Nintendo's console hybrid has been evolving since it was first discovered in Switch's firmware 5.0 in March 2018, thanks to the new, smaller, cooler Tegra X1. Its efficiency advantages form the basis of the upcoming handheld Switch Lite, but the Nvidia SoC upgrade is also centered on a revised version of the existing model, which was recently launched in Hong Kong. Eager to see the performance of the new silicon wafer, we imported a unit and started working.
At least on the surface, this Switch update is not much different from the original model. Except for the new Joy-Con led theme on the side of the box, the outer packaging is almost the same. Inside the package, nothing has changed-Joy-Cons and the tablet are on the top floor, and peripherals (dock, HDMI cable, power supply, etc.) are placed in their respective lower compartments, as usual. A quick check confirms that, despite the reduced power consumption of the new processor, the AC charger is still the same as the old one, and needless to say, all the existing Switch peripherals we had to manually operate will work properly on the new machine .
For Switch, this is indeed a "silent update", an alternative model with little fanfare-Nintendo CEO Doug Bowser doesn't seem to think it's a new hardware release at all. On the one hand, this ensures that all of Nintendo's marketing focus can be placed on Switch Lite, but it means that there is no opportunity to seize the opportunity or even slightly improve the original version. The wobbly support still feels insufficient to rely on, and although the dock has a fairly "agricultural" build quality, it hasn't changed, let alone complained over the years.
Video breakdown of how the new HAC-001 (-01) switch compares to its predecessor. For Western markets, this new model may change.
Probably the biggest missed opportunity-this is also the most annoying problem I have encountered since Switch was launched-the fact is that the sluggish WiFi performance does not seem to have changed, and Nintendo machines are less likely to connect to weaker signals and are easier Appears if you do disconnect it. No side-by-side tests with smartphones or even Amazon Echo Dot, although the internal area is probably good. The updated Switch does come with a new motherboard, and in addition to the new Tegra processor, some modifications have been made-however, improving the overall quality of the device is obviously not a priority for Nintendo.
However, the new Tegra X1, codenamed Mariko, is indeed a big deal. The original chip was manufactured using TSMC's 20nm process, which is a "stepping stone" technology that is mainly used in smartphones, ignoring CPU, GPU and game console SoCs, except for Switch. We know the new chip is smaller, and the launch of Switch Lite strongly suggests efficiency advantages. Possibly TSMC's 16-nanometer FinFET is in the frame, the same process used by the latest game consoles from Microsoft and Sony. It can be said that the new technology can save a lot of power.
Using Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Fast RMX to test similar game scenarios, the wattmeter produces some impressive results in terms of drawing power from the wall. Even when docked and running, the high-end GPU frequency of the Switch starts to increase, and we still hope to reduce power consumption by 40% to 50% depending on the content. What's more notable is that many games in The Legend of Zelda run on only six to seven watts of power. This may not be a big deal compared to the latest and most powerful mobile processor in 7nm technology, but it is a huge victory compared to the original Tegra X1.
| Original HAC-001 switch | New HAC-001 (-01) switch | |
|---|---|---|
| Battery life: 50% screen brightness | 3 hours and 5 minutes (185 minutes) | 5 hours and 2 minutes (302 minutes) |
| Battery life: 100% screen brightness | 2 hours and 25 minutes (145 minutes) | 4 hours 18.5 minutes (258.5 minutes) |
| Skin temperature (without base) | 46C | 46C |
| Maximum exhaust temperature (without base) | 48C | 46C |
| Maximum exhaust temperature (butt) | 54C | 50 degrees |
Nintendo retains the HAC-003 original battery used in its original switch with a capacity of 4,310mAh, which means that the reduction in power consumption translates into a significant increase in battery life. On the old model, the legend of Zelda can last for 3 hours and 5 minutes when the brightness is 50%, and on the new model, it can last for 5 hours and 2 minutes-the game time is reduced by 64%. The brightness has been increased to 100% and you will see the gap widen-at startup, the two-hour, 25-minute conversion benefited from the new processor, and the Switch converted to four hours, 18.5 minutes, which meant a 78% increase in game time (but Please note that in all cases, different screens can Resulting in different brightness).
Using less energy can improve heat dissipation-but it may not be what you expect. The original Switch is still a low-power device, especially when playing games in mobile mode. When docked, the heat at the exhaust vent dropped from 54 degrees Celsius on the new switch to 50 degrees Celsius, but more notably, the device's fan noise was reduced (there was almost no interference at first). When you release the performance, the machine still feels warm to the touch, but the overall feel is the same.
So far, the story is very simple. Same as the Switch with the new processor, which means improved efficiency and battery life, but not much more. However, there are several curve balls. First, the display did change. According to the Wall Street Journal, Sharp has reached an agreement with Switch to provide its Switch with its IGZO display technology, but it is not clear whether this applies to the Lite model or the model. What I can say is that the difference between the old model and the new model is obvious. Although my existing Switch is a little cyan / yellow, white is usually white. At the same time, magenta tones are even more noticeable on the new models.
The above comparison photo (click on the thumbnail for higher resolution) is from the same photo and both switches are operating at maximum brightness, so the difference is not in the changes in the camera settings-I would say it accurately When viewed side-by-side, both monitors look the same to me. Given the choice between them, I prefer the older Switch-although battery life data suggests the new screen is more efficient at maximum brightness.
Another curiosity revolves around performance. Nintendo has made it clear that the new Mariko processor does not have any advantages over existing models, and similar tests on multiple games have indeed shown that it is. The new SoCs are able to provide faster GPU clocks based on Nvidia data, but Nintendo decided not to use them at least for now. However, the new Switch not only replaced the old Tegra X1, but also replaced the memory with 4GB of LPDDR4X, thereby further improving energy efficiency on existing models. This can explain some of the oddities in a few performance tests.
For example, Mortal Kombat 11's replay mode provides the ability to re-run the rounds again and again in the game engine. With Nintendo Online's cloud save transfer, we can compare two units with the same content. The new Switch offers a very small performance advantage, consistent across five independent runs of the two machines. At the same time, testing the classic Korok Forest bottleneck in "The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild"-a known memory bandwidth issue-again shows that some of the described performance has changed on the new Switch model. The camera's viewpoint played a crucial role in this test and was not 100% reproducible between each run, but the results seemed to hint at some advantage of the new Switch.
