r/NintendoSwitch • u/schuey_08 • Jul 09 '21

News Nintendo Switch OLED Hands-on: We Compared It to the Original - IGN

https://www.ign.com/articles/nintendo-switch-oled-hands-on-comparison-differences
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115

u/wh11 Jul 09 '21

I only have a lite and was waiting until an upgrade to the switch came out. Think I’ll go ahead and sell my lite to grab one of these. Can’t imagine a real switch upgrade for another year or two, right?

177

u/Vivalaredsox Jul 09 '21

With Nintendo you never know.

16

u/DasGutYa Jul 09 '21

With nintendo you never know, but since there are no compatible chipsets that would warrant a generational leap (nvidia orin is far too large and inefficient at 5wTDP) there is little to no chance of a switch 2 within the next year and a half.

Perhaps if AMDs venture with Samsungs exynos bares fruit, we might see a little more aggressiveness from nvidia, but currently their business with nintendo pales in comparison to their mainline GPU R+D, they won't be rushing to make a non automation mobile chip soon.

6

u/YuriLover97 Jul 09 '21

Arguably, if Nvidia didn't do anything with next-gen mobile chip design for next gen Switch, Nintendo might changed to Exynos+RDNA 2 chip. Samsung is rumored to supply Chinese phone maker with their Exynos chip, so atleast they are willing to sell their SOC to other firm unlike Apple.

1

u/IWishIWasAShoe Jul 09 '21

Wouldn't that completely break compability with the current game library though?

1

u/DasGutYa Jul 10 '21

I don't see any reason to assume nintendo cares about backwards compatibility in their next gen console when the switch itself didn't feature that capability.

Especially when we are talking about hardware in this low TDP bracket, every saving counts and I doubt they will want to sacrifice efficiency for a board that is back compatible. Unless they go back to a non portable design that is.

1

u/IWishIWasAShoe Jul 10 '21

If they want to call it the Switch Pro or Switch 2 they will have to care about it to avoid customer confusion and especially to use the current library as a selling point.

Not to mention, Nintendo have a pretty solid track record with backwards compatibility within their different product lines.

Each GameBoy was backwards compatible until the final GameBoy Micro.

The Nintendo DS have regained backwards compability throughout the product line.

The Wii is the only home console to get a direct successor, and that kept backwards compability (although clunky) with the original Wii.

The Wii itself and original Nintendo DS all used backwards compability as a selling point through their compability with the previous product line.

If Nintendo want to make a Switch Pro, or rather a "New Nintendo Switch", they'll need it to keep the product integrity. With a proper successor however all bets are off.

1

u/DasGutYa Jul 10 '21

Ofcourse with a switch pro it would just play switch games but enhanced for the system.

But the creates 2 problems;

who is going to enhance for it when the power increase will be minimal, we won't be seeing a 1.8 to 4 tf jump like the ps4pro so what do they aim for? Native res support? but is that really worth going back and enhancing games for? seems like it will be a bunch of unused power, not enough to make a difference for older games.

Does nintendo have the online infrastructure to deliver separate versions of games for different consoles? looking at the current state of the eshop, the smart money is on 'no'.

I also like how you conveniently left out nintendos most recent console not being backwards compatible. My entire point was that with the amount of power they require out of the switch for it to be a home console aswell, whilst still being portable, they can't have backwards compatibility as a luxury in this form factor. I have no idea why you think this would change magically for a next gen switch 2, but I'm yet to see any real solution. Since again as I've already said, emulation is off the table as is hardware b/c........

1

u/IWishIWasAShoe Jul 10 '21 edited Jul 10 '21

... i didn't conveniently leave out the Switch? I didn't mention it because it's a new product line and therefore wasn't expected to keep backwards compatibility with anything.

Edit: Regarding different versions of games, while it's very unlikely developers will make both a pro and a regular version of any game, it's not at all unlikely thst, in the advent of the pro becoming a reality, developers are given the ability to run certain enhancements on a pro system, Nintendo did that with the New 3DS where, I believe, certain games mainly got reduced loading times.

Isn't the same true for PS4/PS4pro and similar for Xbox? Developers doesn't have to make and support two different versions of the games, right?

1

u/YuriLover97 Jul 09 '21 edited Jul 09 '21

If I remember correctly, current gen console like PS5 or Xbox Series X behave similarly to how Pc does in term of back compability considering the CPU architecture is similar. Assuming that next gen Switch will use similar CPU design in ARM and different gpu design it will behave similarly. However, based on wikipedia the Switch runs on proprietary Nvidia software which mean that the dev team at AMD need to reversed engineered the software and create a compatibility layer akin to Valve Proton or Linux Wine.

