Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2019/07/17/if-you-are-planning-on-buying.html
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It’s a shame I can’t just replace the battery.
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Looks like they’ve brought the Osborne effect onto themselves…
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I would rather see significantly improved controllers.
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It might be worth pointing out, here, that this is talking about an upgrade to the older, TV compatible Switch, not to be confused with the newly announced Switch Lite, which can’t dock to a TV and is intended to solely be a handheld system.
There’s technically two different new Switches coming out, but one of them is going to be functionally identical to the original, except it’ll have better battery life.
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Marvellous. Guess what I finally convinced myself to buy last month…
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The source of my console-buying paralysis
- New console comes out
- I don’t buy it because I know the manufacturer will, at some point, release an upgraded model
- Time passes
- The upgraded model comes out
- I don’t buy it because I know that, at this point, we’re only a few years away from the next generation of consoles
- GOTO 1
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I usually find its better to buy the console at least 2 years in because there will be games to play (unlike playing at launch), you’ll have less chance of having bought a batch that has issues (common with launch models) and after 2 years you’ll likely be able to buy one on sale or with a good bundle. Holding off for a redesign i don’t like because as you said, its pretty far into the console’s life cycle.
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The funny thing is, this isn’t even really the upgraded model, it’s just a minor revision of the original. It’s widely expected that there’ll be a “Switch Pro” in 2020 alongside the next-gen PlayStation and Xbox consoles. That one would have a higher res screen and be capable of running games like the upcoming Witcher 3 port at 1080p, unlike the current Switch.
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Yeah, a real shame. There is no excuse for that kind of design.
If there are things to improve on the Switch, battery life is not the top item on the list. In order of things that have broken in just over one year:
- Joycon joysticks failing.
- Joycon connecters that hold the controllers on the screen do not click into place.
- Kickstand totally failed.
- Screws holding joycon shell together are trivially easy to strip, making repairs for problems 1 and 2 impossible. (Kidd Jr. thought he would try to “fix” the joycons himself, with the wrong screwdriver. This helped nothing.
Overall, I’d call the Switch a POS, especially as a device intended for kids.
I haven’t had the Switch for a year yet, but I’m really enjoying it.
I never used the kickstand; I could tell the moment I popped it open to put in an SD card that it was a fragile thing. I got a sturdier stand that doubles as a charger instead.
I also picked up a pro controller as soon as I could, and have since switched to using an Xbox One controller with an adapter that was recommended here on bb awhile back.
I don’t use it in handheld mode very often because my near vision is fast turning to crap as I get older, so my joycons don’t get too much use anymore.
And I no longer have kids around to break stuff, or try to fix stuff, so I don’t have to deal with that. I have in the past though. My oldest daughter fed our VCR a PB&J sandwich because she said “it looked hungry.”
So – at the moment at least – I would only call the Switch a POS if it’s actually being used by kids.
I haven’t had an issue with mine either and i’ve also exclusively used it with the pro controller as well. I never use the kickstand because honestly i can’t… i usually have it charging and the port being at the bottom means i can’t just prop it up on a table.
That said for my particular use-case i’m the only one using it and i don’t play on it frequently so it’s stayed in really good condition. I don’t think its particularly sturdy as far as being used by kids goes but overall quality isn’t that poor. I do hope that the Lite version is way more robust though.
This is what I use. It works well, but it would have been nice if they had the charge point on the back instead of the side.
I’m guessing if they use essentially the same joycon parts, they will still break and it will have the added disadvantage of not being able to replace them by popping them out. Between that and how they manage DRM for digital purchases, I’m not sold at all on the Lite Switch.
I use a Switch as my primary form of videogaming entertainment when living in my van. It is fine and works great with the screen I found for it. If I was anywhere near a wall socket I’d prefer a full powered console. The 2020 upgrade to the Switch may be great. The current switch so 1080p to the external screen for games like Fortnite at 30fps and its just barely OK.
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I’m still within Amazon’s 30 days period 
What I am currently however unsure about: How long will it really take, until you can reliably get your hands on the new model?
Availability in US/JP will start mid-august, UK september. What about the rest of Europe? And will we be able to distinguish the models in online shops, or will everyone try to get rid of their original-version Switches at full price?
In terms of distinguishing soo, there seems to be good news (i4u.com). But in terms of “when will it be available”, things get trickier.
Alas mine was AO via ebay. No refunds for me. 
I guess I only buy a console to play a game I want. Iterations don’t matter much to me, because the point isn’t to maximize value or capitalize on the latest/greatest, but play this game right now.
I can’t believe it’s been out as long as it has. Seems like just a few months ago when we picked ours up, but I know I’ve been playing Breath of the Where Are the Last Few Koroks for at least a year now.
Still haven’t finished saving Hyrule. (To be fair, it’s a pretty hard task.)
It’s worth noting that it’s likely that Nintendo will also take this opportunity to remove all the security holes that allow homebrew software. So if you’d like to play emulators etc. then you’ll need to stick with the original model for a while yet.
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