We opened up the new Switch 2 to see if it’s any more repairable. Is this really the best Nintendo could do?
Joysticks: Probably Still Drifty
Joy-Con joysticks use a potentiometer to read the voltage at a wiper that slides across a strip of resistive material. That material wears down over time, or plastic and dust can dirty the sensors.
Stick drift is a huge problem with other Switch models. One survey found that 40% of Switch owners had problems with their Joy-Cons drifting, and things didn’t get any better with the Lite or OLED editions. After a bunch of lawsuits, Nintendo’s president even admitted it and apologized, setting up a free repair program for customers in some parts of the world.
My wife loves the switch but has gone through 3 or 4 different sets of controllers. I tried my hand at repairing one of them and it was not fun – to put it mildly – and I do not savor repeating the experience. I honestly did not know there were hall effect replacements for the original joycon sticks, and wish I had known that when I replaced the one I did.
I like that ifixit are specifically explaining the fundamental problem with pot based analog sticks because this IS an issue with every (pot based) controller.
That said: I still firmly believe the reason joycons last like a month and my XBONE controller is still going is because of the flap. Like… I’ll always remember that the god damned PCB on my DS3 failed before the stick (you try platinuming Dark Souls 2 when pushing R3 triggers random buttons on the entire gamepad…).
For the “real” console sticks? The analog stick is a big plastic dome and you have to disassemble the entire gamepad to clean it out. For the joycons (not sure on pro controller)? It is a rubber flap that you lift up with a pair of tweezers… or just shove the nozzle of the electronic contact cleaner spray can through to clean. The former keeps both you and dirt out while the latter lets everything in and gets those specs trapped between the contacts a lot faster.
Don’t get me wrong. If I am buying a third party controller (the gamesirs look shockingly good these days…) it better have hall effect or the other one. But potentiometers are fine IF you protect them. Like, the vast majority of knobs and the like are pots and people STILL use stereos and the like from the 80s with no issues.
One thing I will always appreciate about the Steam Deck is how repairable it is. I think that’s probably the feature I most desire in any device now going forward.
Yeah had to swap out a steam deck joystick and scooped one up from iFixit and it was wonderfully easy to swap. That being said, being able to switch them out on my dualsense edge without a screwdriver and just having a switch on the back of the controller is really neat. Definitely my favorite controller I’ve owned, I just wish more PC games supported the haptics.
What I’m seeing in Europe is a few sellers selling them, sourced from other steam decks. Used parts from non reputable sources. This is what I’m talking about. Yes, I could use them if I really needed it, true.
Lack of innovation: checked.
Locking users into their ecosystem: checked.
Chasing only shareholder value : checked.
The only thing diferentianting them from Apple now is the pricing, which hasn’t reached outrageous levels ( yet ).
I used to respect them for doing their own thing - sometimes winning, sometimes losing, but in the end still innovating. Apparently not the case anymore.
Honestly, I don’t mind if Nintendo didn’t innovate. I have just wanted a “normal” console from them in a while like a return to their SNES/N64/GameCube days. When they still actually tried to remain competitive, and in the case of the SNES and N64, were technologically ahead of the competition. Sure there were some innovations, but in comparison to the Wii, Wii U, and Switch, their older consoles were more “normal” for their time.
Nowadays they just make underpowered hardware that only truly sells because its usually the cheapest console available and has the Nintendo logo on it. Except Switch 2, which started charging cutting edge tech prices for tech that was cutting edge like 10 years ago. All of the pricing of a better Switch without any of the real improvements except a newer processing unit and slightly bigger screen.
Give me a Switch without a screen. No battery. No detachable controllers. Just a brick that plugs into the wall and the TV, compatible with a Pro controller. Probably could even sell that at a reduced price too. Maybe even overclock it and give it a bigger cooling solution to get better performance. Maybe Nintendo’s newer games can actually run at a stable 60 fps on their own hardware finally.
Give me a Switch without a screen. No battery. No detachable controllers. Just a brick that plugs into the wall and the TV, compatible with a Pro controller. Probably could even sell that at a reduced price too. Maybe even overclock it and give it a bigger cooling solution to get better performance. Maybe Nintendo’s newer games can actually run at a stable 60 fps on their own hardware finally.
