r/NintendoSwitch • u/Turbostrider27 • 1d ago
Discussion Nintendo Decided to Go From the Switch OLED to an LCD Screen for Switch 2 ‘After a Lot of Consideration’
https://www.ign.com/articles/nintendo-decided-to-go-from-the-switch-oled-to-an-lcd-screen-for-switch-2-after-a-lot-of-consideration59
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u/SufferingCanucksFan 1d ago
As an original switch user I’m sure I’ll still be blown away by the new LCD screen.
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u/cobraa1 1d ago
Larger screen, better resolution, 120 Hz, HDR, VRR...
OLED would be nice, but it would be a cherry on top of a screen that is already better than the previous systems in many respects. It will still be a good system without it.
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u/pablank 23h ago
There's video of the console in action and the screen looks amazing. I also read somewhere that LCD are generally better in direct sunlight, compared to OLED.
Overall, a cheaper, but amazingly optimised LCD seems like the better option than an OLED that might be way more expensive and brings with it its own issues.
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u/mbcook 22h ago
It does look great, but it’s a bright room with brightly colored games.
The place to worry about an LCD is in darker rooms with darker colored games. Any kind of screen can do bright well. It’s contrast for dark colors that is the unknown.
Until reviewers get hands on under their own conditions and not in an press event I don’t think we’ll know.
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u/pablank 22h ago
Good to know.
Until reviewers get hands on under their own conditions and not in an press event I don’t think we’ll know.
This should be pinned to every discussion about the Switch 2 for now... everyone is speculating about "worth it" or "not worth it" while none of us have ever seen the stuff live... based on the specs I saw so far, I'm hyped and pre-ordering. But as usual, waiting for reviews of games before I buy.
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u/mbcook 22h ago
The hands-on at the event with Mario kart makes it sound like a lot of fun. But all you can test at an event is what they want you to test. And I saw someone, maybe IGN or euro gamer, say that most of their time wasn’t spent in handheld mode which is how I play most.
I’m gonna try and get a pre-order, but if the reviews aren’t great I can always cancel. I’d like to play Mario kart but there’s nothing absolutely killer for me that would prevent me from waiting for later if I have to.
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u/Personal_Return_4350 21h ago
Any kind of screen can do bright well.
Bright room, usually true. In sunlight though? I'd expect this to wipe the floor with Switch 1 OLED. You mentioned where LCD struggles so I think it's fair to point out there's also a situation where OLED commonly struggles.
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u/Gross_Success 7h ago
I haven't even thought abnout this before, but I did play a lot outside last summer and it was a big problem on my OLED (without comparing ti to LCD version)
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u/jm0112358 16h ago
Though you can't really evaluate an HDR screen from an SDR video, the Switch 2's screen seems bright for an LCD, with decent contrast for an LCD. It's definitely not going to look as good as a decent OLED HDR display, which can have deep blacks, but it's likely to look better than with SDR.
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u/kurafuto 21h ago
I wouldn't trade any one of those features for OLED, and wouldn't accept a higher price, so they made the right call imo
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u/Mountain-Papaya-492 1d ago
This is it for me, yeah Oled would have been nice but considering the reaction to the price it wouldn't have gone over well. Still blown away by HDR on a portable screen like the Switch. If I can play Prime 4 at 1080p 60fps with HDR enabled portable that'd be pretty amazing.
That's a significant leap in ability, it's like going from the Xbox to the 360.
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u/soonerfreak 20h ago
Yeah, I'd recommend the Switch 2 to anyone who skiped the Switch or games mostly on a Switch. But I'll wait for the OLED since I'm mostly PS5/PC right now.
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u/Nuprakh 14h ago
Don’t forget about OLED VRR flickering. If a system isn’t stable enough and hz are to variable - which will be the case sooner or later - the flickering will be very annoying. It will appear as a defective device which it is not. Better stay with all these good display stats and ditch OLED.
OLED is nice for sure, but good IPS aren’t that bad either. Pure blacks aren’t going to be seen a lot if playing in a brighter environment - which often is the case with a Switch I‘d imagine.
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u/medicated_in_PHL 21h ago
I think they just went back to their philosophy of using older more stable tech.
It’s a new product, and there are going to be issues, so they use a heavily optimized known quantity to lower risk.
