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Switch flaws... Problem or not?

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I've not had any real issues with my Switch at all other than poor wifi, i've yet to see it above 2 bars.

 

I had some bad eshop load times too the other day so did connection tests, twice got 500kbps connection speed, a few times got between 2-3mbps and eventually got 27mbps which is relatively close to my actual fibre speed

 

I'm not that sure if thats a hardware issue or not, i fear it seems to be

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Its an oversight in the design of the dock if multiple people are saying its bent.

 

But the majority aren't.

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The dock scratching the screen surely has to be down to some serious user error. Even if the dock was bent you'd have to use some force for it to actually damage the screen.

 

I can't believe the sensor position can be the reason for the left joy con drop outs. It's only about 1cm lower than the right side. If that was the case they'd both be dropping out all the time.

 

Wifi looks like it could become an issue. Hope not!

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But the majority aren't.

 

A few cases is all it takes.

 

Look at the bent iPhone, you couldn't stop hearing about it but in the grand scheme of things it was only very few units, especially given the amount of iPhones on the market.

 

Fact is that no matter how big or small the number, testing should have made sure this didn't happen. But this is from the company that made the 3DS print buttons and lines on to the top screen when closed so what should we expect :p

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The dock is a flimsy and poorly constructed unit but I think the people who have experienced scratches aren't being very careful when putting the Switch in. I've made sure to lean the Switch back a little when docking so that there is always a gap between the screen and the front of the dock and i've had no issues so far. Same goes for people putting the Joy Con straps on wrong, if you actually think about what you're doing then you won't do it wrong. Saying that they are quite difficult to take off even if you do it right though.

 

I don't think the issues are going to affect the consoles performance in the long run, a lot of people here have bought Switch's and I haven't seen many complain, and those that have are able to overlook minor flaws and enjoy the good things about the console and its games.

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This isn't an "oversight". Most docks won't scratch it. Some are seemingly bent somehow and that's what's causing it, but it's not an "oversight".

 

They even put buffers in so the dock wouldn't make contact with the Switch itself under normal circumstances to try and prevent this

 

I don't want to take the conversation quite into this sphere but bear with me. My objection to your post however is going to be in-line with another issue that raises its head on the forums and goes to Ashley's post in the main switch thread - about shutting down conversations. For me, it feels, that for you to quote my words and say that it's simply not that word even though it seems valid within a definition(see below) and others seem to share a similar sentiment - comes across as an attempt to shutdown the conversation. You made no attempt to address my use of the word except to put it in quotes and say that it isn't the case. How does that offer a further development or progress to the conversation? Should the reaction of myself be 'but it is'? How should one react? That's not a discussion imo.

 

I don't particularly want to argue about whether or not you actually were shutting down the conversation, as I don't believe it was your intention but I do feel that the post serves those ends whether realised or not and it's something to be mindful of. I'd suggest thinking about the language used to construct a post, and ask every poster to think 'How would somebody react to this? How would *I* react to this?' - if you don't think it's going to further develop or foster good quality conversation then consider thinking twice or reworking before posting. Ofc, I'm not here to dictate to everybody how to post and nobody has any obligation to follow me in this particular request - but if we could be mindful of what might be the reactions to our posts when we make them and consider that, we can hopefully all work towards trying to create a more positive environment for discussions within these boards.

 

 

To bring it back to point - To take a quick google definition of oversight I find the following - 'noun 1. an unintentional failure to notice or do something.' Did they unintentionally fail to notice this? Well, it seems so given that expected testing procedures should find it. I would certainly expect standard testing procedures to have found this flaw - why it did not I cannot say, but it certainly comes across as quite an oversight to me. If you're able to offer me an explanation as to how or why I might be mistaken on this I'm happy to have that conversation - but I didn't find that in the original post and wonder where my response should essentially go next in line with that.

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I imagine the dock issue is poor design structure mixed with packaging issues. People won't have bent their docks on the first day, suggesting it may be a transit issue that is exasperated by the fact the dock is basically a plastic taco.

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Really, I'd say that having a non-scratc resistant screen rub/rest against hard plastic isn't really an optimal solution. No matter how designed, it will eventually hurt the screen. The inside of the dock should be lined with some sort of soft, smooth fabric.

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A Reddit user posted this test to see if your Switch dock is bent.

 

 

If the coin gets stuck then the dock is bent.

 

Nintendolife have wrote a piece about a couple of Switch docks that they ordered.

 

Remember how we shared the news that Nintendo of America's online store was accepting orders for additional Switch docks? Well, we took the plunge and nabbed a couple of them during the short time they were available, and unfortunately, the news is not all good.

 

Before we continue, we would like to note that the Switch docks for sale on Nintendo's site are not the same as those that will be coming to retail at an unspecified date. These are the dock only, meaning you'll need to purchase an AC adapter and HDMI cable separately if they're not being used as a replacement for an otherwise malfunctioning or damaged dock. That said, we took exception with just how these were handled.

 

Upon receiving the Switch dock units, we realized something was amiss. Rather than arriving in a box, the two docks were wrapped in bubble wrap and shoved into a courier envelope. It should then come as no surprise that we had issues with both docks we received as well.

 

Upon removing the docks from their bubble wrap, we found that both of them were quite snug around our Switch; so snug were they, in fact, that we feared they may scratch the unit, as some players have been reporting online. Unfortunately it's unclear what would cause these replacement docks to fit the Switch so much more tightly. While some may be quick to blame poor manufacturing practices, we're not convinced. Nintendo has consistently produced high quality hardware, and for them to make a mistake of this magnitude on the Switch seems unlikely. If we had to guess, in the case of these two docks, we would blame the poor packaging. If they were so poorly protected in transit, it's possible they were slightly bent or warped on their way to us.