I’m actually in the same boat. I hardly ever play the switch in handheld mode. It is incredibly uncomfortable for anyone over the age and/or hand size of a 12 year old. The form factor is terrible for mobile use IMO. Even when we don’t play the switch docked on the TV, we have taken to playing it plugged into a small USB-C monitor on a side table in front of the couch.
I really wish Nintendo would offer a different option like you’re saying here. The only thing that’s nice about the Switch form factor is the size for portability IMO. Scrap the screen (and probably even the battery) and offer an option that’s as small as (or even smaller than) one of those NUC-looking mini PCs that are all the rage nowadays.
I mean, realistically its still Nintendo so I still won’t buy it. I disagree with their business practices ever since Iwata died. Nintendo has gone way downhill, and I don’t want to give them any of my money anymore. It sucks since I really like the old Zelda and Metroid games, but theyre only games. Its not the end of the world. Plus, emulation fixes Nintendos problems anyway.
Yeah I’m not a huge fan of their recent “direction” either, but it actually would’ve been a lot more innovative for Nintendo to offer a headless switch in a tiny form factor. Maybe that’s just the old, highly innovative ways of Nintendo going by the wayside.
It’s a shame because Nintendo is a lot more accessible from a “casual gamer” perspective. I’ve even gotten my parents to play switch and wii games over the years. I don’t think they’d ever touch an xbox or ps.
That’s wishful thinking, I’m afraid. Nintendo owns the handheld market and now that they’ve made a handheld their only platform there’s no way they’re going back to traditional consoles, especially not after the original Switch sold a gazilion units with the same form-factor as the new one but with a hardware 10x weaker. The higher prices are a risky gamble but their profit margins have never been this high so they probaby don’t even care if the Switch 2 doesn’t sell nearly as much as its predecessor.
I can’t understand why they still ship a plastic screen. Surely there are other ways to keep glass from exploding that don’t involve a top plastic layer.
I got a screen protector first thing for mine. In a matter of months any unprotected screens will turn into shit.
I guess this is typical nintendo, haven’t bought anything from them since the 3ds.
Not sure, but they anticipate a lot of children having this device in their hands, so they’re going to design it for that, perhaps even over-design it, just in case.
There are two major advantages to what Nintendo did. The plastic top significantly increases shatter resistance. Look at Jerryrig Everything’s review to see, it’s almost impossible to break the screen now via blunt force, which is a big problem for people with kids. Surface scratches are far better than a shattered screen.
The second advantage is that you can put a glass screen protector on it and get the best of both worlds. A replaceable glass surface that is nice and hard. What I think would have made it better is if the console came with a pre-installed glass protector that was replaceable.
I don’t care that people bought a Switch 2 if it makes them happy. For me, this was the first Nintendo console in a long time I had no interest in. There was no innovation here. It’s just a minor upgrade in specs over the Switch with maybe better online?
Nothing about the Switch 2 is going to supplant my Steam Deck, so why waste the money?
That’s kinda the thing, a lot of people were basically just wanting just another switch because they liked the switch’s formfactor. It may not be innovative, but why innovate just for innovation’s sake, y’know? It’s a better switch, both in some improvements to the formfactor, and in the same way the Ps5 is just a better Playstation than the ps4.
Exactly this. Lots of companies have figured out that filling our landfills with cheap plastic crap is a lucrative business model. In this case, it’s cheaply made and expensive to replace - making it hugely profitable. Shareholders would be furious if they were to fix this issue.
And the deluded fucks still charge more than US$250 for their half-a-console. It’s got good processing power and stellar shell construction, but charging the same price Xbox and PlayStation do for their full entertainment consoles, for a handheld main with the same defect-prone joysticks, tiny battery, stickers for the Joy-Con socket decal, plastic screen and 1080p display? In 2025?
I disagree, and I think open world games are basically the cheapest way to pump a game out. Game development has stagnated, and basically, everything Nintendo releases is a testament to that. Indie games are basically the only realm in which real game design is happening.
While I’m not a huge fan of BotW and TotK, I think it’s a disservice to say they were a cheap way to pump out games. You can see the design intent in both exploration and gameplay mechanics. There’s a lot that works well in those games that allows for the player to continue playing for a while and still have fun.