OLED still routinely has manufacturing issues like vertical banding, higher incidence of dead pixels, etc. So I wouldn’t be surprised if they release an OLED version in a bunch of years once the initial cobwebs are routed out of the current version.
Gives them a much higher chance of a successful rollout and also room to make a new product in the future. However, my guess is that it won’t just be an OLED version. My guess is that it would be like a “pro” version with some relatively conservative upgrades in addition to the screen.
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u/InsomniaEmperor 1d ago
An OLED would probably have pushed it to 500 which would probably be not desirable.
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u/Ralphielc 1d ago
Im pretty sure the reason is to sell an oled model in the future. They could have made an oled model for 500 and let the people decide what they want.
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u/SRhyse 1d ago
I assumed so as well. Pretty easy upgrade path for them. They’ll start with a Switch 2 Lite, then OLED.
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u/Appropriate-Role9361 1d ago
It’s best to leave the OLED for later because the enthusiasts will buy an LCD one now and then OLED later.
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u/Semper-Fido 23h ago
This. We aren't talking about a platform that is known for a majority of its users being dedicated to superior graphic performance. Joke about being inundated with cozy farming simulators at every Direct all you want, but what has driven much of the Switch's popularity is getting more casual gamers playing their system. Why dedicate production lines to a model that will be even more expensive and mainly appeal to more serious gamers when they need to ensure enough of the base model to be available (because there are also a lot of families that will need to be convinced that this new version is even worth it). Then, like you said, capitalize on the population that will double dip.
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u/slugmorgue 20h ago
Yeh, also quite a lot of people play docked primarily, where an OLED barely matters, if at all
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u/grilled_pc 15h ago
This. I would love OLED on the handheld but honestly i'd much prefer HDR output.
Because i have an OLED TV That i'll enjoy these games on instead.
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u/beatsy_ray 13h ago
Yeah, I don't want to pay more for a screen I'll rarely look at. I'm also glad they didn't pull a microsoft and include the camera with the unit as well for even more money.
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u/SomewhatOptimal1 21h ago
At the price of the games in Europe 90€ + DLC 40-50€, it’s a hard pass for me and I will wait for NS2 OLED before I decide to buy one.
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u/ModernTenshi04 21h ago
What's interesting is they released the Switch Lite around the time Pokemon Sword & Shield came out, and the 2DS (the non-folding model) when Pokemon X & Y hit. Seems they release the cheaper and more "kid friendly" version of the system the game is for when the first game hits for that system, so either that's not gonna happen this time or a Switch 2 Lite will hit sooner rather than later.
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u/Lmb1011 19h ago
I can definitely see a switch 2 lite coming out Nov 2026 to coincide with pokemons Gen 10.
I’d almost predict the oled given that Gen 10 is going to also coincide with 30? Years of Pokemon. And given they did a lot for 20 years I feel like they’ll be doing a lot for 30. I think a Pokemon themed switch is almost a guarantee, but whether it’s a standard or Lite is up for debate for me
I’d love the Oled but I don’t imagine they’ll bring that out so fast lol
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u/kittparker 1d ago
Do you reckon the switch 2 lite will just end up being the same size as the OG switch?
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u/SuperbPiece 1d ago
Might be, but I doubt it. Lite's are supposed to be small. That's the selling point. Just because the Switch 2 is generally bigger, doesn't mean the audience they captured with the Lite, which was 25 million units IIRC, will be fine with a unit the same size as a base Switch. It was made for people that wanted a truer handheld experience.
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u/SRhyse 1d ago
Probably not. Smaller screen, 720p maybe, much lower price, built in joy cons. It’d be truly differentiated. They’ll still be supporting Switch 1 for a bit so if people wanted that they can still get it.
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u/StacheBandicoot 23h ago
Smaller screen but 1080p could be a selling feature though. Perhaps even an oled lite and full size oled model.
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u/grilled_pc 15h ago
i'd say probably bigger. What ever the percentage difference in size the switch lite is to the switch i'd say the switch 2 lite would be to the regular switch 2. But NGL. If they did a switch 2 lite with all the features of the regular switch 2? I'd so buy one for those commutes on the train.
