Nintendo introduces an OLED model of the Switch

Nintendo has announced a new version of the Nintendo Switch hybrid console, but it may not be everything you were hoping for. The company calls it the Nintendo Switch OLED model, and if that name isn’t clear enough, this is a version with an OLED screen instead of the LCD panel on the original. It has other improvements, too.

Let’s get into the changes, then. The Nintendo Switch OLED model features a 7-inch OLED display. By contrast, the current model has a 6.2-inch LCD display, so this is quite the upgrade in terms of contrast, the vividness of the colors, and potentially, brightness. It’s also just bigger, so it’s a bit more immersive. However, there’s no mention of a change in resolution, so you’re still going to be dealing with 720p on the built-in display. That falls in line with what we heard from reports earlier this year, and it’s likely that this is a Samsung OLED panel. The shell of the console is only slightly wider than the base model, so you’re going to get much smaller bezels around the screen.

What doesn’t fall in line with existing rumors is the lack of any mention of upgraded performance. We’ve been hearing for a while about the possibility of DLSS support making it to a Switch revision – referred to as the Switch Pro – but nothing like that is mentioned. There’s no 4K support either. Whether that means this is a different model or these performance improvements simply aren’t happening is still a mystery.

There are other improvements here, though. Nintendo has thankfully doubled the amount of internal storage to 64GB, which is a very welcome upgrade from the 32GB of the original model. Many games required a microSD card to install on it, so this will help alleviate some of those problems. Nintendo is also touting better sound from the built-in speakers. And if that’s not enough, the kickstand has been redesigned to take up the entire width of the system, and it’s also adjustable now. If you’ve ever used a Nintendo Switch in tabletop mode, you’ll know how flimsy the current kickstand is, so this is a big improvement.

Aside from the Switch system itself, there are also upgrades to the dock. Specifically, it now has a built-in Ethernet (LAN) port, so you can play your games in wired mode for a faster and more reliable connection. Before, you’d need to get a USB-to-Ethernet adapter for the same effect. The dock also appears to have been slightly tweaked in terms of design, featuring more rounded corners at the top.

As for the price, you can expect to shell out $349.99 when the Nintendo Switch OLED model releases on October 8. That’s $50 more than the base Switch, which has cost $299.99 since its release on March 3, 2017. Reports initially pegged it for a release as early as September, so this isn’t very far off from that. It will be available in a new model with white Joy-Con and a white dock, or you can get it with a black dock and the Neon Red/Neon Blue Joy-Con, similar to the existing Switch model.

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