
With gamers across the globe now settling in to put their Switch 2 consoles through their paces, we've been seeing a bunch of media outlets, alongside eager social media and Reddit s, report in on how they're finding the battery life thus far.
For full transparency, we've yet to run a rigorous battery test here at Nintendo Life, but from this writer's personal experience it's taking around the two-hour mark roughly, to drain things right down whilst playing Welcome Tour, too.
This may be disappointing, though it falls pretty much in-line with what we expected given Nintendo's officially indicated 2-6 hours estimates and roughly the same as Switch 1 (before it saw a few model revisions).
Gamers online are reporting roughly the same figures in some cases. However, there seems to be a growing number of folk saying that they aren't even managing to reach the magic 2-hour mark whilst playing bigger games.
Of course, with the fact Mario Kart World is such a big, beautiful, online sort of deal, we expect the battery to drain faster, but it's not great news to see that, in some scenarios, people apparently aren't getting two hours out of it.
What's more (and we can confirm this one), the battery in standby mode — when you've set your Switch 2 down for the evening — seems to be draining seriously quickly in some cases. It seems it goes from a full charge to 59% on some consoles doing this, (as it has done with mine left overnight).
Judging from some of the responses to the post above, there are a whole bunch of players who are finding that the battery is draining too quickly for their liking. Obviously, there are a lot of factors at work here; screen brightness, s running in the background, whether you're using GameChat, and so on, but there's a pattern of complaints developing.
We'll be carrying out some tests of our own and will return with our own official findings in due course. But, in the interim, we'd love to hear how you have found the battery so far. How's it been for Mario Kart? What about 'smaller' games? And, if you've had time to take note, how does the battery do whilst in rest mode?
And make sure to let us know all about your experiences with the Switch 2 battery in the comments. Are some games giving you better results?
Comments 175
I can tell you when mine arrives on Tuesday. Buuuuut, since I dont have it yet, I havent had any Battery issues..... Ok, ok, I'll get my coat.
It's far too early to poll this. Give people some time to play and then collect data
Doubt it will particularly matter to me considering I'm upgrading from a 2017 Switch 1 - that said, here's an article about how to improve battery life (thanks @Mana_Knight for sharing it in the first place in the Switch 2 review comment section): https://www.dtgre.com/2025/06/nintendo-switch-2-battery-life-mario-kart-world.html!
Only play docked so really not a thing I'll notice unless I bring it to work to trade games
Looking forward to Nintendo’s very typical battery & screen upgrades, and hopefully that comes sooner than later..
Nothing unexpected with the Switch 2's battery life so far, but my joy cons dropped to half charge after a 30 minute-ish session of F Zero 99 yesterday after having been charged over night. Curious to see if it happens again today.
Nintendo says they're supposed to get 20ish hours of playtime, like the original joy cons.
I get about 2 hours handheld playing Mario kart world but to be fair first days had a lot of back ground ing going on and reing software
I’d say 2.5 - 3 hours for me. But in all honesty, I haven’t played Mario Kart in handheld for longer than 2 hours in one period. And I haven’t had to stop for low battery yet, but it will be pretty close to empty when I’m done.
"Is your Switch 2 battery draining down to under 60% whilst in standby?"
I've noticed that ing games drains the battery quite a bit, like 7% in 15 minutes or so.
But as soon as all finished the battery drain is ok. Before I went to sleep my Switch 2 was at 100% and in the morning it was at 93%
The battery lasts all day if you play docked as god intended
@USWITCH64 that got a literal "lol" from me. Thanks!
It’s been pretty low, yeah. Right now I either keep it plugged in at the top (with battery caped so it doesn’t hit 100%) or play docked🤷🏻♂️ Once more people start getting their hands on their console, I’m sure Nintendo will send out a patch that helps battery life a bit
That's pretty pathetic, considering how long their handhelds go for. Hopefully Nintendo's next console won't be a hybrid.
@HyruleWanderer You can't patch a battery. You can only produce better or worse ones.
I did play MK World handheld about 2h15, no auto brightness and about 60% brightness, volume about 70%, wifi on with plenty of games re-ing in the background. It went from 100% to 26%, which is pretty reasonable. I'd say it can last a solid 2h30 without any issue. I my very first Switch model couldn't last more than 2h with MK8 Deluxe. A slight improvement over the first Switch. The Switch Oled remains the best though as I could easily play MK8 Deluxe for 3h+ with it.
Mine arrived yesterday and so far I only played docked. A bit too soon for this poll, I think, but ask again in a few weeks! 🙃
Well, I'm glad I haven't get Switch 2 yet.
I already heard some bad news from Switch 2 and it made me way less interested to get Switch 2 until I see something right.
@Tempestryke You do realize you can patch the software that is draining the battery, right?
@speed_loafer yeah, that doesn't sound right?!
@Gohanjin Yeah, I've been over 2hrs, or at least 2hrs, with s and MKW/TotK playing.