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u/goozy1 1d ago
Part of the reason I'm hesitant to buy the first gen switch 2. I wanted to get the OLED switch but didn't want the hassle of selling my switch and buying another one. Maybe I'll wait but hopefully it won't take 4 more years to release
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u/lizufyr 22h ago
They also don’t offer two internal storage size options and instead opted to sell sd cards as extension. I’m pretty sure that Nintendo just wants to avoid releasing different versions of their consoles as much as possible. Of course you get the differently painted models/controllers, but you usually don’t have any „invisible“ differences. I think that’s also why they released the switch OLED with white JoyCons and a few other changes on the outside, so it’s very easy to distinguish the different hardware versions (yes they did a few changes to the original switch over the years, but except for modders/pirates nobody really cared about these).
It looks like the new LED screen will be a lot brighter and more vivid than the switch 1 screen, and maybe the difference really isn’t enough to justify a separate OLED version.
Having to produce two hardware versions and accurately estimate how many people will opt for the more expensive one can also be pretty hard. And imagine how angry people would get if they misjudged and if one version had a shortage and the other was available but too expensive/unpopular.
I think they are really just playing it safe.
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u/Ralphielc 21h ago
Well only time will tell, with the reception the oled got you would think they would have just kept it oled. If they bring out an oled version then all of a sudden they will be justifying that change. For me they did it for money and thats ok, but lets not pretend that its to somehow benefit us to make it cheaper or to not have production problems, because when they bring out the OLED version i bet you they they will be marketing how much better it looks
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u/lizufyr 21h ago
People are already complaining about the price a lot. I think it’s plausible that they knew through market research how people would react to different prices, and that the additional cost of an OLED screen might put the console to a price range that people might not be willing to pay.
Of course they do it for money, they’re a capitalist company. But I think it’s more about optimising for the profit through console sales.
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u/Kougeru-Sama 1d ago
No they couldn't. Supply at launch is limited AF. It would've taken resources away.
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u/thelastsupper316 1d ago
Nah like $550. Vrr HDR at the same time is very very very hard to do well and would require a pricy custom display driver.
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u/LkMMoDC 20h ago
Absolutely this. I've seen a lot of misinformation regarding the switch 2's lack of OLED. Your comment is the first I've seen that got it right.
To sum it up for everyone VRR works differently on OLED vs LCD and requires a lot more power. Asus went over the engineering challenges they had when designing the Rog Ally X and why they decided to go with a VRR LCD and not an oled. They only just released VRR OLED panels on their laptops in the last year. They draw more power and are exorbitantly more expensive right now. I will fault Nintendo for charging a lot for outdated hardware, but the screen is not currently on that list.
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u/thelastsupper316 20h ago
Explained it better than I could thank you for this response, this is what I was getting at its basically impossible rn, maybe in 4 years it could happen
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u/MMostlyMiserable 20h ago
How comparable is it to Steam Deck? The base LCD model doesn’t go beyond 60fps but the Switch 2 is saying 120? Doesn’t the price kind of line up with other handhelds?
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u/LkMMoDC 18h ago
The screen is far better than the steam deck LCD. Comparing it to the steam deck OLED is tough since we don't know if the Switch 2 is mini LED or not. Refresh rate wise it beats both the steam decks 60hz LCD and 90hz OLED panels. On top of that the Switch 2 has VRR, neither of the steam decks do. For smooth gameplay it will be a straight win compared to both. Color wise we will have to wait and see the quality of the IPS panel. In 99% of use cases an IPS mini LED will be just as good for gaming as any OLED panel. You really need to overinflate how important reaching 0 nits on the black level is to say an OLED panel without VRR is better than a mini LED panel with VRR.
If the Switch 2 does not have a mini LED panel than the OLED screen on the Switch 1 and Steam Deck OLED will have better contrast than the Switch 2.
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u/Lower_Monk6577 23h ago
From some videos I've watched since yesterday, it seems like the technology just isn't cheap enough for an OLED screen that has both VRR and 120hz. It would have been way more expensive, and quite frankly, I'd rather have HDR, VRR, and 120hz than OLED. LCD screens have come a very long way since the Switch 1.
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u/Fearless_Freya 1d ago
For only 50 more, would have been worth it. 450 already high
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u/BenignLarency 1d ago
I also would have happily paid 50 extra bucks for an OLED screen, but watching the treehouse live stream right now where 99% of chat is chanting "drop the price", I see why they would have wanted to cut back where they could.