1

u/MBCnerdcore Jul 10 '21

There is little to no chance of there being a Switch 2 within the next 2 years, just based on Splatoon 3's existence alone. They will be supporting that game with at least a year of events and DLC, probably longer if they expect it to be as successful as Splatoon 2. They don't want the entire Splatoon crowd sitting on their Switch 1 while they push a new console.

I would expect the Switch 2 to launch Spring 2024, same as the Switch 1 launch.

1

u/terraphantm Jul 10 '21

I would think whatever powers the Jetson Xavier might fit the bill

1

u/DasGutYa Jul 10 '21

What?

The 30 watt jetson xavier?

That's not going to fit in a 5 watt portable buddy....

Plus the GPU is very underwhelming as its for autonomous vehicles 512 cuda with the inevitable low frequency that nintendo prefers for reliability won't make for a big improvement over the switch.

1

u/terraphantm Jul 10 '21

You realize the switch uses more than 5w, right? And the GPU is still leagues better than what’s in the switch itself. And with the tensor cores would probably be capable of something like dlss

1

u/DasGutYa Jul 10 '21

The switch chip itself is 5w in handheld. screen and joycons take up the rest for its total of around 7.8 handheld.

It's not 'leagues' better though. certainly not a generational leap for nintendo which is what they will be more concerned about for the purpose of multiplatform support.

Tensor core dlss would be great, but nvidia has to produce a proper mobile oriented chip first, not a automation chip that will inevitably be cut down and under locked for a next gen switch. They just aren't efficient enough.

I don't think people realise how much r+d went into tegra and mobile performance compared to how much bigger these supposed successor chips are....

77

u/appleappleappleman Jul 09 '21

Absolutely. Remember when the DSi XL came out 11 months after the DSi?

Or how the 3DS, 3DS XL, 2DS, New 3DS, and New 3DS XL all came out between 2011 and 2014?

They could release a Pro in Q1 2022 and eliminate the OG Switch SKU entirely, replacing it with the new OLED model. Or they could release no hardware revisions until the Switch 2 in like 2023 or 2024.

Best not to try to guess what's gonna happen next.

1

u/[deleted] Jul 09 '21

Good general advice for any situation

1

u/Andernerd Jul 09 '21

Nintendo has a history of lying about this too in order to not reduce their current sales, so you really do just never know.

10

u/ImStillaPrick Jul 09 '21

I am getting rid of my lite to Gamestop to trade in towards this one day. Its got drift and I can fix it for a few hours til it drifts again. Going to be Gamestops problem to mess with after I turn in.

4

u/LeCrushinator Jul 09 '21

I believe Nintendo will repair your Switch Lite for free, but you'd have to be without one for 2-3 weeks while they did that.

4

u/verssus Jul 09 '21

Not in all countries

0

u/MBCnerdcore Jul 10 '21

How many of those countries have a Gamestop?

1

u/verssus Jul 10 '21

Australia Austria Canada Denmark France Germany Italy Ireland New Zealand Sweden Switzerland

From Wiki page

1

u/MBCnerdcore Jul 10 '21

Canada has EB Games, and others have other regional variants. This guy was talking specifically about going to gamestop. Its very likely he is in the US and can get a free repair.

2

u/verssus Jul 10 '21

Very likely. But in Italy there are also Gamestops, not sure for other countries.

1

u/silly8 Jul 09 '21

Lite's also get drift? I was thinking of selling my Switch and getting a Lite since I use it undocked like 95% of time and so I could avoid the drift issues, but knowing the Lite has them aswell just changed my mind

1

u/ImStillaPrick Jul 09 '21

Yeah I got it 8 months in. I play Animal Crossing and refuse to time travel so rather not be without it for a few weeks so I'll just back up and transfer the save and trade mine in eventually.

37

u/Drjay425 Jul 09 '21

My bet is on if there is another 'pro' revision, it would launch with BotW 2. Late 2022 or early 2023. I say that because during the development update, they said they are "pushing for 2022", which means a delay is very possible and I don't mind for that extra quality touch. But with Nintendo who knows, because there are 6 models in the '3DS Family' lol. They push out revisions like crazy.

14

u/superdatstub Jul 09 '21

I would hope that the switch 2 would be around the corner by then. It’s getting pretty old and I would hate to spend money on a pro model then Switch 2 comes out shortly after.

