Is Nintendo Switch 4K? An overview of resolution on the portable console

Date:
Tue, 08 Mar 2022 13:00:00 +0000

Description:
Is Nintendo Switch 4K? Heres everything you need to know about resolution on Nintendos portable wonder.

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Is Nintendo Switch 4K capable? Nintendos portable machine isnt known for its hardware prowess, despite being arguably the most versatile home console on the market right now. Whether youre playing on the TV or on the go, the Nintendo Switch is capable of outputting HD resolutions, but is that all it can do?

When the Nintendo Switch launched back in 2017, there were concerns that the portable consoles power fell well short of its competition. Bear in mind, the PS4 Pro had just come out a few months prior, and Microsoft launched its own high-spec console, the Xbox One X , later that year. Both pro consoles supported 4K and upscaled resolutions.

While no model of Nintendo Switch natively supports 4K, thats not to say its incapable of achieving higher resolutions than its official specs suggest. Thats if recent evidence of certain technologies being used in upcoming
Switch titles is anything to go by.

Read on to learn more about the Nintendo Switchs resolution capabilities, and if 4K is on the cards for the portable console or its successor. Nintendo Switch 4K: what you need to know

The Nintendo Switch is capable of resolutions of up to 1080p when docked, and up to 720p when played in portable mode. The same is true for the Nintendo Switch OLED model, which does benefit from a sharper, more vivid display, but under the hood its not sporting a more powerful processor.

The Nintendo Switch is powered by Nvidias Tegra X1 GPU, an aging graphical processor thats traditionally been used to power other portable devices, most notably the Google Pixel C tablet and the Nvidia Shield TV .

This leaves the Nintendo Switch feeling underpowered, especially when
compared to the PS5 and Xbox Series X . To make matters worse, the Switch
isnt always capable of outputting 1080p in docked mode nor 720p in portable mode. Depending on how demanding a title can be, its entirely possible for
the console to output soupy, sub-HD resolutions, particularly in handheld mode.

That performance dip is visible in larger, more detailed games like The
Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild or Shin Megami Tensei 5, or titles that feature a lot of on-screen action, such as Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity
or Doom Eternal .

However, the Switchs sub-4K status may not be final. Nintendo has licensed AMDs FidelityFX Super Resolution tech for the test version of Nintendo Switch Sports , which was available to play between February 18 - 20 for Nintendo Switch Online subscribers. found an interesting license from Nintendo Switch Sports, lists FidelityFX Super Resolution (FSR) pic.twitter.com/cfQKslK6Sg February 16, 2022 See more

FidelityFX Super Resolution (or FSR for short) is an algorithm that helps to boost resolutions with minimal hits to performance and graphical fidelity. In theory, the tech will allow the Switch to emulate 4K resolution without actually supporting 4K. In the case of Nintendo Switch Sports, we likely saw an upscale from 1080p, via FSR, to create a sharper image.

However, dont expect the Switch to support FSR across the board, as AMDs tech has to be applied on a per-game basis and, according to the discovered license, looks like it wont be made available to third parties. The plus is that we may see more taxing Switch titles, such as the upcoming The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2 or Xenoblade Chronicles 3 , use FSR for a cleaner look in both docked and portable modes.

Until we receive more concrete news on the Switchs follow-up (tentatively referred to as the Nintendo Switch 2 ), the handheld hybrids best bet at emulating 4K is AMDs FidelityFX Super Resolution tech, and we dont really
know how much Nintendo will plan to use it beyond Nintendo Switch Sports.

Hopefully, FSRs capabilities and the general fan demand for a 4K console will convince Nintendo to make the jump. After all, its not the first time the Kyoto-based manufacturer has been slow off the blocks with higher resolutions (looking at you, Nintendo Wii).



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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/news/is-nintendo-switch-4k-an-overview-of-resolution -on-the-portable-console/


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