The Switch OLED is my favorite Nintendo console. While it doesn’t change a single thing about how Switch games play on account of it having the same internal hardware as the base model, the change from an LCD screen to an OLED one makes the visuals pop with much crisper color, and the smaller edge bezel means that the screen feels significantly bigger beyond its already increased size.
We’ve known that the Nintendo Switch 2 would drop the OLED screen in favor of the classic LCD one for quite some time thanks to leakers, and now we have full confirmation of that following today’s Nintendo Switch 2 Direct. A lot of people are really upset at the ‘downgrade,’ but it doesn’t really bother me too much since the Switch 2 has HDR support, which makes LCD screens look nearly as saturated as OLED ones.
The thing that does bother me, however, is the way that Nintendo is pretending like the Switch OLED doesn’t exist in all of the marketing for the Switch 2. ‘Look at how big the Switch 2’s screen is compared to the original Switch!’ the company says. The screen is bigger, I suppose, but you’re being dishonest, Nintendo. Show me how the Switch 2 stacks up to the Switch OLED; you know, the Switch version that already has a much bigger screen?
Size Matters To Nintendo
It’s easy to understand why Nintendo is completely omitting the Switch OLED in conversations surrounding the Switch 2, but I just think it makes for slightly dishonest marketing.
The first reason I suspect for the OLED’s omission is that comparing the screen sizes of the Switch 2 and the original Switch provides a much more dramatic upgrade than comparing the OLED to the Switch 2. The Switch 2’s screen is 7.9 inches, which is really big when compared to the base Switch’s 6.2-inch screen. That upgrade seems significant because it is, however, the Switch OLED’s screen is 7 inches, which makes the Switch 2’s screen sound a lot less impressive when comparing the models.
If the Switch OLED was a part of the showcase, Nintendo couldn’t show off the more than inch-and-a-half difference between the two models without also having to show off the less impressive sounding 0.9-inch difference for the OLED.
To be clear, a 0.9-inch increase when going from the Switch OLED to the Switch 2 is going to make a huge difference. The Switch OLED’s screen feels so much bigger than the base Switch’s screen, and the difference there is only 0.8 inches. I’m not saying that the Switch 2 won’t be an upgrade, but based on the fact that the OLED wasn’t shown for comparison, it seems like Nintendo thinks that people will be upset if they ‘only’ showed off a 0.9-inch display increase.
Showing that difference would be less impressive, I agree, but it feels like dishonest marketing to only showcase the size difference with the model that will be the most dramatic change. It feels like Nintendo is trying to make Switch OLED owners misremember that the OLED screen is bigger than the original Switch’s screen and that they’ll be getting a 1.7-inch screen increase too if they buy the Switch 2.
I understand that there are significantly more people who own the original Switch than the OLED, so of course, Nintendo would want to emphasize the change for the overwhelming majority of Switch owners but to not show the size comparison for the OLED at all just doesn’t sit right with me.
Hiding the Downgrade
I don’t think that an LCD screen with HDR support is a significant downgrade from an OLED screen, but I can understand the argument that it is for some people. That ‘downgrade’ is the other reason why I think Nintendo failed to mention the OLED during the Switch 2 Direct.
It’s difficult to sell people on a hardware downgrade even if the hardware you’re using is technically just as good. HDR provides deeper colors with more contrast, making LCD screens that support it look significantly more vibrant than those that don’t. OLED screens provide a similar crisp color display but also have darker blacks, providing even more contrast. The difference between the two is certainly perceptible, and OLEDs are arguably better, but the difference between the Switch OLED and the Switch 2’s screens is much slimmer than the difference between the OLED and base model.
Regardless of the technical details and the slim margin between the two screens, in marketing, if it sounds worse, then people are going to think it’s worse, no matter if it actually is or not. The smaller increase in screen size for the Switch OLED and the use of an LCD screen on the Switch 2 makes it sound like the Switch 2 isn’t much of a hardware upgrade for current OLED owners. To be clear, it is a step up, just not the same drastic step up that the Switch 2 is from the base Switch model.
I understand Nintendo’s caution when marketing the Switch 2, since it doesn’t want people who invested hundreds of dollars in a Switch OLED to feel like they wasted their money. But not even attempting to address the differences between the OLED and the Switch 2 makes it feel like Nintendo is trying to hide something from owners, and I find that to be dishonest.
I’m not mad, I’m just disappointed with the behavior. That said, please don’t let this disqualify me from getting selected to pre-order the Switch 2, I’ll take it all back if I have to.
- Brand
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Nintendo
- Operating System
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Proprietary
- Storage
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256GB internal / MicroSD
- Resolution
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1080p (handheld) / 4K (docked)