I'd personally rather see an expanded Mario Maker with new game themes and level building options. Specifically Super Mario Land and slopes. And while they're at it why not add elements from other platformers. Why can't we have the barrels from Donkey Kong Country in a Mario game? IMO that would be far more interesting than Zelda or Metroid Maker.
I'm with you on this. There are so many obvious things they could add yet. Even being able to switch the character to Luigi or Peach (both with different handling and jump mechanics) would expand the game dramatically.
@JaxonH Maybe. It's going to be kind of hit or miss though. Latency is going to be pretty awful for most 4G connections. Upload speeds are often catastrophic. Of the two big US carriers, my experience with AT&T (when you can get signal that is, or signal better than 1.2down/0.4 up) is they seem to have NAT that blocks basically everything except standard protocols. Incoming P2P connections for gaming is effectively banned. Sprint can work, but with frequent disconnects. T-Mo can work and work well if you're in their territory, but it depends on which towers and which IP range you get on if you can get through the NAT with P2P games. I found I had to restart the hotspot a dozen times or so before it magically gave me an IP outside the double NATing. It's frustrating to get working but when it works it does work.
I'm STUNNED you were able to do it with Verizon, I'd have figured them to have the worst restrictions of the bunch. Then again Verizon's like $350+/mo for a 40GB plan.
I think it's workable/doable/possible for the truly dedicated that dont' mind getting it to work. I might pick up a new SIM for one of them around when Splatoon drops to see what I can do with it. But I don't see it as something "normal users" will be messing around with to get it to work. 4G just isn't ready for that as-is. And 5G is years away at best. Probably in time for Switch 3 if not for Switch 2.
That data use does add up if you're including patches and the like as well. I you your use wasn't intending that, but if you fire it up and want to play and the patch is waiting....you've got no choice!
It's a neat feature to have available for those in the know. OTOH Sprint is Softbank(.co.jp) and they're failing badly, I could see some kind of "SwitchSpot" deal or something with Nintendo being a thing in the future.
@NEStalgia
Um, it's only $60/mo for unlimited data actually, plus fees. I'm paying $40/mo for 5gb (plus line fee so it's $60 total on the bill).
All I can tell you is I played for a full hour and had no isses, no noticeable lag, nothing. In fact, it played better than at home using my normal wifi.
Psalms 22:16 (1,000 yrs before Christ)
They pierced My hands and feet
Isaiah 53:5 (700 yrs before Christ)
He was pierced for our transgressions
Zachariah 12:10 (500 yrs before Christ)
They will look on Me whom they pierced
@JaxonH Not sure how Verizon's plans work but usually "unlimited" means unlimited on the phone, very limited for hotspot. I just checked, looks like they're finally more competitive for phone (amazing) though after 10GB they do still throttle down to 3G speeds (dialup) for hotspot.
I was actually talking plans for actual hotspots which they're still grotesquely expensive...down to "only" $260/mo for a 40GB plan. +$20/mo for the device. So, yeah, $280/mo + taxes for a 40GB/mo hotspot plan. They're just absurdly priced.
For T-Mo's new "One" plans, hotspot phone tethering is 3G speeds ONLY. They really want you to buy the hotspots as separate items. For $5 more they have a similar "up to 10GB/mo 4G tethering."
It looks like data plans are expanding a bit which is good to see (not sure if I mentioned by I'm aiming to fully cord cut and go wireless only) so I always like seeing that. But there's still so many confusing elements to "normal" people not used to interpreting all the catches and gotchas in cell deals. And that's before dealing with the firewall/connectivity issues for games that are certain to pop up. FWIW, I don't think the carriers are explicitly blocking gaming, in fact they almost all list "online games" in their sell sheets....it's just that the network setup means it isn't actually possible in many cases
Verizon's now actually competitive in phones which stuns me. They're still about a decade behind the curve in data-only plans though. They should have adopted the Sinclair Oil logo.
