drift more than Mario’s cart. Now, before you call me insane for recommending a machine that was woefully underpowered from the moment it released, I do have some arguments to make. And by the end, I promise you’ll see where I’m coming from when I claim that the Nintendo Switch is the best handheld console to buy in 2026.
An S-tier Library of Exclusive Games
Full disclosure: the Switch is my first Nintendo console, well, apart from those bootleg NES systems that were only good for playing Duck Hunt. I’ve always admired the publisher’s games catalogue from afar and wondered what all the fuss is all about. Surely, those Mario sports games can’t be that good, right?
Eventually, this curiosity came to a head, and I simply had to find out for myself. So, I went ahead and purchased a pre-owned Switch for just under $200, which came with a generous collection of eight physical games. It was an incredible deal that felt impossible to turn down, and after using this joyous machine for a month, that price tag is looking like an absolute steal.
I swear I’m not being hyperbolic when I say that it’s been impossible to put this thing down. Both my PS5 and Xbox have turned into paperweights because I’m busy chasing new records in MK8 Deluxe or gathering Nook Miles in Animal Crossing. I dip into Super Mario Odyssey when I crave something with more linear progression, and man, it’s insane how satisfying these controls are. This is my first 3D Mario in god knows how long, yet I’ve been able to piece together movement hacks without needing any hand-holding from the game.
That really sums up the general spirit of Nintendo’s first-party offerings. These games prioritize fun over visuals or technical spectacle. They’re stuffed with so much charm and fitted with controls that feel so intuitive that I find myself wandering through every square inch of Hyrule, reveling in that pristine sense of discovery while actively ignoring the markers on my Sheikah Slate.
Keep in mind that I haven’t even scratched the surface of the Switch’s first-party catalogue. Metroid Prime Remastered, Kirby and the Forgotten Land, Splatoon 3, Astral Chain, Bayonetta 3 – there’s honestly so much for me to dip into, and I’m not even mentioning the countless Mario spinoffs or the assortment of Pokémon games. All of these incredible titles are exclusive to the Nintendo Switch, meaning you will not find them on the Steam Deck or the ROG Ally.
That is reason enough to justify getting this handheld in 2026. If you simply want to play your Steam library on the go, but with worse visuals and lower framerates, then that’s your prerogative. But if you want to experience top-tier exclusives, a majority of which run like butter and pair nicely with the laid-back nature of handheld gaming, then I implore you to consider the OG Switch.
As a side note, I’d also like to mention that the Switch is the ultimate destination for party games. There’s honestly no debate here. Between third-party classics like Jackbox and the literal king of living-room entertainment – Mario Party – your loved ones might end up being just as happy with your purchase as you are. I cannot articulate how gratifying it was to see my girlfriend (whose last video game was 8 Ball Pool) spend two hours entirely immersed in Mario Kart 8, all thanks to the accessible controls and undeniable charm of the games on this console.
The Best Value of Any Handheld Console
At this point, you might be wondering why I’m not campaigning for the newer and more powerful Nintendo Switch 2 – especially since it can run all the games mentioned above. Well, that’s because the original Switch offers a lot more value, at least for the time being.
You’ll be hard-pressed to find a Switch 2 under $399 – even for a pre-owned model. By comparison, you can easily snag a second-hand Switch for around $150, which typically comes with a decent collection of games to get you started. That’s an incredibly safe entry point into the Nintendo ecosystem, especially if you’re unsure whether the games will resonate with you.
If we extend this comparison to other handhelds such as the Steam Deck, the ROG Ally X, and the Lenovo Legion Go, it’s a similar story. You’re not going to find one under $399. Sure, these machines will technically have longer lifespans since their primary platform is Steam. But for what it’s worth, the Switch is still seeing impressive first and third-party support, with standout releases such as Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream, Pokémon: Champions, BALL X PIT, and many more still to come.
Of course, there’s another, rather notorious, ‘quality’ unique to the Nintendo Switch. I’m not going to say this outright, given the litigious reputation of this company, and I really don’t want to wake up to find Nintendo Ninjas stationed at my doorstep. Just to make it clear: Beebom does NOT endorse modding and tampering with your console in any way, shape, or form. You’re free to make your own legally compromising decisions.
But hey, if you do make that leap (without any encouragement from our end), what I can say is that there’s a wonderful world of homebrew applications on the other side. Through a bit of tinkering, you could turn your Switch into the ultimate emulation machine, or unleash the true power of its pitifully underclocked hardware. You can even do some *ahem* sailing, which again, we do NOT endorse.
On paper, recommending an eight-year-old console in a market full of shiny new hardware sounds like the kind of advice that gets your gaming credentials revoked. But the case for the Switch in 2026 really does come down to two things, and they’re hard to argue with.
First, the software. There is no handheld on the market – at any price – that can match the sheer quality and breadth of the Switch’s exclusive catalogue. These are games that don’t exist anywhere else, built with a level of charm and accessibility that makes them as easy to pick up as they are hard to put down. Second, the price. At around $150 for a pre-owned unit, the Switch is the most painless entry point in the entire handheld market, and that’s before you factor in the rather interesting possibilities that come with a little tinkering.
So, if you’re actively looking for a new handheld and have never experienced what the Nintendo Switch has to offer, find a pre-owned unit, grab a few games, and give it a weekend. I’d be genuinely surprised if your PS5 or Xbox didn’t start collecting dust by Monday.