And this is probably the only time I’d be seen defending those games.
I don"t know if it’s in question that open world isn’t the cheapest way to make a game. It really is. You can make a series of discrete challenges without really needing to take time to consider context or even put any set pieces together. You create mechanics, and you let players create their own fun. I will concede that I am MOSTLY disparaging BOTW.
I would disagree with this sentiment on a basic game design level. I don’t know about the Zelda games, I didn’t care enough about BotW to play more than a few hours, but designing a large map that incorporates multiple biomes in a believable way is much more difficult than creating a bunch of smaller levels that don’t have to have any relation to each other in the slightest. You can get away with a lot more in terms of map geometry and set pieces when you load into each level individually.
This is obviously different when you’re talking about Bethesda-style load into every building style environments vs Elden Ring “You see that castle in the distance? You’ll be going in there eventually” design, but the fact that Bethesda makes their interiors separate from the rest of the world is how they cheap out on their games. It’s less hardware intensive and you can cheat a lot more in your design. And on a gameplay level that goes for Ubisoft-style collectathon map objects (and Zelda shrines in this case), but that’s not unique to open-world games - it’s a lazy cop-out that game devs have used forever to pad out their games. Collecting all the secret skulls in Halo is the same thing, but because it’s implemented well and doesn’t drag on forever with no reward like most open-world collectibles, it feels totally different.
Eh, those rails were a huge issue over time for people who primarily used their switches in handheld but did swap/remove joycons semi-regularly. My launch model (that I ended up giving to a friend’s kid when I got my Steam Deck) would often need me to attach and detach the right joycon a few times to make it fully register that it was connected.
But yeah. Tinfoil hat and all but a LOT of speculation is that the magnetic based connection is to prevent hall effect aftermarket sticks from working since those are also magnetic. TMR isn’t impacted by that but the vast majority of folk would have never considered TMR for a gamepad until the past year or two.
I’ve never had stick drift with PlayStation or Xboxes despite people telling me it’s a problem. The switch though is awful for it.
I don’t know what they do to make their analogue sticks so bad but they’re definitely getting them from the world’s cheapest supplier, apparently one that even Sony and Microsoft turned up their noses to.
PS/Xbox controllers have more internal space, so their joystick modules are much, much larger than what goes in the joycon. That means they can have more material in the potentiometers, meaning less susceptible to wear and dust/dirt intrusions.
JoyCon 1s also have a flap that dust can get into, and that’s likely a large part of the problem. This is fixed with JoyCon 2s, so I’m not sure why everyone’s jumping to the assumption that they will be equally brittle.
I think the reason the connectors are magnetic is because it is something nintendo’s designers always wanted to do. So once their engineers figured out how to do it (after the launch of the original switch) they designed the switch 2 around the magnetic connectors. I think it’s incredibly stupid when one of the most important things to do for a sequel to the switch is fixing the drift but it’s a reason at least I guess?
Did iwata ever say they were a bad idea? I thought it was that they had no idea how to make them secure but easy to remove, not because iwata said it was stupid.
I wil say that the gen 1 slides were clumsy and early units could be broken by forcing them in backwards. It always felt like the part which was the least well designed. I like the new magnetic interface but I agree it’s kind of an odd thing to have a minor quality of life update be the top line.
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Disappointing to say the least.
My wife loves the switch but has gone through 3 or 4 different sets of controllers. I tried my hand at repairing one of them and it was not fun – to put it mildly – and I do not savor repeating the experience. I honestly did not know there were hall effect replacements for the original joycon sticks, and wish I had known that when I replaced the one I did.
I like that ifixit are specifically explaining the fundamental problem with pot based analog sticks because this IS an issue with every (pot based) controller.
That said: I still firmly believe the reason joycons last like a month and my XBONE controller is still going is because of the flap. Like… I’ll always remember that the god damned PCB on my DS3 failed before the stick (you try platinuming Dark Souls 2 when pushing R3 triggers random buttons on the entire gamepad…).
For the “real” console sticks? The analog stick is a big plastic dome and you have to disassemble the entire gamepad to clean it out. For the joycons (not sure on pro controller)? It is a rubber flap that you lift up with a pair of tweezers… or just shove the nozzle of the electronic contact cleaner spray can through to clean. The former keeps both you and dirt out while the latter lets everything in and gets those specs trapped between the contacts a lot faster.
