Just got the Switch OLED

I haven't seen much discussion of this on the forums, so I thought I would give my impressions of it. Maybe it will help you decide if it's what you want for the holidays.

Note: I got the Japanese hardware, because it was the easiest to import into China. I don't know if there are any difference between the Japanese and international versions of the hardware.

The first thing I noticed was how high-quality everything felt. The OLED feels sturdier in my hands than the launch Switch I'm replacing it with. The power and volume buttons are slightly larger and easier to find by touch. The white joycons look great, and they don't feel as flimsy as the originals. Perhaps that's because they are new, but I bought a Gamecube purple/orange set not too long ago and the white ones feel better in the hands.

The dock also feels much higher quality than the original, less like a toy and more like a piece of high end electronics. They redesigned the back cover to make it easier to get to the HDMI and ethernet ports, with more room for the cords to pass through the opening. It's a significant upgrade from the base model.

Once I booted it up and transferred my account to it, I played some NEO: The World Ends With You. It's hard to overstate how much better the OLED screen is, even on lower brightness settings. Colors pop off the screen, black and white have startling contrast, and it all looks so much smoother in motion. Although the screen isn't that much larger than the original, it's a noticeable and welcome improvement.

Is it worth the money? That depends. If you already have one, and play mostly handheld, it's absolutely worth it for the screen alone. It's a substantial improvement, and a welcome one for someone like me, who's in their 40s and whose eyes aren't exactly as sharp as they used to be.

Do you have one, and play mostly docked? I'm not sure it's worth it. The sturdier dock is nice, and ethernet is always preferable to wifi, but unless you value those things highly it's probably best to pass.

If you don't have a Switch, or you're buying one for another person, I think it's worth it. The better quality build and the screen are worth the premium.

I hope this is helpful for anyone who's been thinking about getting one. I'm happy to answer any questions if you have any.

Thanks, this is helpful indeed.

I upgraded to one because I'm sick, but the screen being so good that it doesn't even look like it's turned on when loading up animal crossing is great.

My biggest complaint is that they made the buttons on top much more flush with the switch, so it is much harder to find those buttons just by feeling for them. So now I just have to use the quick menu for volume.

Buying the Nintendo Switch OLED model is a good idea for those who loves playing this on handheld mode.

@broshmosh: Glad to be of help!

@alistercat:Glad you're enjoying it! I LOL'd at "screen doesn't even look turned on" because I started up Ikaruga yesterday and thought the same thing! The black levels are DEEP.

That's interesting about the buttons, because it's the opposite of my experience. That might be a difference between the Japanese model and others. The buttons are flush with the chassis, but there's a textural difference that makes it pretty easy to tell.

@alistercat: This was my difficulty as well. The different shape of the power button and how it's recessed has really made it difficult for me to find it. Oh and I had trouble getting the game flap to open once, but hopefully that'll be smoother now.

Otherwise, I am really digging it. I play probably 70/30 tv to handheld, but the bigger screen, better battery life (I came from a launch Switch) and just overall feel of the OLED has been a real positive experience.

This is good to hear! I just ordered an OLED switch today to replace my near-launch one. A small piece of the back came off the other day while playing Animal Crossing for no reason lol.