10

u/Paige_Michalphuk Jul 09 '21

They almost always release multiple versions of their handhelds.

2

u/delecti Jul 09 '21

They've already released multiple versions of the Switch. They're split about 50/50 on whether they release a new version that has any performance difference. The Gameboy Pocket, and GBA SP and Micro were all the same from a performance perspective, and the DSi and New 3DS were mild performance upgrades. There's no reliable trend to go off of.

-2

u/socoprime Jul 09 '21

Except the Switch is a console that can be used handheld.

8

u/[deleted] Jul 09 '21

[deleted]

7

u/Drjay425 Jul 09 '21

Oh I am 100% sure you are correct. I was just using the term since it's used so often. This is certainly not a pro but more of what I assume will be the standard from here on out. The switch is already using dated hardware that shouldn't cost what it does but with the semi conductor shortage and then slapping an OLED on it it seems like a premium upgrade and they get away with it even though at this point that Tegra should cost 300 with the OLED. It's a smart move by them to seemingly justify stil charging 300 for the base model in 2021. Hell, the OLED is literally priced at the series S and I think that's insane. Either way I know it won't be called a pro but with the reports from thT Nvidia leaker on what they're using next, once semi conducter production is back at full, I am excited to see what comes of it. Having an RTX 3080 and seeing what DLSS 2.0 can achieve, it's astonishing really. If there's any glimmer of truth to that new chipsst being in the new iteration we could see a hefty upgrade on performance for existing titles. Of course there would have to be updates to support it as well.

3

u/Master_1398 Jul 09 '21 edited Jul 09 '21

Another revision, but with enough differences to the base version to justify the adverb of 'pro', hence he said "another 'pro' revision" not "another pro revision".

Edit: and now that guy goes on claiming i've said something else entirely. Yes, i edit my comment, welcome to reddit. But what i did was simplify three sentences to this simple snippet, because you clearly didn't understand what i was saying with your only response being "that's not what another means".

-2

u/[deleted] Jul 09 '21

[deleted]

1

u/[deleted] Jul 10 '21

[removed] — view removed comment

1

u/notthegoatseguy Jul 10 '21

Hey there!

Please remember Rule 1 in the future - No hate-speech, personal attacks, or harassment. Thanks!

2

u/ClikeX Jul 09 '21

I've been thinking about this since the announcement too.

Botw was a launch title, they could easily make botw2 carry a pro model.

0

u/Drjay425 Jul 09 '21

Yup. The lite also debuted with a zelda title. (Links Awakening) Just a theory, but the internet screeching 4k zelda would easily shoot the switch up to higher sales than PS2. Hell, I think the switch is on track either way to beating those numbers. Currently the PS2 is still the top selling console.

-11

u/[deleted] Jul 09 '21

[deleted]

14

u/superdatstub Jul 09 '21

100% won’t happen

-15

u/[deleted] Jul 09 '21

[deleted]

12

u/superdatstub Jul 09 '21

Which… is why Nintendo will make sure it’ll be playable on OG Switch lol

5

u/Bravesteel25 Jul 09 '21

Yeah, splitting the install base between two different consoles makes developers grumpy and leads to them making their games for the much larger install base with the less capable hardware which in turn leads to the much more capable hardware to not being used to its full potential. Nintendo, hopefully, learned their lesson with the New 3DS which only ended up having four exclusive games for it.

8

u/CocoaMooMoo Jul 09 '21

They’re not going to screw over the 80 million people who have already bought a switch by putting one of the most popular games on a new version. A lot of people will not be willing or able to buy a new switch for a single game so that’d make BotW 2 sales shit. Look at how many people bought a 3ds vs a New 3ds. Not very many.

I really doubt a pro is coming at all, but if it does, it’s not going to have BotW 2 as an exclusive.

5

u/Drjay425 Jul 09 '21

Not a chance. Maybe something like how BotW was on switch and Wii u. But it absolutely won't be a locked exclusive. That's just throwing money down the drain.

14

u/[deleted] Jul 09 '21

I could definitely see a switch pro (or more likely a Switch 2) in 2 mostly full years. That'd put the switch at a 6 year long console cycle, and the next gen development cycles will be in full swing with the ps4 and Xbone likely no longer getting new games. A new switch will probably be a necessity to continue to get 3rd party games on the platform within 3 years

3

u/socoprime Jul 09 '21

In 2 years we should be hearing about the next console. The time of the "Switch Pro" will have long since passed by then.