Steam Deck owners: “Welcome to the club”
@RenanKJ probably a nominal amount of power leak that will be saved with updating the background systems. This is typically the discussion for mobile phones and devices with lots of location, social media, browser, email, etc., that push and check constantly. The Switch doesn’t have that kind of OS density to expect to gain appreciable power saving with updates
Played Pokemon Scarlet off a full charge with the Switch 2 patch. From full charge to 25%, it took maybe an hour and a half, maybe less.
@JohnnyMind Thanks man
Yes, can confirm doing all these will slow down the drainage.
Out of the box settings with a Switch 2 are a killer.You will get about 2 hours at best, from day 1. Check these and you can make a big difference!
@Tempestryke As Renan said above, you can patch the things that are unnecessarily draining battery. Happens a lot more with your phone than you might realize.
A longer battery life over all would need a new set to be manufactured. Like the og Switch got a new batch after a few years with an improved battery life overall, and I think something with the screen? Or storage? I have the old og one, and no problems there.
They can definitely fix it, they just need a good few hands to test it out and see what needs to be fixed. Bugs are expected early on🤷🏻♂️
yes, can confirm doing all these,out of the box setting,it 's very beautiful
Maybe one day we'll go back to Ds Lite Battery Life lol. That thing was a total giga chad in of battery life
New batteries need about a week to calibrate and get used to your usage, so it should improve for everyone, hopefully.
Edit: And of course, don't raise your brightness too high if you plan on playing for a while.
@JohnnyMind Also, you think that would be a noticeable difference, but I too was upgrading from a very loved first model Switch with hundreds of hours, always played in handheld.
But...my 8 year Switch is about equivilant in battery life to out of the box Switch 2.
I really hope there is some kind of firmware Nintendo can make that helps slightly, but I don't know how that works really or if it even could. That, or we can get a better battery fitted down the line by Nintendo or through places like CeX, who can do battery replacements etc.
@Ramouz I never knew that. Huh. Interesting. That would be good if it does!
This is pretty much on par with the portable PCs like the Steam Deck. Im playing Assassins Creed Odyssey on the ROG Ally X and I might be getting around 2 hours from 100% to 20%.
I haven't played MKW for more than an hour handheld, so it hasnt been too noticable.
The short battery life was to expected though right? Its the trade off for having more power, just look at the other handhelds like steam deck and rog ally where the battery lasts less than two hours, sometimes only an hour on more power intensive games. You want more power and bigger screen then you just have to suck it up and get on with it.
Still feeling good about waiting for the “New Switch Too” or “Switch 2 New” or “Switch 2.5”
Nintendo got me to purchase way too many upgrades and variants of consoles, especially the 3DS, in the past, for me to feel confident buying them at launch anymore.
I’m really excited for when I do get one! It looks really fun and I’m seeing great things. And if battery life is something people are complaining about now, it just means when I get mine it might have a slightly improved battery life!
@Axecon If the battery last less than two hours people doesn't need much time to notice that XD
Also is it still reccomended to drain a battery fully once for calibration? Or was that a myth.
I had major battery drain. Then noticed the brightness default was up way higher than I normally would have it and put it in flight mode. Battery lasted quite a while after that.
There’s a reason why Switch 2 has a second USB port.
@UltimateOtaku91 Yesterday my battery only charged to 87 max (at 90 setting). I let mine drain completely last night now I’m waiting for it to fully charge now. Nintendo recommends fully charge (3hrs Switch 1) then let sit for another hour.
Have barely used it in handheld, but it still drains quick enough that I’m 100% getting a power bank ASAP. Put me down for the revision with better battery life.
Just did a quick test playing Mario kart medium brightness not connected to the internet.
Went from 100% to 91% after one championship in 16.5 minutes.
That would mean about a third of the battery depleting in an hour giving 3 hours total. Not great but could be worse!
@speed_loafer There's an update available for the joy-cons in case you missed it. Maybe it improves on the issue you experienced.
Mine seems to holding a charge just fine. Put it to sleep overnight and charge is the same. Not seeing significant drain when playing MKW and ing games. It drains but takes an hour or two. I have yet to hit 50 percent yet. I do plug it in before that but that is habit mire than anything. As my switches are usually not handhelds. I am sure it is worse than switch just as Nintendo said but it hasn’t been a noticeable issue yet for me.
@Ramouz are you not thinking of mobile phones? When they’re new they run a lot of background tasks and yes your battery then normalises after a week or so.
Not sure that relates to the switch though?
No Man’s Sky seems to be a bit of a battery hog as well. I played it for about 20 minutes on my lunch break the other day, and the battery was at about 85%.
Was a bit surprised seeing my battery drained this morning to 83% while being on standby. Definitely hope that that will get patched out somehow, because it’s a shame to have to check and charge your battery every time you want to quickly take it with you on daily commute for instance.
