Hardware suppliers for the new Nintendo NX console expect to ship between ten and twelve million units in 2016, according to a Digitimes report.

The console — rumoured to be a set-top/handheld hybrid device — is allegedly scheduled to go into mass production in Q1 2016, for shipments in Q2.

Nintendo's component suppliers' estimates are more conservative than Nintendo's, with the company aiming for 20 million shipped units.

Those suppliers include manufacturing titan Foxconn Electronics, as well as Macronix, Pixart Imaging, Coxon Precise Industrial, Nishoku, Delta, Lingsen, and Jentech.

According to the Digitimes report, the PS4 and Xbox One are estimated to ship 18 and 13 million units respectively in 2016, with Nintendo needing to ship 10 million to remain competitive.

Nintendo's decision to launch a new console mid-generation is a risky one, and one being watched closely by the whole industry.

More information on the NX is expected in early 2016; until then, everything is merely rumour and speculation.