And yeah, in terms of lag, it can depend, and WILL depend on your tower. And Splatoon's not always a great test, as it has predictive AI running your opponents so it always APPEARS to be smooth play (something competitive players ceaselessly complain about and lament its continued presence in 2), so you wouldn't see lag....you'd more or less feel it in "things didn't happen the way they should have happened" particularly in very competitive matches. The upload is most prone to latency. That said, I've done it myself in 1 and it was great....BUT I'm right under the tower. Great for gaming....probably not great for living past 50.
Does any one know the best portable charger for the Switch under 30 dollars? And also can you play Breath of the Wild using the surge controller like thing where you pop one joycon in to play it like a controller. Can you play the game doing that only using one joycon?
@NEStalgia
It actually doesn't throttle after 10gb unless it's during times they deem traffic to be too congested. Which, from reports I've read, is seldom. Even so, 10gb is a lot when 1 hr online gaming = 1/10 gb. That's basically 100 hrs of online gaming per month.
Idk about the predictive AI you speak of in Splatoon. It may well be an issue but, I'm just looking at my experience over hotspot vs my experience with home wifi, and the two were indistinguishable aside from getting a full 3 bars on hotspot and only 1 on home wifi.
It's not yet advanced to where everyone will have it, and have a perfect experience. But it has advanced enough that it's worth looking into by anyone and everyone who has a modern phone. Some ppl may not have the right provider, or the right plan, or the right phone... but many will. It's worth checking out for sure. I'm so glad I have Verizon now. I used to use Virgin Mobile prepaid, for years and years and years. Then I got a prepaid iPhone and heard Verizon had much better coverage, so I found a zip code for an area that only had Verizon service to enter when ordering, so that they'd connect me to Verizon over AT&T. It worked, and after 3 years with that phone, that's when I knew I wanted to stick with Verizon for my Galaxy S7 contract. Prices had come down, plans had improved, service was still great.
Psalms 22:16 (1,000 yrs before Christ)
They pierced My hands and feet
Isaiah 53:5 (700 yrs before Christ)
He was pierced for our transgressions
Zachariah 12:10 (500 yrs before Christ)
They will look on Me whom they pierced
@JamestheLol
Well, Switch uses Power Delivery to achieve 15V 2.6A (39 watts) through its official charger. Unfortunately, only RAVPower offers a PD portable battery. It's 15V 2A (30 watts) but that's still twice what you'd get using normal USB-C. But it's $75 and you don't get full power draw according to tests.
Until Anker releases their new, upcoming PowerCore+ with PD I'm using this one here. It's exactly $30 and has USB-C for both input and output.
While playing Zelda on full brightness, you'll still get a charge. A slow one, but it will charge.
Psalms 22:16 (1,000 yrs before Christ)
They pierced My hands and feet
Isaiah 53:5 (700 yrs before Christ)
He was pierced for our transgressions
Zachariah 12:10 (500 yrs before Christ)
They will look on Me whom they pierced
Anker AK-A1206012 10000mAh External Battery Power Bank or Lumsing 15000mAh Portable Charger or Aukey 12000mAh Portable Power Bank Charger External Battery Pack or Lumsing QC 3.0 13400 mAh or Anker PowerCore 10000.. Out of those 5 portable chargers which one is the best.
Also is there even a better one than the ones listed above. If you could find one that is under 30 and better than those, linnk it pls. I wanted two ports, but if one one than thats fine.
@JaxonH Throttling really depends on carrier/tower/location/density of customers etc. Not sure about Verizon specifically but throttling is real on congested towers. No, no, it's not "throttling" it's "network deprioritization" get your Orwellian terminology right Most carriers the real issue is they don't build out proper capacity/backhaul to meet customer demand in a given area, so it's generally that on a given tower it either constantly happens or never happens. On the towers that it happens always on, the same customers generally end up throttled to dialup or worse speeds. Knock wood, hasn't happened to me yet on any carrier!