I was playing fantasy life i(switch 2 version) and got under 2 hours.
Im used to getting quite a bit more with my oled, but its really just managing things i think. Ill tweak the brightness and adjust things till I get 2.5.
Honestly a non issue for me since i rarely(as in once a year) have the time to play more than 1.5 hours in a session. I made exceptions for the launch, but generally i play in blocks of 30min to an hour at most. If it doesnt last an hour, then we have issues.
God also intended you to play with detached joycons, so docked is the only way!!!
In conclusion, drifting prone joy cons, miserable battery life for a handheld, only 1 important game at launch and a hardware that although is improved is still behind competitor's 5 year old console power.
I think I'll for now unless DK Bananza is unexpectedly revolutionary
I've heard the same. Very glad I made the decision to wait for the hardware revision. even before the OLED came out there was a battery revision version that came out and a lot of people traded in just for the extra battery on the original Switch. I'm very happy for the people who are enjoying the new Switch 2 but it's not looking like a glorious launch by any means :/
One of the reasons I'm only playing docked, can you imagine trying to play a new LOZ game in handheld mode with that p*** poor battery life.
Never understood the complaints about battery life ever since Wii U. Is it really that hard to find an outlet somewhere so you're system doesn't die on you mid game session?
Wouldn't have this problem if they launched a Switch 2 Home w/o a battery, screen or JoyMice. Could probably sell it for $299 and make extra sales from people who still want multi-player.
Would likely even sell more cameras to people who know it can always be used and connected. That big $55 camera for a handheld really makes no sense to me. If they want people to use Switch 2 as a handheld it should just be a small dingle that plugs into the top. The inevitable Switch 2 Lite really should have a camera built in.
I still wouldn't use a camera or a Lite but I would buy a Home Switch and give the original to 1 of my kids.
Always something new for people to complain about.....never ends. Its a powerful handheld system guys. Lets enjoy it.
@UltimateOtaku91
Yes they it’s a quite a lot more power efficient than the Switch 1 especially the 2017 OG model, SW1 OG would max out I believe at 8.9W undocked vs the 10W of SW2 but those efficiencies are being used to drive a much more powerful system with a larger brighter screen so when it’s being maxed nonstop out the battery life is closer to that 2017 model when maxed out as well.
@Diowine please don't forget the fact that they wanna sell us $80 games that we won't even fully own 😂.
Don't worry though, Nintendo has been here before, just need to be taught a lesson that we've had to teach them before.
My wallet is closed until they learn what that lesson is 😂.
Mine last 45 minutes
Since I'll keep my CONSOLE docked like my original Switch 100% of the time, the battery life is perfectly fine. Besides 2 hours is more than anyone should be staring at a handheld or have time to do. Lol
About two hours from 86% or so (I have it set not to charge to 100%). Not good, but having lived with a PSP Phat for years back in the day I’m pretty used to it.
2.5hrs but brightness was up
@harrystein exactly!
With more "POWER" what would one expect???? Guess time to find a good long USBC cable and brick charger to hand all those Power Watts. Went to look for 60W or higher brick and cable able to handle the watts charging this is when I don't have Docked and using handheld mode.
I got around 2.5 hours going from 90% to <10% battery, with ~80% brightness and no s in the background.
IIRC Zelda BOTW lasted around 3 hours on the 2017 launch Switch (not sure at what brightness but I assume not low), so this is nominally worse but still broadly comparable.
@Truegamer79 they call it a portable console because you can take it anywhere so yes?
But with games running at 1080p60 and a big, bright screen I’m honestly impressed it goes over 2 hours at all lol, kinda conflicted
That definitely not good.🥴 Welcome Tour is not demanding and shouldn't be draining the battery that much. A person on a YouTube channel I follow for gaming said their battery life is atrocious. They played MKW with the screen brightness set at around 70% percent and their Switch 2 barely lasted 2 hours.😐
I don't have a Switch 2, but that's pretty bad.
@rjejr I'll never understand why they didn't just add a camera in the Switch 2 like the Vita and 3DS had.
They should have just done a smaller screen and kept it at 720p. You don’t need 1080p on such a small screen, and the size of the Switch 1 OLED’s screen is just fine. It’s in Game Gear / Atari Lynx territory here!
Switch 2 Plus with enhanced battery coming this Christmas for an extra $100!
I did notice this on day one. The battery lasts a noticeable amount less than the Switch OLED.
I think the battery meter is glitched. Because one moment I can go more than 3 hours on mario kart and another I'm lucky if it hits 2 hours like some are reporting. I also noticed it was sitting at 96% for over 3 hours while plugged in, which, I noticed was weird, so I unplugged it and it was suddenly 100%. I'm willing to bet there will be another update sooner than later.
As for battery draining in standby, maybe they left games ing overnight? Because when I put my switch down last night it was 82% and 7 hours later I found it at 81%.