Don’t get me wrong. If I am buying a third party controller (the gamesirs look shockingly good these days…) it better have hall effect or the other one. But potentiometers are fine IF you protect them. Like, the vast majority of knobs and the like are pots and people STILL use stereos and the like from the 80s with no issues.
One thing I will always appreciate about the Steam Deck is how repairable it is. I think that’s probably the feature I most desire in any device now going forward.
Yeah had to swap out a steam deck joystick and scooped one up from iFixit and it was wonderfully easy to swap. That being said, being able to switch them out on my dualsense edge without a screwdriver and just having a switch on the back of the controller is really neat. Definitely my favorite controller I’ve owned, I just wish more PC games supported the haptics.
And, as luck would have it, the thing that breaks on mine is the track pad and I cant find a replacement.
I thought ifixit was carrying everything?
I just looked it up on ebay and found quite a few sellers that had touchpad replacements so I’m not sure what you’re talking about…
What I’m seeing in Europe is a few sellers selling them, sourced from other steam decks. Used parts from non reputable sources. This is what I’m talking about. Yes, I could use them if I really needed it, true.
Lack of innovation: checked. Locking users into their ecosystem: checked. Chasing only shareholder value : checked.
The only thing diferentianting them from Apple now is the pricing, which hasn’t reached outrageous levels ( yet ).
I used to respect them for doing their own thing - sometimes winning, sometimes losing, but in the end still innovating. Apparently not the case anymore.
Honestly, I don’t mind if Nintendo didn’t innovate. I have just wanted a “normal” console from them in a while like a return to their SNES/N64/GameCube days. When they still actually tried to remain competitive, and in the case of the SNES and N64, were technologically ahead of the competition. Sure there were some innovations, but in comparison to the Wii, Wii U, and Switch, their older consoles were more “normal” for their time.
Nowadays they just make underpowered hardware that only truly sells because its usually the cheapest console available and has the Nintendo logo on it. Except Switch 2, which started charging cutting edge tech prices for tech that was cutting edge like 10 years ago. All of the pricing of a better Switch without any of the real improvements except a newer processing unit and slightly bigger screen.
Give me a Switch without a screen. No battery. No detachable controllers. Just a brick that plugs into the wall and the TV, compatible with a Pro controller. Probably could even sell that at a reduced price too. Maybe even overclock it and give it a bigger cooling solution to get better performance. Maybe Nintendo’s newer games can actually run at a stable 60 fps on their own hardware finally.
I’m actually in the same boat. I hardly ever play the switch in handheld mode. It is incredibly uncomfortable for anyone over the age and/or hand size of a 12 year old. The form factor is terrible for mobile use IMO. Even when we don’t play the switch docked on the TV, we have taken to playing it plugged into a small USB-C monitor on a side table in front of the couch.
I really wish Nintendo would offer a different option like you’re saying here. The only thing that’s nice about the Switch form factor is the size for portability IMO. Scrap the screen (and probably even the battery) and offer an option that’s as small as (or even smaller than) one of those NUC-looking mini PCs that are all the rage nowadays.
I mean, realistically its still Nintendo so I still won’t buy it. I disagree with their business practices ever since Iwata died. Nintendo has gone way downhill, and I don’t want to give them any of my money anymore. It sucks since I really like the old Zelda and Metroid games, but theyre only games. Its not the end of the world. Plus, emulation fixes Nintendos problems anyway.
Yeah I’m not a huge fan of their recent “direction” either, but it actually would’ve been a lot more innovative for Nintendo to offer a headless switch in a tiny form factor. Maybe that’s just the old, highly innovative ways of Nintendo going by the wayside.
It’s a shame because Nintendo is a lot more accessible from a “casual gamer” perspective. I’ve even gotten my parents to play switch and wii games over the years. I don’t think they’d ever touch an xbox or ps.
That’s wishful thinking, I’m afraid. Nintendo owns the handheld market and now that they’ve made a handheld their only platform there’s no way they’re going back to traditional consoles, especially not after the original Switch sold a gazilion units with the same form-factor as the new one but with a hardware 10x weaker. The higher prices are a risky gamble but their profit margins have never been this high so they probaby don’t even care if the Switch 2 doesn’t sell nearly as much as its predecessor.