I've tried them ALL. Virgin/Boost = Sprint and...yeah....their network is the worst of the only 4. Games work but bandwidth is questionable. That being said I've found AT&T isn't much better (and is in some cases worse) and they account for a good 40+ % of all phones. But it depends where you are. In the Northeast/Mid-Atlantic Sprint has passable coverage. Parts of the mid-west it's like they don't exist at all. Verizon has never been accused of having spotty PHONE coverage, but they keep their VERY limited data capacity and backhaul in check by charging ABSURD rates for data. Basically they have the most premium 800MHz spectrum meaning they need fewer towers to cover a very large area more solidly than anyone else. But it comes at the cost of having very limited bandwidth in the 800MHz spectrum, as a result, they can push less bits in their spectrum range than their competitors but can do it more reliably in more places. It's a great premium carrier, but generally speaking, you pay through the nose for the premium, simply because they had the cash to buy at the 800MHz FCC trough first. Glad to see on phone they're getting more competitive now. Maybe someday they'll actually get data competitive too.
For batteries did you look into the iMuto Taurus Pro yet? The 30,000MAh beast?
@NEStalgia
Ya I would never advocate buying a special mobile hotspot and paying those rates. That's for people out in the country who can't get internet. I'm strictly speaking by phone, because phone is convenient, and everyone has it on them, and people are gonna need it for matchmaking and voice chat anyways. And on phone Verizon is probably the best option there is for hotspot, generally speaking.
So, here's the thing with batteries. Switch, despite having USB-C, only has a 5V 1.5A profile (which actually does up to 2A). Which means without PD, 10W is the max (should be 15W using full 3A). And despite having a PD profile of 15W 2.6A (39W), apparently caps out at 15W undocked. So, PD allows 5W more than standard USB-C charging.
To that end, I'm questioning whether it's worth chasing a PD battery. My standard USB-C battery still charges while playing Zelda. If Switch didn't cap off at 15W, I could get 15V 2A battery for 30W and significantly improve charge times, but it does cap off. So PD only holds a 5W advantage over standard USB-C charging. Besides, right now RAVPower has one of the only PD batteries, and it's $75.
The thing about those big batteries is, it's hard to fit in a case with everything else. I also keep a USB-C charger, USB-C to USB-C cable, tripod for charging in tabletop, Bose earbuds, Samsung Galaxy Fast Charger and USB-A to micro-USB cable for hotspot, and a small 10,000mAh battery not to mention Switch + Joycons and games. And it's a super tight squeeze. Any bigger of a battery and some stuff would have to go. 10,000 mAh should give 2 full recharges on top of a fully charged Switch. At 3 hrs per charge that's 9 hrs. Not sure if I wanna sacrifice essentials I take with me just for more juice I'll likely never use, but if I did I'd wait for Anker's new PD PowerCore+ 26,800 mAh battery. Since the RAVPower has some issues. Not sure if Anker will get it right though. Thus far they've screwed the pooch on just about everything related to USB-C, having to pull products out of spec on several occasions. Reputable brand, but they just don't seem to understand USB-C all that well.
We'll see. For now, I like being able to fit all that stuff into one small case. Charge Switch from wall? Check. Charge Switch from battery while playing and still gain charge? Yup. Charge battery from wall? Indeed. Charge phone for mobile hotspot? Check. Charge phone from battery? That too. In public and need earbuds? Got it covered. Tabletop mode and needs to charge? Can do that too, from battery or wall. Even able to fit 20 ❤️ Wolf Link amiibo card in the case, which is incredible for scanning amiibo on the go.
Psalms 22:16 (1,000 yrs before Christ)
They pierced My hands and feet
Isaiah 53:5 (700 yrs before Christ)
He was pierced for our transgressions
Zachariah 12:10 (500 yrs before Christ)
They will look on Me whom they pierced
The mobile hotspots can be a great deal if you're traveling a lot and allow much bigger data blocks than phone tethering usually (and don't drain your phone battery so fast!) Still might go that route for total internet replacement (beats dealing with the cable company and Verizon's own wired line people that when it goes down it stays down for weeks, and they never, ever, EVER meet an appointment. Ever.) And it goes with you.
