Nintendo Switch (Hardware discussion)

[Ravenbom]

From other forums I know I'm not the only one having these two big problems with the Switch as a piece of hardware:

- The left Joy-Con loses sync with the system at roughly 8-10 feet when docked behind my TV.

- The Wifi signal is lost when it's docked behind my TV or more than 15-20 feet from my router.


OK, I have a Roku TV which has it's own Wifi signals that cause interference and my router is in the next room over so there's a wall and a TV between the Switch.

Nintendo says interference caused by other signals from other devices will interfere with the Switch's signals. Which could only happen if there is extremely low impedance in the device itself, however, there is already a video of a person changing the placement of the left Joy-Con antenna to get a better signal and low impedance should also mean that the signal shouldn't drop off so quickly with distance.
In truth, it seems as if the Wifi and left Joy-Con have signals that are under powered. It actually seems more likely that there's a high impedance problem.

I think that the Nintendo employee that said that other signals will interfere with the device didn't want to acknowledge that faulty design of the of Switch itself. They wanted to blame every other device on the planet instead of providing ample power to the Wifi and left Joy-Con wireless signal.

Unfortunately, this would also mean that there's no software fix. You can always buy a Joy-Con Plus in the future but the docked Switch would need a dock that has it's own Wifi receiver to help those of us with a launch Switch.

So... hopefully a third party picks up the slack on this because I don't think Nintendo is ever going to admit there's a design flaw.


*I've heard of dead pixels, which always hits launch handhelds, any other thoughts, reactions to the Switch as a piece of hardware?

 

[American Tanker]

Yep, it's a failure. As I expected.

This thing's going to be dead by Christmas.

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

Well so far we have the JoyCon failing to sync, mobile phones causing interference (despite being needed for co-op), the dead pixels, the scratchy docking station and add-ons mysteriously getting pulled off the e-store. And I've heard people complaining about the placement of the USB drive, not sure why.

 

[CritialGaming]

Personally, I never thought the Switch was ever going to be a top tier device. I haven't even bothered to unpack the TV dock station or the Joy-Con grip controller thing, because I only ever intend to use the Switch as a handheld. I will say that as a pure handheld device the Switch is a pretty damn good system. I don't need it for online multiplayer, I don't need an E-store (for now), I don't need my controllers to sync because they remain attached to the system, and for all of that, the system is perfect.

It's when you try to use the Switch like a Ps4 or Xbox that you start to run into trouble, which is frankly what I expected because Nintendo doesn't seem to be able to handle a "normal" console anymore. Use the Switch for it's intended Gimmick, and it will be good for you. Try to do other shit with it, and you are gonna have a bad time.

 

[baddude1337]

It seems pretty disappointing that a lot of these issues even got past QA in the factories. Especially the dead pixel one that looks to be somewhat common. The dock looks pretty badly designed as well. You'd think there would at least be some soft material on the screen side. I get the feeling there will be a lot of backlash Nintendos way in the next coming weeks.

I won't be picking one up anyway, at least for a good long while. I have a Nvidia Shield K1, and judging by the specs and the fact Nvidia seemed to help make the Switch it's effectively an android version of the Switch. Obviously I won't be playing Ninty's latest first party titles, but plenty of PC and console ports for it, as well as emulators, for ?100 cheaper.

I am curious to know what the graphics chip is. It seems to just say "custom" on most hardware lists but i bet it's a Tegra K1. Another aside, does the dock actually beef up the power, or is it just an elaborate HDMI stand?

 

[WeepingAngels]

Maybe releasing it like this was a plan to make the Wii U look better? /s

Seriously though, what does the Wii U have that the Switch does not? Miiverse, Browser, multimedia apps, backward compatibility and the Virtual Console off the top of my head. Seriously, you can play GBA, DS, NES, SNES, N64, Wii and Wii U games on this console. It does not have wifi issues, controller sync issues, it doesn't damage itself and it has a proper Nintendo controller built into the Gamepad (that is, it has a proper D-Pad and the stick/button placement isn't compromised so that it can be used as two motion controllers, the size of the Joy Cons is a compromise due to the size of the tablet itself). The sticks on the Switch look about as comfortable to use as the Vita which is fine but not as good as full size analog sticks. Also, I think the shoulder buttons look too close together for comfort, again a compromise for it's size.

