Yes, they absolutely could have. What you're suggesting is that Nintendo planned based on the assumption Switch would be a failure. Thus by definition they could've prepared better for success.
Microsoft was brutally savaged in the press and enthusiast web throughout most of 2013. They had perhaps the most disastrous marketing failure in the history of videogames: Xbox One was weaker, more expensive, TV TV TV, was sending your data to the NSA, etc.
They then shipped almost 4 million consoles in the first 6 weeks, a number Nintendo hit around 14 weeks. Microsoft planned for success, even though there was plenty to fear.
Of course, this was expensive for them, and would've been for Nintendo. But as a consumer, why the heck should I care if a company has to dip into their cash reserves, or make less profit for a few months? Nintendo put their own satisfaction ahead of their customers'. It's their choice to make, but they don't get to be immune to criticism for making it.
Two things:
1)Back in 2011 Nintendo made a forcast of 16 million sold 3DS for the full fiscal year ending on march 2012. Then in 2012, Nintendo made a forcast of 5 million sold Wii U's by the end of march 2013. Missing their forcast on both accounts when the results finally came in. Looking back, it was obvious that Nintendo would never sell the amounts they thought they would. Especially as both systems had to have their forecast lowered with each new fiscal quarter report.
The Switch then, is not planning on the Switch being a failure. That 10 million forcast is far more realistic of what they would have sold had the Switch had the reception of the 3DS and Wii U.
Comparing it to the Xbox One is also pretty hilarious, seeing as that Microsoft didn't even have the balls to launch the system globally after it's E3 reception. Instead it chose to launch in countries where the Xbox brand was strong enough to take the blow. That's not planning for succes. More like planning on taking the blows you know you're going to receive LOL.
And frankly, it's quite disingenuous to bring in your own expectations as a consumer when talking about how a company plans for the launch of it's new product. Next to consumers who want their product, Nintendo has to able to justify their forcasts to investors. Investors that saw quite a bit of money they invested, outright disappear thanks to the underperformance of the 3DS and the flop of the Wii U. Whatever a consumer actually wants doesn't become clear until the day the product actually launches, what an investor wants is what Nintendo is confronted by every day of the year.
You honestly believe it's best that a company plans to fail instead of plans to succeed? That sounds insane to me. This slow launch is hurting them. There is no way it couldn't be. Look at last months numbers. The PS4 was huge and more than most expected. I'd imagine at least some of them went to the store to get a switch, and came away with a cheap PS4.
Who the hell ever said they were planning on failing? I didn't. What I said was that the underperformance and flop of the 3DS and Wii U did not allow Nintendo to plan beyond the initial 10 million target they set for this fiscal year without running into problems. Both within the company itself, as well towards investors.
And it's quite hilarious this slow launch is 'hurting' them. Demand for the Switch is still immensely strong, with software performing very strong as well. Sure the PS4 is doing tremendous numbers at the moment, but it's not coming at the expense of momentum for the Switch. We would have seen results like that pop up by now with unsold Switches sitting on store shelves. Or can I now expect some anecdotal evidence, telling me exactly that?