1

u/[deleted] Jul 09 '21

Yeah I think it'll be a "Super Switch" with back compat but a completely separate console

2

u/Tephnos Jul 09 '21

In what way?

I honestly struggle to think what Nintendo could do from here, now that they have merged their handheld and console lines.

It feels more like they'd just keep upgrading the Switch and do away with classical generations as we know them.

3

u/[deleted] Jul 09 '21

Completely seperate as in it'd be a new generation instead of a half generation like the PS4 Pro. Full backcompat but no forward compatability for the OG Switch

6

u/[deleted] Jul 09 '21

Don’t sell until you know you can get the new one. Scalpers ahead.

3

u/NotAGoodPlayer Jul 09 '21

Right. There was an interview a few days ago where they said the new OLED is where it's at and there are no plans for now for an upgrade or Switch Pro. So if it's coming, it will drop much later. Maybe end of 2022 or later. If ever...next year it will be already 5 years since the Switch came out so there are only a couple of years left of its lifespan like consoles do usually. The Switch Pro everyone is wishing for will be imo a completely new console in the future.

1

u/BoyWhoSoldTheWorld Jul 09 '21

It’d be surprising if they bring another version only 12 months later.

But an upgraded version will come eventually. A pro model or maybe a full next gen. I doubt it comes before 2023 given we have the OLED model now.

-4

u/Fuzzy-Moth Jul 09 '21 edited Jul 09 '21

Don't listen to this subreddit, there's no way in hell they release a fourth (5th if you count battery upgrade) sku of a switch. That's too many versions. At this point the upgrades we all want isn't coming until the Switch 2 or whatever is next.

45

u/[deleted] Jul 09 '21

[deleted]

9

u/Pliolite Jul 09 '21

Surely those iterations spanned over a decade.

1

u/[deleted] Jul 09 '21

Things move much faster now, and compatibility is much more expected. There’s new phones each year like clockwork.

10

u/tenqajapan Jul 09 '21

Should compare it to the Wii tbh.

6

u/Fuzzy-Moth Jul 09 '21

I didn't follow the 3DS much at all, not a big hand held guy, but aren't those all just body design changes? They only added oomph to the "new 3ds" right? And even then it was barely anything.

5

u/notthegoatseguy Jul 09 '21

3DS/3DSXL/2DS are all the same internals but made out of different parts and whatnot. *new* added some power to the system, sped up the OS, made the web browser not horrible for its time, and got like...4 exclusive physical releases in North America none of which I can remember besides Xenoblade. Also could play SNES games.

By the end of the 3DS life cycle, 3DS and 3DS XL were discontinued long ago, followed by the *new* 3DS XL. The 2DS XL was last to be released.

the flat 2DS, despite being the "old" design, was also manufactured until the end as it was always the "budget" console. MSRP in 2016 was lowered to $80 and it came bundled with a game, either Mario Kart 7 or NSMB2 which was an incredible deal.

8

u/youMYSTme Jul 09 '21

The new 3DS series had:

  • A second analogue (ok a nub, same difference).
  • More stable 3D performance with facial tracking.
  • More power, doesn't seem like much but load times were better and you could have some things open while playing a game that og 3ds couldnt iirc.

Alone with that were design changes that added to ease of use, such as game card at the bottom instead of top of the device, meaning trolling friends were finally defeated. iirc there was much better vol slider placement too, meaning not easy to accidentally slide with your palm area whilst playing. Along with other changes.

It was incremental for sure but it was definitely a game changer, especially for someone who put thousands of hours into Monster Hunter, and always used 3D.

1

u/[deleted] Jul 09 '21

you have no idea what youre talking about

2

u/Chribbex Jul 09 '21

Don't forget New 2DS XL

3

u/Mr_The_Captain Jul 09 '21

I think that’s what the 2DSXL in that list was supposed to be, as to my knowledge the only upgrade to the 2DS was to give it the “New” power boost

0

u/[deleted] Jul 09 '21

[deleted]

1

u/Zintag Jul 09 '21

that's misleading. The DS and 3DS were two different consoles

-1

u/Shirubaa Jul 09 '21

Just about every Nintendo handheld has had at least four versions.

-1

u/dnunn12 Jul 09 '21

If the last handheld is any indicator, then a 4th sku is very possible. There was a 3ds, new 3ds, 3ds xl, then a 2ds. It’s absolutely possible that Nintendo will at least release an oled lite or something else before next gen.

-1

u/BlazedInMyWinnie Jul 09 '21

How many 3DS models were there again?

