Topic: Switch Dock - Defecting HDMI Port

Housesitting this week for a friend of mine. Upon arrival I connected my Nintendo Switch to his Samsung television. The TV is brand new and has all the latest gadgets, so I assume it's a fancy one (4K etc).

Problem I'm having is that it reconnects with the HDMI every second, resulting in a screen that turns on/off rapidly. Tried a different port in the TV and tried a different HDMI cable, all with the same effect. Unfortunately I don't have a second TV available to test whether it would work on a less fancy TV (since at my own place, I had no problems).

Anyone recognizes this problem? Is there a household solution or may I conclude (after testing on a second TV) that the HDMI-port in my Switch dock is defect and I'll need to repair/replace the dock? Maybe the TV is "too good" for the Switch in standard settings?

I'm really bummed out, since few months ago I also had to wait for Nintendo service to repair Joycon drift in both sides. I've rarely heard (even in other hardware) that HDMI ports are causing problems. Thanks in advance for reading and possible feedback!

I’m no technology expert, but I know who could probably help you. He’s the expert.
Oh, @WoomyNNYes? Now where did that fellow go...

@Bankaj You can try resetting the AC adapter. Disconnect all cables from the dock. Unplug both ends of the official Switch AC adapter for 30 seconds. For the official troubleshooting steps, below is the Ninetendo support page for it. If that doesn't solve it, the bottom of the page has a link to another support page for when the Switch won't power on wake up. It starts with resetting the AC adapter, but they do different step afterwards to test your switch.

https://en-americas-support.nintendo.com/app/answers/detail/a...

If none of these things solve it that might indicate hardware failure.

On a positive note, I've seen a bunch of posts here where the Switch won't display on a TV, but I believe they all were solved by resetting the AC adapter. (actually, one person found the switch didn't work in one of the TV's hdmi ports, but worked in the other. This was an odd scenario, but the Switch did work in the TV's other hdmi port.)

( or, believe it or not, I think there are some TV's that are not compatible with the Switch. It's extremely rare, but I think I've seen that mentioned in Nintendo Support.)

@WoomyNNYes Thanks a lot for your time to reply. Tested today on two other TV's and experienced no problems at all.

Found the fix - on the Nintendo Switch, I changed the settings of Output to TV to fixed 1080p (instead of automatic selection). Also changed the color range to 'limited'. Apparently this is important, because another combination of these two seem to cause the malfunction.

Tried all kinds of settings on the TV, but nothing worked. Managing the output device (Switch) was key, now problems are gone.

I'm allergic to this kind of troubles. We live in 2020, spend life savings on equipment and you have still have to figure this kind of stuff out yourself. Frustration level was high, so better get started on Witcher 3 - first playthrough. That'll sooth me down for sure

Thanks again!

@Bankaj WOW! That's amazing! That's great you don't need a repair. Glad you figured it out. And thanks a bunch for sharing the solution. That might help someone else in the future.

Did you figure out it was Switch's TV Settings output on your own by messing around?? Or See it mentioned somewhere?

@Apportal, did you see the OP's solution? That's a wild one, but great outcome.

In the past I hoped to use my laptop as a monitor for my Switch. Back then I learned about a difference in output and input for HDMI (Yeah I'm a tech-rookie for sure). Anyway, I understood that they are both output devices and not input. So once I scrolled through the settings on the Switch, I quickly understood I had some control to manage the output somehow. Then with a few tries, it seemed to solve my problem.

Don't give me too much credit though, invested some hours playing with settings and equipment. Precious time I won't get back... (/continues to mope around like a granny).