Topic: Would it matter if the Switch 2 Lite had a 720p screen?

@skywake
I wouldn't be against it either. I just know they won't make a different resolution variant.

Meanwhile, smartphones be like: "look at our 4K OLED screen!!!" 😂

I agree anything over 1080p is overkill, but surely Full HD should be the standard on mobile devices in this day and age. Besides, if every other mobile device like smartphones and tablets are using 1080p screens and above, wouldn't making a 720p screen become more expensive?

The whole premise of this thread is flawed. Most Switch 2 and Switch 2 Edition games run at 1080p in handheld mode, and the ones that don't still run well above 720p (i.e. Fortnite runs at 900p, Apex Legends runs at 1008p, etc). The idea that most Switch 2 games struggle to exceed 720p in handheld mode is straight-up false.

With that being said, I'm not opposed to the idea of the Switch 2 Lite having a 720p screen. The whole point of the Lite is to be as cheap as possible - if lowering the display resolution from 1080p to 720p helps with that, then it's not a bad idea. My only concern is if 720p 120Hz panels are still a thing nowadays - sacrificing the display resolution may be okay, but downgrading the display refresh rate will cause some headaches.

@OmnitronVariant
I was explicitly talking about Switch 2 and Switch 2 Edition games.

@skywake That's funny! And yeah I'd be happy with a 720p screen on the Switch Lite 2. Funnily enough I actually brought a Switch Lite this week to tide me over until that (hopefully) happens as I really find the Switch 2 too big and heavy to take out and about. I sold my regular Switch 1 and tbh I didn't take that out much either, but the Lite is just perfect! Personally a handheld should be able to fit in your pocket.

And yeah, I know it can't play Switch 2 games but tbh when I'm out I prefer to play simpler Indie type games or 2D platformers, all of which are on Switch 1. And Lite is so great for playing the NSO games, especially GB/GBA which just feel wrong to play on a TV for me! Can't wait to play UFO 50 on it when I get it too.

Not scientific but this is my yardstick for what screen resolution is acceptable by size for a personal device i.e. portables, laptopa, monitors

480p -> Sub 5". Notably the Wii U had a 6.2" screen with compressed 480p. Which was a double whammy of not particularly good

720p -> Sub 11". Although I've always been a fan of 13" laptops which often have a touch more than this but are still serviceable. Once you go much beyond that though you're in for a bad time

1080p -> Sub 20". In the PC space 22" 1080p is basically a standard. I wouldn't really want 1440p at that size but I wouldn't blow up 1080p much bigger either

1440p -> Honestly, any screen that I would still classify as a reasonable size for "personal use" I would say 1440p is fine. Unless you're doing something that especially needs a lot of screen real-estate 4K is a TV for a room not a monitor

So yeah, Switch 2 lives close to that 720p/1080p boundary

I've got a 6" phone with a 1440p screen and it's not a particularly new or high end one. That's how high that you have to go if you want to push the limits of the human retina at a distance of around 20cm.

Rather, I'd think the main thing that's been making 720p the sweet spot for handheld gaming devices for the past decade has mostly been the rendering power of mobile GPUs. It's been enough of a struggle getting games up to a bare minimum at acceptable frame rates and levels of detail, and few have even tried to go beyond that.

What I suspect the thought process of Nintendo's hardware engineers was, was that they make a lot of games that aren't particularly processor intensive, and1080p handheld is going to be very much achievable for most of those, while everything else can be rendered sub-native and still look pretty good with DLSS. So, for once, they get to be ahead of the curve and make that push.

With that in mind, I'd think that they'd want to stick to 1080p for future models, even going down to a size of around 6", although it might be some time before they can source a cheap enough screen to make a Switch 2 Lite a viable proposition.

Switch 1 games are running at 720p on Switch 2 (unless they have some sort of upgrade pack) and performance mode like Cyberpunk 2077 is at 720p final resolution. By having a final resolution of 720p it is much easier for games to run with high frame rates.

We haven't really discussed it but later game engines are going to need a lot more resources both GPU and CPU resources and those games that are converted to Switch 2 may only work anyway if rendering at a lower resolution. I expect to see many Switch 2 games with a final resolution of 720p. To get 40fps out of Switch 2 for Cyberpunk it had to be 720p final resolution upscaled from 640x360p and surely for more ambitious later games this is going to be a requirement for just achieving 30fps.

So the 1080p portable resolution may get less and less used with later games. A huge amount of Switch 1 games never managed 720p resolution. Dynamic resolution scaling meant they spent more time below it like 540p or less.

On a smaller screen 1080p is even less important and if its a budget option anyway Nintendo will be looking for cost reductions in manufacturing. To drive a higher resolution like 1080p takes more power too so again battery life could be improved by reducing resolution and mean cost reductions in battery capacity.

We really don't know what Nintendo will do but if they want the Switch 2 lite to be perceived strongly as the budget option and inferior to their main model then obviously 720p would be a downgrade in spec but not really a downgrade in actual reality of playing the device I would say. Lets say the Switch 2 lite launched at 250 dollars, 220 pounds approx its going to need some significant cost savings.

I personally think its a strong possibility. We shall see though and of course it could be years away anyway. I feel the next Switch 2 will be a OLED model as they can launch that using the existing 10/8Nm fabrication process its just the matter of producing a suitable OLED screen with 120Hz and I personally think that will come before an improved fabrication process like 5Nm. I know the T239 chipset was designed many years ago and could well have been produced in reasonable numbers back then before they aborted the launch of the Switch 2 Pro so Nintendo could have had a lot of stock of 10/8Nm T239 chipsets that they had to pay for. So I guess its possible Nintendo are looking to improve fabrication of the T239 sooner this time around so I don't deny the possibility that launch Switch 2's are 10/8Nm but within a year we could see an improved low power T239 chipset but I would expect to see a OLED Switch 2 first using the existing fabrication process.

Lastly if the price of the Switch 2 does become a problem and Nintendo realises it is reducing their sales figures considerably and selling much less software because of it then a 720p Switch 2 surely could achieve a much better price point without sacrificing their margin. So again if Nintendo's reach with the Switch 2 struggles into markets that are much more price sensitive then that would be another reason to have a 720p model. I would also point out the Switch 2 is much more an online console than the Switch 1. You really have to connect to the internet with Switch 2 pretty much so a few small patches for Switch 2 games to limit them to 720p is no big deal and of course won't affect Switch 1 games anyway. In fact visually Switch 1 games will look better on a 720p screen without upgrade packs.

Just because older games don't run above 720p and ports of new games originally built for PS5 will struggle to reach 1080p on Switch 2, doesn't mean Nintendo should go back to 720p screens. The option for 1080p games in handheld mode should remain in place for first-party titles and less demanding games. Also, you're acting like 1080p screens cost a lot to make. The technology is ancient. They've been mainstream since the late 2000's.

I'm sorry, but this whole argument of reverting back to 720p screens in 2025 is incredibly silly to me.

That's straight out falsehood looking to make confirmation bias. GPU is the energy cost without that regardless what screen you have. You think a 1080P isn't valued in a gaming display then you should go ask ROG or other portable gaming device they shouldn't have the ability to have a 1080p screen.