Cool Nintendo Switch Details from People with Hands-On Experience

The world is overloaded with Nintendo Switch news right now, and you’ve probably picked up the biggest pieces of info. If you need a recap, read our Switch presentation breakdown and Treehouse Live stream coverage. Once you’re all caught up, check out some awesome, smaller details about Nintendo’s new hybrid console. Some lucky ducks have already been hands-on with the Switch and are spilling tons of fun information for us.

“HD rumble” isn’t just a buzzword

In Thursday’s presentation, Nintendo outlined the specs of their new pride and, ahem, joy: the Joy-Con controller. The IR camera seems really cool, though I haven’t heard of anyone experiencing it in gameplay yet. The HD rumble, however, is getting a lot of praise on social media.

Nintendo said you can feel exactly how many ice cubes are in your glass while shaking the Joy-Con, and we’re hearing confirmations of this tech. Basically you can feel individual objects and amounts of pressure.

Laura Dale tweeted several observations about the rumble feature, including milking a cow felt like… another activity with similar hand motions… She clarified by saying, “You can feel pressure moving from the top to the bottom [of the Joy-Con] as you milk.”

Pro Controller is semi-translucent, has great specs

The Joy-Con controllers are jam-packed with awesome tech, but many people are wondering how the more traditional Pro Controller holds up. Some folks have said it has the HD rumble feature, and I think I remember hearing that on Treehouse Live. It definitely has a capture button, an amiibo scanner, and gyroscope functionality.

Check out the video below, showing off the Pro Controller’s gyro with Splatoon 2.

It’s also made of semi-translucent plastic, showing some of the components inside. This triggers some heavy nostalgia for translucent Game Boys and N64 controllers. I’m so happy Nintendo is giving us small, fun details like this.

Same size as Wii U, better resolution

The Nintendo Switch’s resolution has been a topic of much speculation, but we finally know the exact numbers. When used in handheld mode–i.e. not docked–games will run at up to 720p and 60fps. When docked and connected to a TV via HDMI, the console’s power is ramped up and can output in up to 1080p. Breath of the Wild reportedly runs in 720p on the tablet and 900p when docked.

Multiple people have praised the tablet’s display quality, saying Zelda and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe look gorgeous on it.

Though the resolution is better, the Switch’s tablet touch screen is the same size as the Wii U’s game pad at 6.2 inches. I’ve heard it’s sleeker and lighter than you’d think.

Games look so much better on the Switch

As shown above, IGN posted a comparison video of Breath of the Wild on the Wii U and the Switch. The Wii U version appears brighter and bluer. The Switch version has deeper and truer colors, which give it a more realistic tone. Of course, it’s still cel-shaded, so it can’t look too realistic. Shadows and textures also appear better on the Switch.

Have you picked up any other fun tidbits about the Switch while scanning social media? Let us know in the comments!