Software is priced at Apple levels.
I can’t understand why they still ship a plastic screen. Surely there are other ways to keep glass from exploding that don’t involve a top plastic layer.
I got a screen protector first thing for mine. In a matter of months any unprotected screens will turn into shit.
I guess this is typical nintendo, haven’t bought anything from them since the 3ds.
Is glass exploding even that much of a problem?
Dropping an iPad doesn’t even break the screen all the time and when it does it’s garbled.
Not sure, but they anticipate a lot of children having this device in their hands, so they’re going to design it for that, perhaps even over-design it, just in case.
There are two major advantages to what Nintendo did. The plastic top significantly increases shatter resistance. Look at Jerryrig Everything’s review to see, it’s almost impossible to break the screen now via blunt force, which is a big problem for people with kids. Surface scratches are far better than a shattered screen.
The second advantage is that you can put a glass screen protector on it and get the best of both worlds. A replaceable glass surface that is nice and hard. What I think would have made it better is if the console came with a pre-installed glass protector that was replaceable.
Your post is a little confusing. If you haven’t bought anything from them since the 3ds, then how did you put a screen protector on your Switch 2?
I meant that prior to the switch 2 I only had a 3ds. I’ve been out of the loop on nintendo stuff during all that time
Yet, millions will buy it. Because they hold onto their exclusives for dear life. Getting literally anything else is a better decision.
I don’t care that people bought a Switch 2 if it makes them happy. For me, this was the first Nintendo console in a long time I had no interest in. There was no innovation here. It’s just a minor upgrade in specs over the Switch with maybe better online?
Nothing about the Switch 2 is going to supplant my Steam Deck, so why waste the money?
That’s kinda the thing, a lot of people were basically just wanting just another switch because they liked the switch’s formfactor. It may not be innovative, but why innovate just for innovation’s sake, y’know? It’s a better switch, both in some improvements to the formfactor, and in the same way the Ps5 is just a better Playstation than the ps4.
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Why fix something that is making you even more money?!
Exactly this. Lots of companies have figured out that filling our landfills with cheap plastic crap is a lucrative business model. In this case, it’s cheaply made and expensive to replace - making it hugely profitable. Shareholders would be furious if they were to fix this issue.
And the deluded fucks still charge more than US$250 for their half-a-console. It’s got good processing power and stellar shell construction, but charging the same price Xbox and PlayStation do for their full entertainment consoles, for a handheld main with the same defect-prone joysticks, tiny battery, stickers for the Joy-Con socket decal, plastic screen and 1080p display? In 2025?
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removed by mod
Tears of the Kingdom is one of the best games ever made, shame they keep it exclusive though.
I disagree, and I think open world games are basically the cheapest way to pump a game out. Game development has stagnated, and basically, everything Nintendo releases is a testament to that. Indie games are basically the only realm in which real game design is happening.
While I’m not a huge fan of BotW and TotK, I think it’s a disservice to say they were a cheap way to pump out games. You can see the design intent in both exploration and gameplay mechanics. There’s a lot that works well in those games that allows for the player to continue playing for a while and still have fun.
And this is probably the only time I’d be seen defending those games.
I don"t know if it’s in question that open world isn’t the cheapest way to make a game. It really is. You can make a series of discrete challenges without really needing to take time to consider context or even put any set pieces together. You create mechanics, and you let players create their own fun. I will concede that I am MOSTLY disparaging BOTW.
I would disagree with this sentiment on a basic game design level. I don’t know about the Zelda games, I didn’t care enough about BotW to play more than a few hours, but designing a large map that incorporates multiple biomes in a believable way is much more difficult than creating a bunch of smaller levels that don’t have to have any relation to each other in the slightest. You can get away with a lot more in terms of map geometry and set pieces when you load into each level individually.
This is obviously different when you’re talking about Bethesda-style load into every building style environments vs Elden Ring “You see that castle in the distance? You’ll be going in there eventually” design, but the fact that Bethesda makes their interiors separate from the rest of the world is how they cheap out on their games. It’s less hardware intensive and you can cheat a lot more in your design. And on a gameplay level that goes for Ubisoft-style collectathon map objects (and Zelda shrines in this case), but that’s not unique to open-world games - it’s a lazy cop-out that game devs have used forever to pad out their games. Collecting all the secret skulls in Halo is the same thing, but because it’s implemented well and doesn’t drag on forever with no reward like most open-world collectibles, it feels totally different.