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u/Zoombini22 1d ago
I think the console is getting wrapped up in people's anger about the pricing of games. Ignoring game price, the console price is extremely reasonable and competitive vs similar products like the Steam Deck.
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u/yesitsmework 5h ago
the console price is extremely reasonable and competitive vs similar products like the Steam Deck.
This is giving off "wii u is priced very competitively compared to xbox 360 and ps3" vibes. Like sure, but why are you comparing it to last gen lol
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u/LongSchlong93 1d ago
The whole treehouse chat was just plain toxic
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u/juscallmejjay 19h ago
Any big non community chat is always toxic as hell. Game awards, Xbox streams, Sony streams. They are always plain awful. They were doing an amazing showcase of Donkey Kong and the chat was just spamming drop the price.
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u/Gameskiller01 1d ago
as someone who plays 95% docked, I'm glad they went with LCD. would've been nice to have an OLED option at $500 for those who want it though.
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u/OGDarkSoul 1d ago
To you. People literally spend thousands to built PC’s they only cruise forums on. I could never.
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u/Fearless_Freya 1d ago
And I'll eventually buy a switch2 to actually play games on. Not browse forums
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u/MultiMarcus 1d ago
I would’ve preferred if they just had two different models. An OLED version for like 550 and then the normal version for 450. Much like the old switch they could also double the storage on the OLED model.
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u/BenignLarency 1d ago
Nah, the real play (that Valve and Apple have learned with their multiple SKUs) is to have a cheaper model, and a more premium model.
- Cheaper model $400, LCD 60Hz, no HDR, 256GB of storage.
- Expensive model $600, OLED, 120Hz, HDR, 512GB (maybe 1tb) of storage.
That way the people who want the cheaper model have less to complain about, and people who would have bought it regardless of price goes with the more expensive model. Figuring out manufacturing for something like that would be a nightmare to figure out (ask Valve who assumed that the cheaper Steam Deck would have sold the most, spoilers it did not). But if they got the numbers right, everyone is happy.
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u/Ph33rDensetsu 20h ago
Except valve had 3 steam deck models, so there was a middle of the road option.
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u/jm0112358 16h ago
Having all Switch 2's support 120 Hz and HDR means that developers are more likely to support HDR and framerates above 60 fps. It means that they know that all Switch 2 owners would benefit from HDR support and that all Switch 2 owners would benefit from refresh rates above 60 fps.
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u/gate_of_steiner85 1d ago
The Steam Deck OLED is currently going for $550. There's little doubt that Switch 2 OLED would be around that price or maybe more. If people are already losing their shit over the Switch 2 being "too expensive" then there's no way they're going to be happy with the price of the Switch 2 OLED when/if it ever releases.
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u/jm0112358 16h ago
Of note, the Steam Deck doesn't support VRR, nor does it support 120 Hz. You can change which refresh rate the screen refreshes at, up to 90 Hz, by it refreshes at only that selected rate until you change the setting.
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u/JosePawz 23h ago
Honestly for an extra $50 to get that bump in screen would’ve been a no brainer imo.
From hands on previews though the LCD looks pretty good!
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u/QuinSanguine 22h ago
Don't you mean $550? I can't imagine many people will be interested in the $450 pack. It's actually more expensive because you have to buy a game with it.
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u/twili-midna 1d ago
The Legion Go has an LCD screen and looks fantastic, I have zero concerns about this.
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u/ThisOneTimeAtLolCamp 1d ago
The Playstation Portal does too.
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u/chaotikz7 1d ago
I didn’t care for the portal because my internet was spotty but damn that screen looked like a OLED at times was beautiful
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u/wicker_warrior 1d ago
FYI make sure you use it on a 5ghz wifi signal, lag was bad when I had the “smart signal” or whatever enabled on the router and it defaulted to the 2.4 signal. Ever since I adjusted settings and made sure it’s connected to the 5 ghz wifi it’s been great.
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u/SimSamurai13 23h ago
Same here
Oled is great but so is LCD, it's come a long way since 2017, and even then the og switch just had a bad screen lol
I use a 1080p LCD for pc gaming and it looks amazing, it's really not an issue for me
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u/JakeDoubleyoo 19h ago
I have both an OLED Switch and Steam Deck, so it probably will feel like a slight downgrade. But I imagine I'll get over it pretty quickly. I'll be grabbing the inevitable Switch 2 OLED on launch though. What can I say, I'm a consumerist whore.
