Ever since the reveal of the apparent ‘Switch 2’ motherboard online, fans have been going wild with speculation as to what kind of tech the upcoming new Nintendo console will boast.
Full ‘Layton’ Level Analysis
In fact, we’d say a lot of them could easily become Professor Layton’s new protégé, if they wish. The level of analysis with this stuff is frankly off the charts, and considering just how close we are to the potential reveal of this thing, we’re beginning to wonder whether it’s all worth the effort.
It is interesting, though. Take zcomuto over on Reddit, for instance (thanks, Game Ranx). This user has presented a complex, albeit fascinating analysis of the motherboard based on the images released online. In it, they determine that the Nvidia chip is likely fabricated by Samsung and is essentially Nvidia’s 8nm ‘Ampere’ architecture, originally introduced back in 2020. This has since been surpassed by the ‘Lovelace’ architecture in 2022, which has made some users online concerned about a potential lack of power with the Switch 2.
Essentially, folks are hoping that the Switch 2 would utilize 5nm or even 3nm chips, rather than the 8nm chip that zcomuto has supposedly discovered here. The numbers are next to meaningless in a technical sense and are broadly used as marketing terms, but in a nutshell, the lower the number, the more technically advanced the chip, boasting increased transistor density, increased speed, and reduced power consumption.
Future Possibilities
It’s important, however, to keep in mind that the Switch 2 may also utilize DLSS upscaling technology to boost the resolution of its games, hopefully alleviating concerns over its apparent use of Nvidia’s ‘Ampere’ chip.
Further Visualized Insights
Aside from that, zcomuto has also determined that, based on previous manifest leaks, the storage chip is likely 256 GB UFS-1 (the actual text in the photo is, however, illegible), which would indicate a significant increase over the current Switch family of systems, which max out at 64GB. We’ve also supposedly got two 6 GB LPDDR5x RAM modules in dual channel, making up a total of 12GB of RAM. 256GB storage and 12GB RAM have been rumored for a while, but it seems that, if legit, the motherboard photos may indeed confirm this.
Backward Compatibility
Finally, it seems that the card reader within the Switch 2 is likely capable of reading both Switch and Switch 2 games. It’s been confirmed that Switch games will be fully playable via backward compatibility, so unless there’s a separate reader specifically for Switch 2 games (kind of like how the DS had a GBA slot), then you’ll be using just a single reader for both platforms.
Concluding Remarks
We say it time and time again, but it’s always worth repeating: it’s entirely possible that none of this is true. This is analysis performed on a few leaked images that, while certainly convincing, have not been proven to be 100% legit (or based on the final build, for that matter). They probably are, but they might not be. It’ll no doubt be some time before we know the true details of the Switch 2’s technical capabilities, as it’s likely even Nintendo itself won’t divulge such information during or after its eventual reveal.