But yeah I'd agree Verizon's tethered hotspot seems to be the better tether deal at the moment which is stunning.
Well one thing about fast charging batteries is HEAT. Not just heat possibly reducing battery life, but in Switch's case, overloading the cooling solution. I'm assuming their reduced power profile is related to that.
Interesting about Anker, the cables I bought are their nice red heavy-duty USB-C cables. Hopefully they're good, though part of why I bought them is at least one reviewer mentioned using them with a Switch And another said they fit snug (arguably too snug) but that's a good thing - wiggle would wear down the contact pins faster than a firm connection if playing while connected.
Yeah those big power bricks are BIG. I actually bought the X6 Pro, but I haven't actually used it yet, so I was curious if you'd looked at those or not. On the up-side they've kind of set themselves up to market toward Switch owners, highlighting Switch along with iPad and S7 etc since before launch. No PD though (as far as I know....QC3 support, but no PD mention....but with their marketing not listing it doesn't mean no though either. I'd presume no.
Nice feeling device, but boy is it big and heavy. Replaces all other chargers and supports fast recharging itself though which is nice. Ships with 100% charge.....which actually is possibly not good for Li-Ion IIRC, but convenient It's barely smaller than Switch itself though. No idea how well it works yet.
The mobile hotspots can be a great deal if you're traveling a lot and allow much bigger data blocks than phone tethering usually (and don't drain your phone battery so fast!) Still might go that route for total internet replacement (beats dealing with the cable company and Verizon's own wired line people that when it goes down it stays down for weeks, and they never, ever, EVER meet an appointment. Ever.) And it goes with you.
Not really the case here in Australia. Looking at the prices as of today "data only" mobile plans are marginally cheaper than plans with a voice service attached. So that's a thing. But for a home service? Where quota exists at all with home plans you're getting somewhere between 20x and 100x more data per $ vs what you'd get with a mobile plan.
To be more specific, the best value data-only mobile plan I can find from the only provider here worth bothering with is $30/mo for 6GB/mo. Five seconds looking at home broadband plans here and the first one that comes up is $60/mo for 250GB/mo. That plan includes a home phone service. So yeah, maybe things are different here in the US but here the economics of it make dropping the fixed line service a bit of a dumb idea.
So, I've been doing alot of research and testing with my friend about charging, and we came to conclusion Switch caps off at 18W with PD and 10W with USB C, and 7.5W-10W with USB-A.
Well, my friend found a nice infographic which matches up perfectly with our analysis. Seems alot of other people are coming to the same conclusions.
I'm gonna post this here, but it can also be found in the USB-C portable battery reccomendations thread. This is such a a useful graphic and really puts things into terms most everyone can understand. I didn't make this, but it does corroborate what I've discovered recently with my friend and explains it perfectly.
Psalms 22:16 (1,000 yrs before Christ)
They pierced My hands and feet
Isaiah 53:5 (700 yrs before Christ)
He was pierced for our transgressions
Zachariah 12:10 (500 yrs before Christ)
They will look on Me whom they pierced
Really hoping there'll be some kind of breakout cable(s) available in future - the idea of buying a second dock for £50-£60 is a bit of a turn off - especially as it wouldn't be particularly 'travel friendly'...I suppose I could just buy one and have it kicking about in the boot of my car - but a Switch-TV cable set that'd work either by itself, or with a collapsible playstand perhaps (for ventilation/stability), would be a more elegant and portable travel solution... **fingers crossed**
Hey guys, just wondering if Nintendo life have their own discord channel. Seeing how the switch online service won't launch until much later, I was wondering if we had a chat group. Sorry if this is in the wrong forum, I thought it would best fit in this forum since this is switch stuff in general.
Nintendo Switch Friend Code: SW-2601-9990-4610
Super Mario Run Friend Code: 1391-4403-4742
Fire Emblem Heroes Friend Code: 1332698932
Twitter: @Eric258kip
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