I don’t know specifically how long because I haven’t let it go down all the way, but I saw it going down crazy fast
@GravyThief
I doubt it would have helped that much. I suspect the new8 nanometer T239 APU is the real culprit for why the battery life is bad, very similar to a PSP Phat.
@harrystein well that isn't condescending at all. Some people use their freetime differently. Nothing wrong with long playtime. Maybe you should be more focused on your own life than how others live theirs, it doesn't impact you one bit.
It’s just more power hungry. All these people saying “you need to calibrate the battery” are completely and hilariously wrong. It’s not the consumers job to calibrate the battery. Stop spreading this idiotic rumor.
@OrtadragoonX what is the APU/Nanometer? I’m interested to understand it
@GravyThief
The APU is the combined U/GPU. Unlike older consoles (like the 360 and PS3) that had a separate U/GPU on the board, modern consoles have them integrated into one unit.
Nanometer refers to the production scale and transistor density of the die. A lower number means that more transistors are fitted into a smaller space and are more efficient. The PS5 Pro, for example, is about a 5 nanometer process for its APU. The Switch 2, according to reports (not confirmed by Nintendo, but strongly hinted at by nVidia) is using an 8 nanometer process for its APU. Basically it’s cheaper and generally more reliable since 8NM chip dies have been in production for a long time now so all the kinks have been worked out. But it’s less efficient and draws more power.
I returning my ROG Ally Z1 Extreme because the battery literally ticked down to zero like a slow clock. Hoping the battery life here can average 3-4 hours for flights and things like that. I can always plug in but sometimes the charge is not enough to compete with the drain on planes.
@7h0r
Yeah people don’t understand that you haven’t needed to calibrate lithium batteries since like 2006.
This thing just has bad battery life. It isn’t the end of the world for those who lived with the OG Phat PSP or even the Game Gear back in the day.
As for why it’s bad, I suspect the APU is the main culprit. The T239 is a bit of a power hog compared to the Tegra X1 the OG Switch had, considering it was originally designed for car infotainment systems where power draw wasn’t a real concern. And it’s using an 8 nanometer production process so it’s going to draw more power than a brand new 4 nanometer chip anyway.
Haven’t noticed as I’ve been playing mostly docked. However, the joy-con 2 batteries seem to last…forever? I’ve been playing for almost ten hours docked and they’re still showing full battery on the menu after I charged them initially
I played grand prix in Mario Kart World for around 2 hours handheld, starting from a capped 90% charge and didn’t even hit low battery range.
I wasn’t using wifi features or ing games, and the screen is VERY bright for indoors so it’s turned way down. Maybe that helps?
I think Nintendo calls it "value." Switch 2's battery life is value.
I’m hoping a system update will help it conserve power better in sleep mode. While playing games it’s understandable with this console displaying 1080p games with high definition textures it was expected that it’s more of a demand on the battery, but in stand by/sleep mode unless you are ing a bunch of data it should conserve more than what it appears to be. Also anybody who uses the toggle for charging to only 90%, where does your Switch charge to? Mine stops around 86%-87%. For some reason it doesn’t want to hit 90%. I’m curious if this is just my console or if others are experiencing this
Glad I'm holding out for a revision. My launch Switch had a terrible battery life too. Battery life is important to me because I have a ridiculously long commute. The Switch 2's base model is pretty massive as well so the Lite version will hopefully be more portable if they make one. Not to mention I suffer from having tiny hands and have to buy controllers designed for children to play comfortably so a Lite version is a necessity for me XD
@Arcsol It does when you get a bunch of cry babies about a battery life adjusted to way over a normal play session.
We have mostly played in docked mode. But before heading to work this morning I played one Grand prix and noticed I was at 92% when I put it back in the dock. I did thinking that was a pretty big drop for just a few minutes of play.
everything was made for switch 2 to be enjoyed the most in docked mode from low battery life to a lcd screen..
@Ramouz Advice on what a generally-docked should do early on? Should I intentionally spend some time in handheld and drain the charge a few times? Thanks.
I am now buying extra power bricks and extended USBC power cables now...
I’m docked, baby!
I only play in docked mode, so battery life doesn't matter to me at all..
@OrtadragoonX thank you! I do like learning about tech.
@Key19 I would suggest that yes, but without draining all the way down, perhaps around 20, and enable 90% max charge since you'd be using it primarily docked.
@Ramouz Did the 90% setting already, thanks! Will give it a few partial cycles down before it starts collecting dust on the shelf. I appreciate the advice!
@fenlix I guess, but I also know many people who are still waiting to receive their console or haven't had much play time. Plus this will give s enough time to test with multiple games. I think this poll would have been better ran a week after launch.
I usually play at home, anyway, and I understand literally everything about the system is more taxing. Will just have to buy another charging brick and cable for next to the couch or when traveling.
Should have just released a tv only version for less money. It doesn’t switch you ask. It switches to pre inflation prices.