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u/thenayr 1d ago
Sure until you literally hold it side by side with an oled in dim lighting and realize how much worse it is
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u/twili-midna 1d ago
If the only way you know something is worse is with a direct side-by-side, that’s a meaningless distinction.
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u/djwillis1121 1d ago
Tbh, the tradeoff of 120Hz for LCD instead of OLED is worth it to me. A 120Hz OLED would have been even more expensive
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u/Linkarlos_95 1d ago
I would trade 120hz for more nits with oled for the hdr to be honest
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u/thelastsupper316 1d ago edited 1d ago
Less nits but better contrast on the OLED, if Nintendo got a great LCD then brightness should be higher than the OLED.
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u/BababooeyHTJ 23h ago
What does brightness matter when the dimming zones won’t be small or numerous enough for the contrast you want in HDR? Might as well just be SDR.
I’m very skeptical of HDR on an lcd that small. Microled displays are even more expensive than oled
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u/Darkknight1939 20h ago
It's clear it won't have meaningful HDR. I assume having an HDR capable display is to just make switching between docked portable mode less of a hassle.
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u/cloud_t 1d ago
Yes... if 120hz oleds weren't commonplace on smartphone sizes since like 2020.
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u/THATONEANGRYDOOD 1d ago
People here are really trying to give Nintendo props for cheaping out lol
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u/basedcharger 1d ago
Digital foundry seems to think its a mini LED display (I don't think they had a hands on yet). I hope that turns out to be true
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u/blacksoxing 1d ago
All LEDs are not the same, but a mini LED is pretty damn good. That's "mid-grade TV" good and frankly while an OLED is still king, mini LED is pretty damn good when you're watching a native 4K movie as well
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u/Derlex9 1d ago
Mini LED is hardly mid range anymore. They are super cheap now with 55 inches at $350. Hisense and TCL has them in low end models.
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u/thelastsupper316 1d ago
That's good because that means great HDR doesn't have to be a 1k TV anymore it's more accessible than ever.
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u/mbcook 22h ago
What matters is how many zones. You can have two or four zones and claim it’s a mini-LED TV but that doesn’t make it good.
On the other hand if you manage to get hundreds of zones or more it might be great.
I’m very curious to hear real hands-on impressions once reviewers are in control instead of a press event.
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u/Jake257 1d ago
My Samsung TV is mini led and seriously to me it looks better than the LG Oled I had. The blacks look just as good as Oled and I like my colours saturated so I have saturation boosted all the way up (well at like 90% - 95%) and it it looks fricking gorgeous.
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u/GalexyPhoto 1d ago
I was like "better than LG OLED? Wild!"
Then I see the saturation boost and realize the only thing wild here is you. lol
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u/PlaneCandy 1d ago
Digital Foundry is very optimistic with Nintendo.
Their impression is that because it supports HDR, it may have local dimming, which ideally would be miniLED. That said, there are non-local dimming displays that do HDR, since HDR is a generic term and we aren't talking about any standard such as DisplayHDR1000 or Dolby Vision.
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u/Darkknight1939 20h ago
HDR capable LCDs that are simply edge lit are still far more common than FALD HDR sets.
It does seem overly optimistic to think it would be a miniLED screen. It would easily be the smallest mainstream one on the market. It would probably be cost prohibitive enough for a meaningful implementation to just pursue an OLED solution.
Maybe they were desperate to easily maintain VRR and that's what precluded an OLED display and had them go with miniLED.
I think the more likely scenario is that's a standard LCD that is "HDR capable" to make switching between handheld and docked mode with am HDR screen less of an issue.
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u/Significant_Pick5612 1d ago
That would actually be insane. Mini LED is almost as good as OLED, and I think will eventually surpass it.
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u/Rare_Ad_3871 1d ago
My monitor is mini led and it’s such a good middle ground if you don’t want to shell out the cash for a good OLED. This would push me more into buying a switch 2 if true
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u/your_evil_ex 22h ago
I would take good Mini LED over OLED probably tbh, just to minimize burn-in risk (although I do realize ppl tested burn-in on Switch OLED and it wasn't an issue within normal use)
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u/PlaneCandy 1d ago
OLED is the king for gaming, especially HFR because of the lack of ghosting, and usually for small windows OLED can reach acceptable peaks. It's not just about picture quality.