 

To the naked eye it seems difficult to tell, and we did try Reddit's penny test, which both replacement docks failed. The next step was obvious: call Nintendo. Fortunately, Nintendo's customer service has always been top notch. Upon explaining the issue to their friendly staff, we were asked to return both docks at no charge and they would send new units out. When asked if this was an issue they were aware of, the representative we spoke to indicated they are investigating, but stopped short of calling it a known issue.

 

At this point, we would recommend you let us do the work for you, readers. The Switch dock may be available, but considering you'll still need to buy a separate AC adapter and HDMI cable, and the dock itself may just be thrown into a bag and shipped off to you, you may be better off waiting a little while for one that gets the full retail treatment.

 

I don't agree that it was likely the shoddy packaging that caused this. Given the fact that people who bought a Switch that is all boxed up are having the same issues it does seem to be a manufacturing problem. The shoddy packaging for the spar docks isn't going to help, though.

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I don't agree that it was likely the shoddy packaging that caused this. Given the fact that people who bought a Switch that is all boxed up are having the same issues it does seem to be a manufacturing problem. The shoddy packaging for the spar docks isn't going to help, though.

 

Well actually it could be a packaging problem exasperating a poor manufacturing problem

 

the dock is laid flat in the box so the taco shape is suspended with no firm packaging between it, causing gravity to naturally cause the unsupported bar to sag - think of it this way, if you put a balcony on a house its jointed firmly to the wall, made out of wood, as you stand on the end it will flex slgihtly, how much flex is entirely dependent on the structure of the balcony and how it joints to the building.

the Dock is the same as this, under its own weight it has flexed but permanently deformed, nintendo won't have ever considered this at all

Now they could have gotten away with it if some thick styrofoam was wedged in the dock for packaging which prevented this, but it still doesn't get away from the fact the actual structure is poor

it can be fixed, it could be braced quite easily, frankly a small L bracket made of metal inside that dock would have kept its shape and you get them for a couple of quid wholesale, so nintendo would have been able to do that, or honey comb the inside of the plastic would have also helped

 

Computer and Hardware engineers are not structural engineers and obviously did not consider something such as this

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Yeah I suppose it could have done with padding like you get when you buy some shoes. Same notion/issue really.

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About the internet wifi side of things particularly, I did notice a large drop in signal strength after doing my initial update. Hopefully that point to it being something that can be remedied shortly with another update. Good news eh @Happenstance?

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About the internet wifi side of things particularly, I did notice a large drop in signal strength after doing my initial update. Hopefully that point to it being something that can be remedied shortly with another update. Good news eh @Happenstance?

 

Any problem that can be fixed with a patch is a non-problem, IMO. So that seems to be great news.

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I've got the 2 grey joycons that came with my Switch and also bought the separate neon ones. It only seems to be the left red neon one which performs poorly when sitting a few meters away (typically it is pressing up on the stick that isn't picked up). I guess I should return this (and blue) in hope of a replacement performing better. You would think two left joycons would perform the same unless one is faulty.

Edited by Space

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After a week, I finally taped my kickstand shut. That damn thing kept popping out while I was using it in handheld mode, and it kept exposing my MicroSD card. So now I had enough. Other than that, I think it's a stellar system. But god damn, that kickstand is flimsy.

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I've been thinking about buying the Snipperclips/JoyCon bundle but with talk of it being mostly the neon JoyCon with issues I'm a bit hesitant now. :hmm:

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I've been thinking about buying the Snipperclips/JoyCon bundle but with talk of it being mostly the neon JoyCon with issues I'm a bit hesitant now. :hmm:

 

It happens with my grey ones too if that makes you feel any better. I imagine internally they are the same.

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After a week, I finally taped my kickstand shut. That damn thing kept popping out while I was using it in handheld mode, and it kept exposing my MicroSD card. So now I had enough. Other than that, I think it's a stellar system. But god damn, that kickstand is flimsy.

 

Mine takes quite a bit of force to pull out so I'm surprised that people are having the issue you raised. I guess we think of a mass produced product as being something that is the same across the board but the variety of issues showing up with the Switch shows that's not the case. Hopefully they can produce more consistent batches in future, would be a shame if the system sold well at Christmas only for a number of people to run into issues again.

 

I'm really happy with the system overall but I agree with comments that the OS is a bit featureless. Hopefully they add more options for organising photos, it's manageable enough now that the only game i'm really taking pictures from is Zelda but it'll be a nightmare trying to sort through hundreds of photos from different games. I'd also like a more in depth activity log as I really enjoyed that feature on the 3DS but I can understand why they have gone for such a stripped down OS, it's so much quicker to navigate and load than their previous systems.

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I've been thinking about buying the Snipperclips/JoyCon bundle but with talk of it being mostly the neon JoyCon with issues I'm a bit hesitant now. :hmm:

 

I would have bought the bundle by now but I kinda want my 3rd and 4th Joy-Con to be Neon Yellow and Neon Green..

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Fuck me. Left Joy-Con disconnects are a pain. Just seen Nintendo's recommendations to move the Switch, not exactly ideal.

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Any one else having a problem with surround sound?

 

I run my Switch through my Sony Bluray Surround sound system, but the rear speakers don't work. On the test page it just goes FL, FR, FL, FR, C, Bass. Is this what Nintendo calls Surround sound or does it seem broken?

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Any one else having a problem with surround sound?

 

I run my Switch through my Sony Bluray Surround sound system, but the rear speakers don't work. On the test page it just goes FL, FR, FL, FR, C, Bass. Is this what Nintendo calls Surround sound or does it seem broken?

 

Mine works absolutely fine, so possibly a problem with your Switch.

 

Mine runs through a Denon amp, maybe it doesn't like going through the BluRay player?!

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