It's no wonder the Wii U is the same price as the Switch even with older technology.

Oh and I really don't think the connectivity issues were not caught, I believe they were caught but ignored. As for the dock issues, I think it's a manufacturing flaw because in many cases, the front side is not straight as it should be.

 

[WeepingAngels]

Another aside, does the dock actually beef up the power, or is it just an elaborate HDMI stand?

It's a $90 Charger/HDMI stand.

 

[008Zulu_v1legacy]

It seems pretty disappointing that a lot of these issues even got past QA in the factories.

I think it links back to why Nintendo stated why they were using older CPU's rather than newer, more powerful ones; (paraphrasing) We wanted to get the Switch out there before someone released something better.

 

[Bob_McMillan]

And I've heard people complaining about the placement of the USB drive, not sure why.

Because you can't charge it while its standing and you're playing. You know, like in the video. Guy is on the plane, plays Skyrim on his tray. Or when those basketball players stop playing basketball and start playing NBA 2K17 on a bench or something. Why they would put the charging port of a portable console on the bottom of the damn thing is beyond me.

 

[Yoshi178]

Seriously though, what does the Wii U have that the Switch does not? Miiverse, Browser, multimedia apps, backward compatibility and the Virtual Console off the top of my head. Seriously, you can play GBA, DS, NES, SNES, N64, Wii and Wii U games on this console.

that's implying this stuff will never be added to the Switch.

So far the only thing Nintendo has confirmed isn't com/ing to the Switch is Miiverse. just because things like an Internet browser (seriously who the fuck needs this on a console anyway), multimedia apps, digital backwards compatibility and Virtual console aren't there yet doesn't mean they won't be added in the future at all.

In fact Nintendo have already confirmed NES & SNES games to be coming out at some point this year AND with some of those old NES & SNES games having actual online multiplayer added to them. that is huge in itself being able to play those games online.

 

[votemarvel]

It's not unfair for people to expect a new system to do what the old one can...and more.

The Switch shouldn't be judged on what it might do three, six, twelve months down the line. It should be judged on what it can do now.

Later people can reassess but a poor launch can hurt a system for its lifetime. Look at how the Xbox One has never fully recovered from it's botched launch

 

[Yoshi178]

It's not unfair for people to expect a new system to do what the old one can...and more.

The Switch shouldn't be judged on what it might do three, six, twelve months down the line. It should be judged on what it can do now.

Later people can reassess but a poor launch can hurt a system for its lifetime. Look at how the Xbox One has never fully recovered from it's botched launch

Xbox Ones failing was more to do with MS's DRM Policies and also Sony announcing a more powerful console for $100US less than the Xbox One moreso than anything else.

nothing really to do with the launch itself but just the announcement of Xbone from the start was a complete trainwreck.

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

And I've heard people complaining about the placement of the USB drive, not sure why.

Because you can't charge it while its standing and you're playing. You know, like in the video. Guy is on the plane, plays Skyrim on his tray. Or when those basketball players stop playing basketball and start playing NBA 2K17 on a bench or something. Why they would put the charging port of a portable console on the bottom of the damn thing is beyond me.

Is there an excuse for that? That sounds like really poor design. Catch-22 poor.

 

[Bob_McMillan]

And I've heard people complaining about the placement of the USB drive, not sure why.

Because you can't charge it while its standing and you're playing. You know, like in the video. Guy is on the plane, plays Skyrim on his tray. Or when those basketball players stop playing basketball and start playing NBA 2K17 on a bench or something. Why they would put the charging port of a portable console on the bottom of the damn thing is beyond me.

Is there an excuse for that? That sounds like really poor design. Catch-22 poor.

It really does seem like a dumb oversight. I suppose they wanted to design it like a tablet, but when your tablet can't rotate it's screen during gameplay...

 

[Ravenbom]

I thought Nintendo only released high quality stuff. I opened this thread expecting to find complaining about how it can't even run a last gen (at best) looking game at a stable 30fps, while still needing to be upscaled to a mere 900p.

