Nintendo Switch 2 will offer much lower performance in handheld mode
Nintendo Switch 2 performance is expected to differ significantly in handheld mode and when docked to the station.
From week to week, and even day to day, we learn more and more information about Nintendo Switch 2. The console will probably debut in early 2025 and will again be based on NVIDIA components. However, performance varies significantly depending on how we use it.
Nintendo Switch 2 performance
The latest rumors about Nintendo Switch 2 were provided by Moore's Law is Dead. According to him, the clock speed of the console in handheld mode is to be extremely low. We do not know the exact values, but we are talking about a clock lower than 800 MHz.
This will obviously impact performance. This will be much lower than after connecting the device to a dedicated docking station, where the clock will be up to three times higher. This will also allow you to enable Ray Tracing in games, which will probably not be available in portable mode.
Why such a difference? It is mainly due to cooling. In portable mode, the console is supposed to be quiet, so the Japanese do not want to install fans inside. These are to be present only in the docking station, which will cool the consoles better, which will allow for higher clock speeds.
Additionally, Nintendo Switch 2 will use the NVIDIA DLSS technique. It is not known whether it will be available in handheld mode, but it would make a lot of sense. The worse performance could be made up for with Deep Learning Super Sampling.