@Arcsol You pretty much said something similar that I was thinking when I saw that comment. They are ridiculous and definitely condescending to think others should use their devices a certain way and for a certain amount of time.
If you're having a problem with this amount of battery life, you are playing too long.
So long better battery life! That's quite dissapointing, my original Switch has around 2 hours of power. So keep your charger at your fingertips at all times.
@schmauz so a tv only switch model would have been the solution.
@Darthmoogle
It’s pretty random. First time I charged it witj that option on it got to 89%. Second time it went to 86%. Third time was 83% before it stopped.
@rvcolem1 so a tv only model which would be more durable because there would be no fear of a battery giving out is a solution. Nice. I thought it was only me.
@Sebos Actually, I was concerned about the opposite. I checked for updates as soon as my data transfer was complete. Thought maybe the update might be causing it.
Haven't had a chance to test it out today, yet.
@USWITCH64 exactly. My man. Why have a 4k console and play in half the resolution. I mean I have a 98 inch tv for a reason.
I find it interesting considering the more powerful and power hungry chip Nintendo didn’t just make the S2 1mm thicker to house a higher capacity battery. I’m sure most of us would have preferred that to a lesser battery or maybe that’s just me!?
@JohnnyMind thanks for the article! I was surprised how quickly it drained while playing MK World online with some people
@OrtadragoonX good to know it’s not just me. Probably will be patched later. No way to really know if it’s really not charging all the way to 90% or if the battery percent gauge is glitched but either way should be a fairly simple fix for Nintendo that will likely roll out on the next update
In regards to playing handheld while using the AC adaptor, i was told in the forum that a longer (3meter) fast charging USB-C cable would be fine since it goes to the power block itself.
i was curious as someone who is unfamiliar with USB-C due to not really having any smart devices (which the switch-2 charger seems closer to) but is there other things i would need to look out for when picking a USB-C cable or will any 3m cable work as long as its "fast", for example are there recomended brands or other such things.
@red_beard_smitty You're welcome!
@Medic_alert Ironically, the vast majority of these complaints were made about the original Switch. Even game prices generally increased from the 3DS.
@mariomaster96 I had a scare when I turned mine on this morning when I saw it was at 23% after putting into sleep last night at around 85%. Then saw the notification that it finished ing 25 games plus updates so I guess that really throttled it.
I’ve had my Switch lite for 3 years, playing Splatoon 3 online, I get about 4 hours. Same with any other games. I actually time it, the battery drains at a rate of 20-25% per hour. If I ever see it move from that then I know my battery is degraded.
As for Switch 2, I’ll wait until a new revision with a more energy efficient SOC is released. I still can’t believe Nintendo went backwards and used a larger more energy inefficient 8nm SOC. Should have be 4nm at its largest, especially for the money they’re asking.
@Mgalens It needs to be whatever whatever wattage the switch 2 uses or higher. (60W)
Honestly, even with the Switch 1, a portable battery felt like a necessity for extended handheld sessions.
Hopefully we get an approved list or licensed battery for the Switch 2. While I'm sure charging tech has gotten better and safer over the years, I'd still like to have battery options I can buy with full confidence.
@h3s
ah thankyou so if i look for a "60w 3m usb-c fast charging cable" it should be compatible with the switch 2/switch 2 power block right?. (and find a reliable one)
@Koda1000 I would have said at least 5nm or less (M2 is that). Problem with the way they go about it is the clock speeds end up gimped for the next however many years. (I wish when it was possible to run for the same two hours with a higher clock speed they let us).
@Mgalens Yeah I just go for the cheapest braided one on Amazon for the length I want. (As long as it doesn’t have loads of negative reviews). I have never had one not work or go bad yet.Most of the cheap ones are usb 2.0 for data transfer but just for charging that doesn’t matter.
@h3s I had to match the 60W adapter and 60W USBC cable so I don't burn the house down.
Once I had fully charged my Switch 2, I played Mario Kart World, SF6, and FAST Fusion and it www only 6 hours that the battery said it was low.
I have no idea what the rest of you are doing but I’ve done the same today and got 5 hours before seeing a low battery warning.
I still have a decent test to do, so I'll try some use cases tonight.
I can't pretend to be surprised though lol
As I said in a comment a while back, I was expecting about this amount of battery life. What I wasn't expecting though, is this substantial drain in sleep mode, which I find a bit excessive. So, I wonder if those who noticed this issue enabled network s in sleep mode (I'm sure I saw a setting like that somewhere). If not, I'm pretty sure Nintendo will fix this soon anyway.
@Darthmoogle
Yeah I hope so. That said, I hope they add an option to only charge for 80%. In of temperature variations and max battery longevity before they degrade, 20-80% capacity is the sweet spot. Charging above 80 usually raises the temperature, which is why all devices dramatically throttle down from the charger from 80-100%.