Emulators play it better than on original hardware 🤷
I like how they raised the price on the controllers and only used magnets for a non-issue and not for the thing that is the problem.
Eh, those rails were a huge issue over time for people who primarily used their switches in handheld but did swap/remove joycons semi-regularly. My launch model (that I ended up giving to a friend’s kid when I got my Steam Deck) would often need me to attach and detach the right joycon a few times to make it fully register that it was connected.
But yeah. Tinfoil hat and all but a LOT of speculation is that the magnetic based connection is to prevent hall effect aftermarket sticks from working since those are also magnetic. TMR isn’t impacted by that but the vast majority of folk would have never considered TMR for a gamepad until the past year or two.
everyone: Nintendo is a horrible company that does shit that’s harmful to consumers and the gaming industry!
also everyone: WOW can you believe I was able to buy a Nintendo Switch 2 the literal day it released?!?!
We really showed them. 🤷♂️
did the nintendo management change or something? did we get new laws about repairable devies standards?
so im just wondering what did you guys expect
Yeah, I’ll just buy a 3rd party joycon if it’s supposed to drift anyway, at least they last a bit longer and cost much less
That will show them
The more I learn about the Switch 2, the less I want to buy it. thanks Nintendo I’ll wait until Ryujinx 2 comes out
450 USD and they won’t spend an extra 40 cents on hall effect sticks?
Have you even thought about the shareholders?
It’s intentional. How else are they supposed to sell you a new set of joy cons every year?
Everyone was telling me that this time they would have fixed it. Called it. I think I’m down to one joycon that doesn’t drift :P
I’ve never had stick drift with PlayStation or Xboxes despite people telling me it’s a problem. The switch though is awful for it.
I don’t know what they do to make their analogue sticks so bad but they’re definitely getting them from the world’s cheapest supplier, apparently one that even Sony and Microsoft turned up their noses to.
PS/Xbox controllers have more internal space, so their joystick modules are much, much larger than what goes in the joycon. That means they can have more material in the potentiometers, meaning less susceptible to wear and dust/dirt intrusions.
PS Dualsense joystick
Switch Joycon joystick
JoyCon 1s also have a flap that dust can get into, and that’s likely a large part of the problem. This is fixed with JoyCon 2s, so I’m not sure why everyone’s jumping to the assumption that they will be equally brittle.
Shoulda used the magnets for hall effect sticks rather then clacking joycons on the thing
I think the reason the connectors are magnetic is because it is something nintendo’s designers always wanted to do. So once their engineers figured out how to do it (after the launch of the original switch) they designed the switch 2 around the magnetic connectors. I think it’s incredibly stupid when one of the most important things to do for a sequel to the switch is fixing the drift but it’s a reason at least I guess?
Here’s the video I watched about it: https://youtu.be/JDhj8s-i–s
Lmao they added magnets even after Iwata told them it was fucking stupid
Did iwata ever say they were a bad idea? I thought it was that they had no idea how to make them secure but easy to remove, not because iwata said it was stupid.
He may not have said they were stupid exactly but he did tell the devs they were a flimsy choice for connecting the controllers
Edited to add a more direct source
https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/nintendo-legend-iwata-once-rejected-switch-2s-magnetic-joy-cons-but-the-team-refused-to-give-up/
https://www.gamespot.com/articles/nintendo-switch-could-have-had-magnetic-joy-cons-like-switch-2/1100-6530577/
https://www.gamespot.com/articles/nintendo-switch-could-have-had-magnetic-joy-cons-like-switch-2/1100-6530577/
I wil say that the gen 1 slides were clumsy and early units could be broken by forcing them in backwards. It always felt like the part which was the least well designed. I like the new magnetic interface but I agree it’s kind of an odd thing to have a minor quality of life update be the top line.
Fear is a hell of a drug.
First gen switches were broken through the connector for the joycons. Now it’s wrapped in 3 layers of plastic when live.
Increased
S t a b i l i t y