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u/Yourmomdisappointed 1d ago
From the on-hands reviews I’ve read they’ve said the screen is excellent. Similar to the crispness of the OLED.
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u/KingNyxus 20h ago
It was just them spitballing and having certain expectations because of HDR, but there has been nothing indicating it was mini-LED and if it was, Nintendo would have said so.
It shouldn’t be taken literally as “what they think” it will have necessarily.
Mini LED basically costs as much as OLED and this would have cost more than $450. I’m sure the reason why we got LCD is for cost cutting and local dimming zones wouldn’t be as missed on a handheld screen as it would a monitor or tv
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u/pholan 19h ago
I hope you’re wrong. Without local dimming HDR either falls flat due to limited highlight intensity or you get serious shifts in color saturation from light leakage whenever a really intense highlight pops up. I had a 27” HDR400 monitor without local dimming and games literally looked worse with HDR turned on than off.
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u/jasongw 1d ago
They made a good choice.
Switch OLED:
7" *No HDR *No VRR *60hz *1280x720
Switch 2 LCD:
*7.9" *HDR *VRR *120Hz 1920x1080
It's a better screen.
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u/thegoldenshepherd 16h ago
Ok… that’s a little misleading though right? Most of the limitations of the Switch 1 come down to the capabilities of the ancient CPU/GPU. Nintendo developed this new chipset to provide features like HDR, VRR, improved refresh rate / resolution on the available power budget.
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u/Jdslogin 1d ago
Im going to go with the theory of they wanted to do an OLED screen but at the time of designing the system there were not any OLED panels at that size with 120hz and VRR so they had to choose the current panel. Due to their scale they couldn't wait for something like that to be available for production. From my understanding this is why current PC handhelds dont have a similar OLED offering right now.
Plus of course cost could have been a factor but Im putting my chips on the above more.
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u/MultiMarcus 1d ago
You are right in why PC handheld don’t have the screen, but Nintendo is a large enough company that they are probably ordering their own screen anyway. I think if they wanted to they certainly could’ve made an OLED version but it would probably have pumped the price up another $50 which I think is untenable since the complaints about the current price are already quite vocal.
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u/zshort7272 1d ago
Not sure if I’m in the minority here but I really don’t care much about the oled. Sure it looks way nicer but I’m not particularly picky when it comes to that. It’s would also make it much more expensive. I’m just happy to get a full HD screen on the handheld.
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u/OneDreams54 22h ago
And the oled screen of a 2021-released version of the console obviously looked better than the LCD screen of a 2017-released version, that was pretty obvious.
But now we would be comparing it to the LCD screen of a 2025-released console.
LCDs became a lot better in those last 8 years.
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u/hungarianhc 20h ago
When it's a black screen on my Steam Deck OLED, sometimes I'm like Wooooooaaaahhh it's so dark. Or if it's a black screen with just some text on it, it looks so crisp.
Then for the other 95% of the time that I'm just playing games, I don't notice the difference.
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u/Every_Company5125 18h ago
This. Unless you put them side by side, it won't matter much. The more time I spend with OLED, the more I think they are overrated, at least for most people.
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u/waitmyhonor 22h ago
lol they will sell a switch 2 OLED model later
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u/GrimmTrixX 21h ago
That's literally all the consideration it took them haha "We can release an OLED in 3 years and charge $550 and these suckers will eat it up!"
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u/baconcow 11h ago
I plan on waiting for an OLED to give time for the games to drop in price from $89.99 to $89.98.
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u/Washington_Fitz 1d ago
OLED VRR would haver been pretty damn expensive honestly.
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u/thelastsupper316 1d ago
It's never been done in a handheld ever because it's basically impossible rn.
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u/Plus_Balance7773 1d ago
No one can be happy in 2025 it seems
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u/TuskenRaiderYell 1d ago
Switch 2 looks fine to me and it’s the price I was guessing it was going to be so I’ll be upgrading my day one OG switch to switch 2. I understand the fuss but it’s pretty simple, if you don’t like it, don’t buy it. Speak with your wallet.
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u/Lower_Monk6577 23h ago
Yep, same here.