For my use case, 20 to 80 would serve fine for my daily use case, which is normally docked during the day and handheld at night next to a charger. And I could always charge to 100% in those rare times (like long car rides where I’m not driving, which is rare) to max my life off the charger.
I won't buy a Switch 2 very soon. I will keep an eye on it and wait for updates, price drop, revision, maybe a different color.
But so far, I'm not sold and the only game I would play is Mario Kart. I don't need it for the rest of the launch games.
@SirLink
To be fair when I play handheld at night it’s usually at above 85% brightness and max speaker volume. With it connected to my phones hotspot. I’m sure that’s not helping in my case.
We know Nintendo loves to sell an improved model, but this is the first time I've picked up a console at launch and feel like I can see the intentionally cut corners to enable that future upgrade. Screen and battery are both big downgrades from the OLED, and I think the kick stand is worse too.
@Mgalens
I use the Nintendo charger included with the dock at home. When I’m at my grandparents doing my nightly treatments and playing it in bed, I hook it to my Apple MacBook Pro Charger with Apple USB-C cable. It works fine in my case. Same charging speed as Nintendo’s.
@Peach64
Yeah I don’t think OLED Switch s will be extra happy with things other than the power increase. But those of us coming from OG Switches or Mariko Switches (like I did) it’s a gigantic update.
I was afraid to even use the kickstand on my Mariko model. I only used it once to insert an SD card. Other than that I never popped it out in the six years I owned it. Whereas I find the kickstand on this Switch 2 perfectly useable and safe.
@Key19 You're welcome . Do you see a blue-ish tint on your Switch 2 screen? I mean, it looks fine but it's definitely more blue than the Switch 1 and all my other devices, which I don't like. I'm actually considering returning it since I haven't redeemed MKW yet and telling Nintendo about it, hoping they do something.
Unless they can add a warm mode that we can enable permanently, like all devices have.
@Nintendo4Sonic If you've played everything else from the Switch 1and don't need the new games yet, then you should wait.
On the other hand, I haven't played many of exclusive games since I was waiting for a proper console and my experience is that it's just so much faster, in everything. Games load so quickly that it doesn't even make sense. They run better and their updates (free or paid) really improve them.
However, as for the physical console itself, it's not my favourite. They should have done a better job with ergonomics (it's very very uncomfortable, more than the uncomfortable Switch 1 - Wii U was amazing), and the screen is too cool rather than warm, which I dislike. Everything looks kind of blue-ish.
@PJOReilly No such issue today. The only difference is I charged them on the Switch 2 in the dock the first night, and last night I charged them using the charging grip plugged into the dock.
my battery lasts around 2.5 hrs in mario kart, and I don't know what it is in other games, bc i havent played anything else since i got it
New batteries need a few charge cycles to reach optimal status rendering this poll unhelpful and scaremongering at this point.
when your Wii used to lecture you about not taking a break? Nintendo has just found a way to be more subtle.
I honestly played a variety of games including World to a total of 4 hours and it was on 11% by the time I finally decided to charge it.
Switch, and Switch OLED I almost played exclusively in portable mode.
However, im having a great time playing docked (mainly because I dont want to go back to an LCD) but I’ll definitely log my results if I play portable! P.S. I set my battery to 90% max in the settings to mitigate the wear and tear.
One of my bud says he manage to get at least 5 hours out of his Switch 2 in handheld mode when playing his brand new Mario Kart 8 Deluxe game that he bought last year.
Just found out there's a setting which only turns on HDR for compatible games instead of forcing it on at all times.
I don't know how much this improves the battery but it might be worth a test!
Super strange trying to defend such poor battery life by "the game is bigger and uh beautiful" lol.
Its okay guys, you'll all be able to buy a brand new console in roughly a year and a half to 2 years, that will improve these things they left broken so they can sell you a second or third system! And dont forget to buy that suuuUuUper limited edition green one with a little plastic Triforce logo on it when it comes out!
can we get some battery stability in here Nintendo?
I've yet to play that long in handheld mode, but when I do, I'm always switching on "plane mode" (so, totally offline) to save some battery.
I keep the s / online gaming for when I'm docked.
Pff..
My Steam Deck lasts much longer than 2 hours xD
Good thing I don't need to play portably like I used to years ago in the Switch 1's early years. I haven't played 2 portably yet but these reports already make me think I'm going to play docked 90% of the time for now, which is a big change for me.
This is exactly why I'm keeping Splatoon 3 on my Switch 1 OLED. I play Splatoon best in handheld, so even if it wasn't for its issues that have recently come to light, playing 3 on Switch 2 would actually be a severe downgrade for me. I can play Salmon Run and Splatfest for hours in handheld. Doesn't sound I can now unless I'm OK with keeping my Switch 2 attached most of the time.
I played Suikoden HD for about 3 hours last night. Started in the 90s and was in the 20s when I stopped. My guess is I could have gotten a full 4 hours on a 100% battery if playing until 0%.
