The article was translated by Dr. Serkan Toto who says, “Nintendo president Kimishima is quoted as saying he considers a 3DS successor because he sees a need and market for it.” He also adds, “He doesn’t give more details, but he seems to actually mean an entirely new machine , not a 3DS update or refresh.”
1) Sorry for the Nintendo tweet storms, but here is one more news item. Thanks to @gypsyOtoko for alerting me to a Kyoto Shinbun article.
— Dr. Serkan Toto (@serkantoto) February 2, 2017
Basically it sounds like Nintendo is still liking the idea of dedicated handheld consoles, so while it is true that they are not killing it off, they could be at the very least be looking at a brand new console with new hardware to match today’s modern titles. However since the article says that Nintendo’s president is “considering” a 3DS successor, it doesn’t sound like there could be one in the works yet.
We suppose having an updated portable console wouldn’t be such a bad idea, although we have to wonder if it could somehow overlap with the Switch that could lead to some confusion amongst gamers.