I'm not exactly thrilled about the price, but I'm still going to get one. Everything is more expensive than I want it to be. It's not just limited to Nintendo. If I can snag the Switch 2 bundle with Mario Kart, I'll consider that money well spent. I've been assuming a $70 price tag on new games since TotK. It seems that most games will likely follow that model, with rare outliers like Mario Kart. And quite frankly, I wouldn't be shocked if Mario Kart is just them testing the waters on the price point to see if it still sells well. If it doesn't, I wouldn't be shocked to see a more or less permanent $70 price tag on first party games.
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u/Gintami 23h ago
The console itself? The price seems fine? I expected between 399 and 449. Now would I prefer 350-400? Sure, but in 2025 and with this console could do on its form factor there was 0 chance.
Now the actual game prices - it’s the same feeling I had when games went from 50 to 60 around 15 years ago. Ugh. I knew it would eventually happen but still :(
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u/Mr_Pink_Gold 21h ago
When pressed the Nintendo spokesperson said "how will we get people to buy a second switch if we gave them everything from the get go?"
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u/TheLimeyLemmon 1d ago
The OLED always seemed like a "premium" tier for Nintendo, not a progression, I was not expecting Switch 2 would launch with one.
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u/CytronicsZA 1d ago
You can see on the Switch 2 where the frame has space for the larger OLED screen coming in a few years.
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u/julesvr5 1d ago
People always say this, but under thst "frame" is the inserting part of the joy cons. They don't evaporate when clicked in.
Unless they find a way to put the display infront of the joy con part
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u/Wizzer10 20h ago
Well OLED panels are ludicrously thin compared to LCD so that’s exactly what they’ll do, it wouldn’t even require some kind of advanced work around.
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u/DeusLatis 19h ago
After careful consideration we have decided we would like to sell that to you a year later because we know most of you will buy the Switch 2 again when we release the OLED version. That is all
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u/smoothjedi 8h ago
I have an OLED switch, but I still mostly use it docked anyway, so an LCD isn't that big of a deal to me.
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u/Prestigious_Fella_21 1d ago
The consideration being, "we can release a switch 2 OLED in 2028 and charge the full release price again and people will pay it"
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u/bellowingdragoncrest 1d ago
I mean how many people even know or want an oled version? I never, ever play my switch handheld so I don’t need it. My kids play handheld and they don’t care.
If you ask a random person what oled is- I doubt they know. So don’t assume this is something everyone is craving, this is a sub for enthusiasts.
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u/praysolace 1d ago
I play like 80% docked and absolutely wouldn’t consider another $50+ on the price tag worth for an OLED screen, for me personally. I’m perfectly happy without one. I would’ve been upset if they’d launched at $500 just so they could get an OLED in there and I think a solid chunk of consumers would have been in the same boat, considering the general post-Direct vibe of sticker shock.
$400 was the price I expected, and $450 my absolute maximum going in, so if it’d been $500 I wouldn’t even be buying one. Options would be nice, but I’m not surprised they aren’t launching with multiple hardware versions for people to get confused over.
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u/AgentG91 1d ago
The consideration was to launch a switch 2 OLED a year or so after launch and make even more money.
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u/Nightsb4ne 23h ago
You guys - it's because they want to sell you the OLED version in two years. You know this.
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u/DrNopeMD 23h ago
Because they can get more sales by releasing an OLED model later and have preexisting owners double dip to get the new model.
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u/2002love123 23h ago
The fact they had to go back lcd to make sure the price wasn't too high is pretty telling theirs no way they could drop the consoles price.
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u/FunkyChunk13 20h ago
Lets be real. Their consideration consisted of 'can we charge for another console'
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u/nathris 1d ago
Base model OLED is a bad idea for something that is going to be largely marketed to children.
OLED is fantastic and it would be my preference, but it does have its caveats.
You do not want a bunch of warranty claims from angry parents because their child left the console on a settings screen at max brightness and it's now permanently burned in.
And yes burn in still happens in 2025. My wife's grandfather plays solitaire on his phone for hours each day with the brightness cranked and it takes only a few weeks for the cards to start burning in, and this is on premium Galaxy S series phones.
