Nintendo has discussed why it decided to use an LCD screen within Switch 2 rather than an OLED display, as found in the premium Switch OLED.
Speaking to press at a developer roundtable event attended by Eurogamer, Nintendo Switch 2 hardware design lead Tetsua Sasaki suggested the decision had not been clear – and had required much consideration.
“You know, during development – and now – there’s a lot of advancements that have been made in LCD technology,” Sasaki said, “and during our development we took a look at the LCD technology that was available to us now.
“And after a lot of consideration, we decided to stick with LCD.”
Sasaki then asked the audience of journalists what their thoughts had been after trying Switch 2 for themselves. Most responded positively.
Speaking personally, as someone who plays on Switch OLED currently, I was impressed by how much closer to that device Switch 2’s LCD display felt, compared to the one found in the aging Switch 1. A key factor there, I think, is Switch 2’s LCD screen now supporting HDR.
“Even with the OLED version of Nintendo Switch, we didn’t… have compatibility support for HDR, but that’s something we have support for now,” Nintendo Switch 2 producer Kouichi Kawamoto noted.
Switch 2’s display is “a significant upgrade to that of its predecessor, and far closer to the crispness of the Switch OLED than I was expecting, with the added bonuses of its larger size and HDR,” I wrote in Eurogamer’s Switch 2 hands-on preview.
Eurogamer’s Switch 2 reveal coverage continues today, with another livestream from Nintendo Treehouse detailing more on the upcoming console.