Turns out it has a bunch of other issues too? Well hell, just hell!

 

[FakeSympathy]

The Biggest problem that Nintendo is having right now is the way they make their consoles. They try so hard to change the way people play games, but ultimately they all fails. Wii U tried this, did not work. Nintendo learned nothing, and now is trying to do the same with the switch.

Nintendo also seems to think they are still in the late 80's to mid 90's era, when they dominated the video game market. They really need to open their eyes and realize family-friendly games can't compete with the much mature and dark games, such as Dark Souls and Witcher.

I honestly think BOTW is the only thing keeping Nintendo Switch alive. Then again, Wii U version is literally the same, so we might see players going back to Wii U.

 

[Guffe]

As someone else stated at the start of the thread.
I saw this as a mobile device, a handheld, and as that it functions pretty damn good!

The main complaint for me is the sync issue of teh left joycon, there is an antenna in the right controller, not in the left one, the left only has a receiver of some sort, and it is under the L trigger, so it is going to be constantly covered and interfered.

And I've heard people complaining about the placement of the USB drive, not sure why.

Because you can't charge it while its standing and you're playing. You know, like in the video. Guy is on the plane, plays Skyrim on his tray. Or when those basketball players stop playing basketball and start playing NBA 2K17 on a bench or something. Why they would put the charging port of a portable console on the bottom of the damn thing is beyond me.

Is there an excuse for that? That sounds like really poor design. Catch-22 poor.

It really does seem like a dumb oversight. I suppose they wanted to design it like a tablet, but when your tablet can't rotate it's screen during gameplay...

The USB C charge is on the bottom because when you put it in the dock it functions as an HDMI adapter and a charger. I don't see why they couldn't have linked a second one to the top as well though.

 

[Dirty Hipsters]

Seriously though, what does the Wii U have that the Switch does not? Miiverse, Browser, multimedia apps, backward compatibility and the Virtual Console off the top of my head. Seriously, you can play GBA, DS, NES, SNES, N64, Wii and Wii U games on this console.

that's implying this stuff will never be added to the Switch.

So far the only thing Nintendo has confirmed isn't com/ing to the Switch is Miiverse. just because things like an Internet browser (seriously who the fuck needs this on a console anyway), multimedia apps, digital backwards compatibility and Virtual console aren't there yet doesn't mean they won't be added in the future at all.

In fact Nintendo have already confirmed NES & SNES games to be coming out at some point this year AND with some of those old NES & SNES games having actual online multiplayer added to them. that is huge in itself being able to play those games online.

Who needs an internet browser? Oh I don't know, perhaps people who want to be able to connect to public WiFi at the airport.

The way you connect to the internet in a lot of places is you connect to the WiFi, then open your browser which redirects you to a page to put your password in. Can't do that if you don't have a browser to open now can you?

This is the standard for airports, schools, internet cafes and tons of other places where someone using a switch might want to connect to the internet, you know, like in the commercials.

 

[Yoshi178]

Seriously though, what does the Wii U have that the Switch does not? Miiverse, Browser, multimedia apps, backward compatibility and the Virtual Console off the top of my head. Seriously, you can play GBA, DS, NES, SNES, N64, Wii and Wii U games on this console.

that's implying this stuff will never be added to the Switch.

So far the only thing Nintendo has confirmed isn't com/ing to the Switch is Miiverse. just because things like an Internet browser (seriously who the fuck needs this on a console anyway), multimedia apps, digital backwards compatibility and Virtual console aren't there yet doesn't mean they won't be added in the future at all.

In fact Nintendo have already confirmed NES & SNES games to be coming out at some point this year AND with some of those old NES & SNES games having actual online multiplayer added to them. that is huge in itself being able to play those games online.

Who needs an internet browser? Oh I don't know, perhaps people who want to be able to connect to public WiFi at the airport.

The way you connect to the internet in a lot of places is you connect to the WiFi, then open your browser which redirects you to a page to put your password in. Can't do that if you don't have a browser to open now can you?

This is the standard for airports, schools, internet cafes and tons of other places where someone using a switch might want to connect to the internet, you know, like in the commercials.

Who seriously doesn't already own a mobile phone with an Internet Browser in this day and age?