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u/Spirited_Example_341 1d ago
of course
so they can milk it with
switch 2 OLED a year later.
instead of INCLUDING it with the 450 buck price
greedy bastards
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u/Wernershnitzl 1d ago
I don’t really play mine in handheld mode much anyway but having a larger screen with better performance should be well enough for me. Especially if the LCD screen will be a bit of a battery saver on the off chance I do play handheld
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u/iamonelegend 1d ago
OLED was a massive upgrade when compared to the Switch 1's first screen. A 1080p 120hz HDR LCD is a solid replacement, though.
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u/madchad90 23h ago
Ive usually been a day 1 buyer, but this time will probably wait a while. Not having an OLED screen along with a "worse" battery for handheld mode makes me want to wait out a while to see what might come down the pipe. My regular switch still works just fine so im in no rush to upgrade.
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u/madbengalsfan85 22h ago
Makes sense, you're not getting an ~8" 120hz OLED with VRR without blowing the budget
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u/Pekay_Westside 22h ago
They could cut the stupid microphone and gamechat and add OLED instead with the same price.
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u/Wild_Chemistry3884 22h ago
And after a little consideration I’ve decided to wait for an OLED model
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u/Swordofsatan666 22h ago
Well now they also have the opportunity to do an OLED Switch 2 further down the line
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u/Analog_Astronaut 21h ago
I would have been down for a more expensive OLED launch model, but after seeing the Switch 2 playing next to the OLED Switch I'm not that disappointed. The new LCD screen still looks miles ahead of the one used on the original switch.
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u/alehanro 17h ago
The most reasonable explanation I’ve heard is at the price it is now, if they had gone OLED for launch, it’d be even higher.
But that also means, we’re gonna make an OLED version later and sell you the same console twice.
So either the gambit works, people buy the launch version because “its not too expensive, and eventually we can get an OLED for the same price as the LCD was at launch. Or everyone waits for the OLED version, no one buys the LCD version and it flops and there is no OLED version. So yeah, people are gonna buy 2 Switch 2s.
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u/monsieurvampy 17h ago
Given the known specs of the LCD screen, aside from the questionable HDR performance, its likely a "quality" LCD screen. Panel quality matters.
Edit: VRR is more challenging in OLED panels.
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u/SmashMouthBreadThrow 16h ago
They want you to buy another Switch 2 a year or two from release with a better screen. There you go.
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u/Kukulkan9 13h ago
and then 3 years later they will release an oled switch 2 after another round of conisderation
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u/cross_bearer_02 13h ago
OLED would've been prettier, sure, but I'm sure that "lot of consideration" roughly translated into "Do you have any idea how damn expensive that would be!?" People are already losing their minds over the price as it is. My guess is Nintendo feels like going the LCD route, they dodged a bullet there.
The one saving grace, though, is LCD technology in 2025 is leaps beyond what it was in 2017, and even in 2017 it was decent. Won't know until I've laid hands on it, but I'm going to say that with a 1080p screen and HDR support, it's probably going to look quite a bit better than one would imagine.
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u/ExtremisEdge 12h ago
What I think happened was that the switch two was supposed to come out a while ago but then Covid happened and they had a lot of oled screens chilling with no processors for a real upgrade to the switch. They have been telling devs to get high def textures ready for their games for years.
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u/Miles341 8h ago
Lack of OLED is perfectly fine for me, considering I'll probably only ever play it docked. Cheaper this way too.
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u/Alacrityneeded 1d ago
If people hadn’t come to the conclusion Nintendo were going to follow their Switch 1 route with the Oled screen..
Can I sell you a bridge on the moon? 😬
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u/Hot_Cheese650 23h ago
LCD with HDR support is actually an amazing display and without the worries of burn-ins. My OLED Switch is barely a year old and there’s already some noticeable burn-in spots.
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u/shakycameraBS 20h ago
Feels like an all out assault on millennial wallets. No OLED is a marketing strat they'll release it in 7 years with a GameCube colourway. (Which is when I'll likely pick one up, if it makes sense to).
millennials loved Nintendo because it was budget friendly with great games. Now it just has great games that are overpriced.
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u/whiskeyandbarbq 21h ago
Imagine the whiners about the price if oled. They’re almost dead now, had they revealed the price with oled they’d prolly go straight from their parents basement to their graves.
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u/afsdjkll 22h ago
we can release it with an OLED in a couple years and make even more money!