Nintendo Switch OLED Review: Shiny new upgrades to an already great console!
Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe running on the Switch OLED.
Just over 4 months ago in October, Nintendo launched their latest addition to the Switch lineup, the OLED Model. Just as the naming suggests, this new model comes equipped with a brand new OLED screen, but aside from this and a few design changes here and there, there’s not really a lot else to it. I slept on this upgrade for a little while before picking it up around 2 weeks ago, and I’m kind of regretting not picking it up sooner.
I pretty quickly began to see just what I had been missing out on. The OLED screen looks super crisp and colourful, the casing feels so much more premium, I noticed the kickstand is way better, and the sound quality simply just sounds better too. All of these seemingly small upgrades that I’d previously dismissed, suddenly began to make the overall experience of playing games on a compact handheld a lot better.
Aside from these changes though it is still the same switch hardware from the previous model you know and love, making it a bit of a hard recommendation to make if you already own a switch. Unfortunately its also not the pro model some of us might have been waiting for but it shouldn’t take a way from the things this new model has achieved. So why am I impressed with this bit of tech and what makes it worth buying?
Home Screen in tabletop mode
TL;DR
The Nintendo Switch OLED Model delivers a lot on visual upgrades over the original and lite models, making it perfect for handheld gaming. There are unfortunately no added performance upgrades this time around but the shiny new screen, metal trims and upgrades to the speakers make this a worthy contender in the Switch lineup. I wouldn’t go swapping out your existing Switch though, because besides from the screen, the other upgrades are pretty small and should probably have been there from the start.
So what’s actually new then?
It’s kind of impossible to talk about or review this console without focusing mainly on the screen. The new OLED panel is capable of super sharp, contrasty colours which look so much brighter than the previous LED display. This is because of the way the technology in the screen works. To keep it simple, LED displays rely on a backlight to illuminate the pixels where the OLED’s pixels produce their own light. This is how the OLED screen manages to achieve more inky dark blacks and bright vibrant colours, because it is able to turn on and off the pixels as needed.
You really begin to notice the perks of the OLED screen when playing games with strong visuals such as Animal Crossing: New Horizons where the game benefits from the high quality colours and brightness.
The screen has also grown to 7 inches, a slight upgrade from the previous 6.2 inches which allows for a larger viewing experience. This is great for if you play in handheld mode, or if you unclip the joy-cons and place it down on the table, because the added real estate means you can see a lot more on screen more easily. Unfortunately we didn’t get a resolution upgrade here though, the display is still just 720p but honestly it’s not too bad seeing as the OLED panel makes up for a lot of lost visuals.
If you are the type of user to unclip the joy-cons quite frequently then you will know of the pain that came with the kickstand on the previous model. Fortunately the kickstand received a massive update this time around and now runs the full length of the console body. The hinge is far more sturdy and robust and actually feels like it can hold the console up, something that can’t be said for the previous model. It snaps into place quite nicely and allows for far more viewing angles. It makes the overall experience of using the console a much better experience than before. Pair this with the larger OLED screen and you might be more inclined to battle your friends in Smash Bros away from the dock.
Kickstand opened on the rear of the Switch OLED
The rest of the changes to this model are pretty small. The build quality and design of the Switch OLED has been refined to make it feel more sturdy and premium, and on the top of the console the heat grille and power and volume buttons have been redesigned to look more sleek and elegant.
Another change is to the speakers, where they supposedly got an update in sound quality but if i’m being honest they just sound a little louder. There is still the option to use wired headphones though because the headphone jack remains on this model and another option for sound would be to use the recently added Bluetooth audio device support to pair a set of wireless earbuds/headphones. Having these 3 options for on the go play is nice because it’s quite clear that the main focus with this model was to make the experience of handheld play a lot better, so audio that supports this is a nice addition.
The docking station also received a slight upgrade too. Aside from the new white and black colour way, the dock now also has rounded corners and a neater cable route on the back of the now detachable rear cover. It now also features a wired LAN port for if you want a slightly better wired internet connection. The dock is backwards compatible if you like, with the new and old model console being usable with the new dock and vice versa. I suppose this could be good if visiting a friend and wanting to dock up to their TV with an older/newer switch.
There is now also double the internal storage (64GB) as standard and just as before you can upgrade this to up to 2TB with an external microSD card through the slot behind the kickstand.
That’s pretty much it though in terms of upgrades and changes over the original model. The joy cons and performance specs remain the same which means that you could potentially still suffer from the dreaded joy con drift (I think i’ve mostly been lucky to avoid this) and you won’t be getting any extra performance related boosts when playing demanding games. It’s a shame not to see the rumoured switch pro, especially seeing as the Xbox series S/X and PS5 are doing so well as many people are being drawn into gaming again.
The bottom line.
These new upgrades bring the Switch OLED closer to what you’d expect from a £300 console. There are now 3 consoles in the lineup from Nintendo, the Switch lite, Base model and the OLED model. The lite is clearly designed for quick yet reliable handheld play, the base model is likely to be the go to for a lot of people who want to play primarily on the TV while docked up and the new OLED falls into the category for both, providing a more premium handheld experience while still allowing for docked up play. Of course it will be up to you to decide where you want to put your money and which of these models you will get the most use out of, but for the extra £50 the OLED model brings everything you know and love from the base model Switch but with the addition of stunning visuals and an enhanced portable experience when on the go.