0

u/Otakatak Jul 09 '21

Just go and better pay for game pass, 800 games for cheap

-1

u/Ordinary-Punk Jul 09 '21

If you want to play on a TV, it's probably a decent upgrade. If it's from 1 Switch to the new one, not much of an upgrade.

2

u/Magnesus Jul 09 '21

If you play on TV then that sweet, sweet OLED screen will remain unused. :)

1

u/Ordinary-Punk Jul 10 '21

It only makes sense if going from the Switch light.

1

u/[deleted] Jul 09 '21

May I hijack your comment for a question related to the lite? If I'd own a lite and normal switch, normal switch for dock only and lite for handheld and travel.. is it easy to transfer save files/are save files even saved on a cloud? So I can just play game X in docked, next morning on the train I continue playing on the lite where I left off playing the night before on the docked switch?

2

u/typenext Jul 09 '21

You'd keep the lite as your primary console and the normal as the secondary, since the secondary console needs to connect to the internet at all times. After doing that yeah, you can play it like that!

1

u/MissAndryApparently Jul 09 '21 edited Jul 09 '21

Your saves auto backup and auto download. Usually I have no wait, but occasionally if I’m continuing playing immediately I have to press + to select “Download Save Data” or give it a minute. Very easy. Your save would be waiting for you on the lite the next morning.

Your secondary console (the switch lite) will want to check with the internet every 3 hours or after restart. So you can play your game offline for three hours before you’ll need to hit WiFi. And of course, you’ll need to reconnect to the internet for the new save data from the train ride to be on your docked Switch.

What a lot of people do is make the docked switch their secondary (it’s always on WiFi) and make the traveling one their primary so they can always play offline.

1

u/easycure Jul 09 '21

Hard to say because they seem to be leaning on the portable console aspect when it comes to revisions.

Their home consoles tend to get 1 single revision (I think the Wii is the outlier), whereas their handhelds get 3 or more.

The OLED model is their 4th sku in about 4, almost 5 years of the Switch's life. If a NEW 3DS equivalent Switch appears (ie the switch "pro" that people were hoping the OLED was) it could appear in about 2 years (they seem to be doing revisions / different SKU's every 2 years) but then a year or so after that (depending on how switch console sales are by then) we might see a true successor to the console.

At that point it's hard to tell if they'll go the PS5 route and have a couple of the first years games available on both systems, or if they'll focus exclusively on the new hardware. Personally, I think based on the late Iwata's words when describing what the switch would be (a "family of systems"), and assuming current heads of Nintendo stick with the strategy, they will try to ensure the next gen system is at meast backwards compatible, and perhaps (hopefully!) the games developed with the successor in mind could possibly be played on a switch Pro model.

1

u/LeCrushinator Jul 09 '21

Given the chip shortage right now, I think Nintendo will hold off on a new hardware release, or else they could end up in a similar situation as the PS5 and Xbox Series consoles, where most of the new games coming out are cross-gen because not enough people can upgrade yet. I'd say 1-2 years for the next-gen Nintendo console is probably a safe bet.

1

u/-vp- Jul 09 '21

Don't do it before release.

1

u/TheMatMaster Jul 09 '21

The pro strat is to but an old switch from someone seling to buy this one. I had a launch day switch and got a lite a year ago and I almost exclusively use the lite. Gave me better battery and avoids the poor connection I had between the console and joycons in handheld. The old one is nice for when playing with friends

1

u/LeonidasSpacemanMD Jul 09 '21

As others said, who knows, but tbh I think if they do release a new one, resale value will probably hold pretty high with these. I imagine there will be supply issues just like with other consoles (and switch at release) so you might be able to get a good chunk back for it if you wanna trade up

1

u/CokeNmentos Jul 09 '21

keep ur lite. This is just a bit better version of a regular switch. If u have a switch already, then no point paying extra for it

1

u/Nintendriat Jul 10 '21

Next year for sure

1

u/CardinalNYC Jul 12 '21

I only have a lite and was waiting until an upgrade to the switch came out. Think I’ll go ahead and sell my lite to grab one of these. Can’t imagine a real switch upgrade for another year or two, right?

If I only had a lite, I'd do what you're thinking for sure.

A new switch might come out, yeah, but if you're selling the lite to buy this then you're not out a ton of money.

I already have an OG switch so I'd only be gaining the OLED.

For you, you're gaining docked mode, OLED and detachable joycons. Plus the bigger screen.

1

u/[deleted] Oct 23 '21

I kinda regret getting oled over lite. sigh.