Key Highlights:
- The PS6 handheld is expected to release after the PS6 launches.
- It will face tough competition from Nintendo, with its massively popular Switch 2 console.
- The PS6 handheld is playing catch up, despite having stronger hardware.
The handheld wars are heating up, and we’ve had multiple entries across the board. Of these, Nintendo’s successor to the Switch 2 is perhaps the most popular of them all, managing to soar past its competitors by a pretty large margin.
Of course, Nintendo isn’t the only one in this space, and long time rival PlayStation might be looking to turn things over with the rumored release of a PS6 handheld. However, Sony has a long way to go if it wants to catch up to Nintendo.
How Does the PS6 Handheld Compare to the Nintendo Switch 2?
Technically speaking, the Switch 2 and PS6 handhelds are basically portable gaming devices, but that’s about where the similarities end. Both devices share very different internals, with both team red and team green being represented here.
Team red (AMD) powers Sony’s rumored next gen handheld, while team green (Nvidia) powers the Nintendo Switch 2. Both devices are also based on very different architectures, with the Switch 2 being ARM based – while the PS6 handheld is your traditional x86 based PC.
There’s also quite a few more spec differences:
| Spec | Nintendo Switch 2 | PS6 ‘Canis’ Handheld |
|---|---|---|
| CPU | 8 cores total (ARM Cortex A78C) | 6 cores total (4x Zen 6c + 2x Zen 6 LP) |
| GPU | 1,5436 Ampere based CUDA cores | 16 CU RDNA iGPU |
| RAM | 12 GB LPDDR5X | LPDDR5X (up to 48 GB, likely to be around 26-24) |
| Storage | 256 GB UFS 3.1 internal + microSD Express expansion | M.2 port for SSD + microSD card slot |
| Operating System | Custom | Custom, likely UNIX based |
| Backwards Compatibility | Yes, supported up to the Nintendo Switch | Yes, supported up to the PS4 |
Taking everything into account, the PS6 handheld (Canis) has much more powerful hardware backing it, making it equivalent to the ROG Xbox Ally X. However, power isn’t everything in a handheld, and we’ll have to see how PlayStation optimizes their system (both in regards to their games and overall user experience).
The Switch 2 Has a Massive Lead
The Nintendo Switch 2 has a massive lead over Canis, largely thanks to the fact that the Switch 2 was released earlier in 2025. On the other hand, Canis will have to play catch up here, since it’s projected to be released after the PS6 launches.
The Switch 2 has had a massively successful launch, and has been going strong, crossing over 10 million units sold thus far as per a recent report from Nintendo. The console’s growth shows no signs of backing down, and will likely get stronger over time as Nintendo releases more system sellers.
Also Read: Next Gen Xbox Might Beat PS6 With This Key Advantage
Nintendo also has the advantage of offering a single hybrid console for handheld and docked modes, which is kind of responsible for these numbers. Regardless, it’s still a fantastic product, and one worth getting especially if you’re a Nintendo fan.
Meanwhile, while the novelty of another PlayStation Portable makes the product a fair bit enticing (there have been no true handhelds since the PS Vita, after all!), this means nothing if Sony cannot deliver a product that stands out in its own merit, and offers something truly different.
This is what plagues the ROG Xbox Ally devices, which feel like a handheld PC first and Xbox device second. If Sony manages to nail this right, they could finally bring the heat to Nintendo in the handheld console space, a niche where they (Sony) have historically been in second place.