That’s ok I guess. Gonna run a test on my OG Switch (launch version) and see how it holds up in comparison.
Definitely think a portable battery pack will be needed. What’s the best options for Switch 2?
I never had less than 3 hours of gameplay on my Switch 1 V1, not even in 2017. It was always 3 hours (minimum) playing Breath of the Wild and MK8
The new Game Gear.
So far, I really enjoyed the system, but I was shocked by it’s horrendous battery life. Not even two hours. They must absolutely fix this.
I hope a future system update can at least improve battery by 50%. Honestly, anything under three hours is very poor.
Also, the battery takes forever to charge. On a power bank it takes like five hours. Only using the original charger it takes a little over three.
@AllBLK I'd guess money. Both the cost of putting it in and the loss of selling cameras.
But it could have been an online wifi issue, worrying about maintaining MKW and 4 player Gamechat.
Or they're saving it as a selling point for Switch Lite 2. If there's no TV out like Switch Lite then there really is no way they can expect people to use that big $55 camera w/ Switch Lite 2 so built in is the only way to go.
I agree with you Switch 2 should have a camera built in as much as they are promoting it, even requiring it for achievements in Welcome Tour, just guessing why it doesn't.
@SurprisedRobinChu oh dear the Steampunk knuckle draggers have arrived.
I get around 2 hours with Cyberpunk 2077 on handheld, If you want more power, you've got to pay with battery life, as the PC handhelds would demonstrate. I think I could get 3-4 hours if I turned of internet, put brightness below 40% and played a less intensive game.
I can see a unit update with improved battery in a year or 2. I hope there is a software fix for us early adopters.
@Peach64 I agree on the screen and battery, but the kickstand is 100% an upgrade over the previous iterations.
People need to get reality check there's no price drop or new model for at least 8 years. And you will be waiting a long time if that is the case. Even older Switch 1 games will benefit from the upgrade even if they don't have Switch 2 patches. So those naysayers are just making excuses. Now if you can't afford one currently that's different story all together.
2 hours is bad. Definitely downgrade from OLED switch
Switch 2 is amazing device however
1) demanding games do drain the battery under 2 hours yes (hell no to 90% charging),
2) screen is too big, it’s not comfortable to hold over long periods of time (wish I could get original Switch size, same nonsense like larger and larger iPhones). It’s not as bad experience as Steam Deck but still.
I’m sorry, but a battery like that is absolutely unacceptable for a handheld device.
The joys of lithium batteries. You'd think in 2025 we'd have something better by now. I'm actually thinking of selling my switch 1 and steam deck while the batteries are still reasonable. I might get a newer edition of the switch 2 in the future if they improve it a bit. I reckon buy one, keep it for 3 or 4 years then sell it on.
What were you guys expecting? It's pretty much a custom Ampere GPU inside of a handheld. I wasn't expecting good battery life. I'm never not near a wall socket so it doesn't bother me.
@mr12calvin That is impossible. We might get 10-15% max. You can't double you battery life with a software update.
@SurprisedRobinChu It is also physically larger and can fit a bigger battery.
@SpontaneousOutburst Bitter much? It's always been like this since the original GameBoy. Let's just not buy anything because something new might come out. Christ.
Nice to pay top dollar for a down grade.
I play 100% docked so I do not care too much about the screen and battery, but still disappointing to hear.
I still haven't even turned mine on, since I had the bright idea of wanting to put a screen protector on it before use, and the one I ordered got delivered to a neighbor's house and I haven't managed to get it back.
...But my real concern is standby drain.
Nothing is worse than not using a device for a period of time, then finding the battery completely drained when I find the time for it.
The verdict on that is probably a few weeks out, as everyone's new Switch 2s are still reing their libraries, but I've usually ended up kicking myself when forgetting to fully shut down my Switch 1 when it wasn't stored on the dock and it was more than a day before using it again.
I haven't touched anything like brightness etc and I got 3 hours on the BOTW upgrade.
"With great power, comes great consumption" Uncle Ben
My battery life's been pretty awful. Only real setting change I've made was turning off rumble so maybe could fiddle with some things and get more out of it but it's been dropping fast and taking a long time to charge.
@BinaryMessiah but the standby drain issue could be resolved, don’t you think?
@Lizuka what about turning off HDR? I will try it now. According to ChatGPT, it could turn 2h into 2.5-3h. That would be an increase of 25 to 50%. Then I wouldn’t care about HDR at all. I just want normal battery life. Three hours to me is the bare minimum.
It’s also that the charging is so terribly slow that you can just pick it up later because you have to wait every time. When you charge it during playing, it won’t charge quick enough, so it will still empty itself faster than it charges. And when charging it using a power bank rather than the giant bracket has come with, it takes forever. Like five hours. It’s insane. I saw on welcome tour that the battery is really small…
Maybe a solution could be a special case with additional battery. And then you just Play portable by juicing the pro controller. Now the screen is bigger. I think that might be my new way to play. Handheld with the joycons - even the new ones - is, again, A bit uncomfortable because of the joystick being right below the buttons and you accidentally press it, which always happens to me
They need to team up with some battery tech company this is garbage running times.
