Handheld game consoles are part of the European Union’s battery replacement requirements

In recent years, the European Union has made many decisions affecting all kinds of consumer electronics, and USB Type C as a common charging standard is probably one of the biggest. Besides, the European Union has put in place a framework for batteries in mobile devices, specifically so that end users can replace them. In order not to leave obvious gaps in the requirements, the European Union is vague when it comes to referring to specific products equipped with batteries, merely saying “all batteries”.

Presentation materials belonging to preliminary provisions approved by the European Council and the European Parliament represent mobile phones and electric bicycles. When the question is now asked to the representative of the European Union, portable game consoles are also mentioned by name. that it exaggeration sitewhich focuses on handheld games, is correcting the question mark by contacting the EU and getting confirmation that their core content is also covered by the impending change.

With the onset of 2027, it is unlikely that any of the portable consoles and gaming laptops will undergo any changes to meet future demand. On the other hand, the Valve Steam Deck, Asus ROG Ally, and Nintendo Switch sequels will likely need to be designed in such a way that the battery and hardware can be separated without special tools — if that’s not freely available.

With the EU declaring that “all batteries” are covered by the future mod, it’s no surprise that handheld game consoles would also fall under the blanket umbrella. However, the fact that the issue has been raised is an important reminder that there are many products in which the battery does not play an obvious role as it does with a phone or a computer. For now, there are still many question marks over how it will handle devices that are small and physically compact, a category that includes everything from wireless in-ear headphones to smartwatches.