The Nintendo Switch 2 display has been bashed a few times already since the console's release earlier this month, but the latest analysis from Monitor Unboxed is perhaps even more damning. We already knew of the nearly non-existent HDR capabilities and of the Variable Refresh Rate issues, but Monitor Unboxed, which regularly reviews PC displays, has now measured the screen's response time, and the results are really disappointing.
While the channel couldn't perform testing with their usual tools for monitors, they manually conducted a series of 20 gray-to-gray transitions to measure the response time of the Nintendo Switch 2 display set to 60Hz (as there are no current games that support the maximum 120Hz). The test's average was 33 milliseconds, which makes the screen far slower than typical PC monitors that range between 6 and 20 milliseconds. What's even more surprising, though, is that the display is around 50% slower even than the original Nintendo Switch, which measured 21 milliseconds.
Monitor Unboxed postulates that one of the reasons behind this underwhelming measurement could be the lack of Overdrive technology, which is pretty much mandatory on most displays nowadays but would require higher voltage, which, in turn, would affect the device's overall battery life, a critical feature of a handheld console. This is especially important for the Nintendo Switch 2 since it already comes with a larger display (7.9 inches versus 6.2), a higher resolution (1080p versus 720p), and higher brightness (430 nits versus 310 nits) compared to the original Nintendo Switch, all of which impact the battery life.
Because the display's response time is approximately twice the 16.7 ms frame interval at 60 Hz, it cannot fully update before the next refresh. This results in persistent blur trails and poor motion clarity, as seen in the Blur Busters UFO test performed in the video. Furthermore, Monitor Unboxed reckons that the 120 Hz capability will not significantly improve motion since the panel cannot keep up with the faster refresh cycles anyway.
The only real solution to this issue will be an OLED Nintendo Switch 2 display, which will inevitably offer far superior response times (and, therefore, motion clarity), not to mention greatly superior contrast, which will also improve the console's mediocre HDR representation. Meanwhile, pretty much the only upside to the current LCD screen (other than the aforementioned improvements) compared to the original Switch is its far better wide color gamut support, which covers 98% of the DCI-P3 color space, up from the 79% of the previous console.
Despite all these shortcomings, the console is selling like hotcakes, proving that most of Nintendo's user base doesn't really care about such topics.
About the author: With over two decades of experience in gaming journalism, Alessio Palumbo has led the gaming vertical at Wccftech since August 2015. He started working at a young age for Italian websites like Everyeye.it, Gamestar.it, Nextgame.it, and Multiplayer.it before kickstarting the indie English-language publication Worlds Factory as its founder and Editor in Chief. In the last decade, he has coordinated the overall output of Wccftech's gaming section, managed PR relations, assigned reviews, produced daily news coverage, edited gaming content as needed, and delivered game reviews. Arguably, his trademark content is the long series of exclusive developer interviews that have been cited by Wikipedia and by the biggest news media and gaming publications. His passion for technology also makes him knowledgeable when it comes to gaming hardware and tech. His favorite genres include RPGs, MMORPGs, and action/adventure games.
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