I can't say anything about MK world, but I know after a 2 hour session on Cyberpunk 2077, ot goes down to around 57% from 100% percent charge. Which I find quite impressive considering how demanding the game can be. Bravely default however I can get 4-5 hours and only use 30% on a full charge, hardly surprising with that game to be honest. I don't play it to often without a charger attached to be fair.
I’ve gone through the settings a few times now and I still cannot find any battery options, like limiting it so it doesn’t charge past 80% or 90%. I did see someone set one up on YouTube and they had the settings available for the battery. I can’t understand why I can’t find it on my Switch 2, and I am in handheld mode when I look for battery settings. Can anyone please assist?
EDIT: I just found it. It is a bit buried away though under system settings. You just have to go into system settings and keep scrolling down.
To think, I used to get 35 hours of gameplay from my original GameBoy. This handheld is NOT for handheld gaming.
Can't say I've played Handheld mode enough to test but I have that battery setting on so it won't charge past 90%
@NTELLIGENTMAN And the 3DS d a 48 hour battery life if I correctly and through playing it constantly, I found that to be pretty accurate! Peak handheld gaming. They should have put more focus on the battery life and portability. The Switch 1 was already borderline too big to carry around and the Switch 2 is even bigger.
@1UP_MARIO
Nailed it!!
The controllers will charge to full from console battery as well, and everyone being keen to be untethered means a lot of 'unexplained' short run times (initially).
I ed (and filled) all internal space before plying any games.
All updated, firmwares, controllers charged etc..
Around 45% brightness and feeding audio out (line level into car stereo), partner and I played Mario Kart for the first time whilst waiting for a friend in a car park.
Just like my Skyrim runtimes (less than 20% per hour), we gamed four or five online multiplayer races, and barely noticed the battery hit.. (less than 30%)..
Settled consoles and s who understand that large screen/high refresh rate/HDR 'high brightness' sucks power hard!
The sound upmixing (downmixing?) 5.1 to virtual surround via two speakers is a hit to power (mild) vut ramping the 'softer' (mixed/'re-encoded' audio up until the speakers sound equally loud as unmixed surround to two channel audio sounds eill mean that speakers and screen (and controllers charging, and 'background' s etc) will be lionshare of battery runtime discrepencies between s.
Measured power is 8watt handheld, 18watt docked.
If U downclocks, eg Mariokart replay or canera in Skyrim 'starte spinning from no input', wattage consumes drops by 3watts.
This handheld sips power.
s setting the screen and sound (flightmode on etc) can make huge runtime differences.
120hz HDR 'large' screen is a power hog (if set to crazy brightness).
Give the end s the power to play in sunlight?
They will,.. and then denounce battery life....
My console might be some magic golden sample (unlikely)..
Setting screen brightness to typical level, and using outboard sound (eg bluetooth), helps a lot.
So does precharging the system/ controllers (if fresh from box), and acknowledging that the new console can pull 150mpbs via wireless networking..
YourMileageMayVary; depends on the road and how you drive it!
@mr12calvin try using PD USB (power delivery).
Using the wrong USB output on my Bluetti power station (eg Handsfree1), the console charges slowly.
Using the PD USB output?
charges quickly even when I am using it.
Not all USB ports deliver the same power, even if they physically look similar.
I noticed 20% more power intake via the bottom USB power.
(10w via top, 12watts via underside USB)
@NTELLIGENTMAN Atari Lynx, same generation as the gameboy, was three times the batteries required for around 1/7th the runtime.
PC Engine handheld, the Nomad, and a few other 'better' handhelds failed at battery life/weight balance that can make or break a portable system.
Hence why SteamOS/Bazzite etc makes Windows handhelds a non event.
(you can effectively get two years of hardware upgrades by changing Operating System, factoring a 10% GPU upgrade annually, older hardware running a Linux distro like SteamOS will outpunch the same hardware running windowsOS quite noticeably)
Apple used to balance their iPads tech/chip upgrades with enough battery to hit ten hours runtime.
If the chip was more efficient, the battery weight could be reduced..
Balance the variables and build the perfect device for everyone?
Not likely-
some will argue a device could be heavier/some will demand it be lighter (eg PSVR2 controllers)
Batteries add weight.
Switch 2 is featherlight compared to PC handhelds, sure.. but it is heavier than the Switch1 it is most likely to be compared against.
Someone, somewhere had to make the hard decision.
That being said, it is three cell, rather than two, so a little extra weight given towards battery longevity. (Nice one Nintendo!)
@mr12calvin That could be addressed. It's usually something in RAM causing the drain. The Steam Deck had a similar fix
You have to play it til the battery dies then recharge all the way and this will improve the battery life
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