The Problem with EVERY 3rd Party Nintendo Switch Dock
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 26 ก.ย. 2024
- You may remember hearing of aftermarket Switch docks damaging systems. That problem hasn't gone away, and neither have these dock manufacturers. Are any third party docks for the Nintendo Switch safe to use?
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I’m internet famous! And I want to confirm that chargenpro has not reached out to me in any way as of yet.
I used it in only the advertised way. And my first Switch was fried. I consider myself lucky as I did not have a lot of games or save progress in them and have since surpassed where I was in all except for Mario Kart 8 deluxe.
I’m never using a third party dock again. I’ll use a battery pack as those don’t seem to have the issue with bricking in anywhere near the rate of third party docks.
I’m in your boat too. Sounds like we had the same struggle with CharJen. I hope they can find the time to answer angry customers, else I’m afraid they won’t be in business much longer.
ItsameWario you also have a joke rushing over your head.
ItsameWario I mean I also have zero videos, zero posts, zero links, literally the only thing I use this account for is watching channels I’m subbed to and commenting or chatting if they stream. I’m surprised I have a sub at all and have no idea who that sub is nor what they subbed for since I produce no content.
I feel less bad for outing them knowing there's more people they did this to.
@@ItsameWario I think you're projecting
It's simple: Just cut the 1st party dock into the desired shape
But the main reason people would be buying 3rd party docks is because they are much cheaper then the 1st party dock
@@norp_1790 True, but at least you won't fry your switch
@@rysea9855 yeah but when you move from place to place a lot of can be annoying to take the dock with you and you don't have enough money to buy a 2nd first party one
@@norp_1790 How is it annoying? It isn't even that big
@@rysea9855 unplugging, packing up and moving stuff every 3 days can be abit of a pest
Every 3rd party dock is dumb. Obviously the Nintendo switch is talking Japanese.
right now all it can do is power and mouse and keyboard but not hdmi to tv... dock is too big to carry around...
i want to learn japanese so i can talk to my switch. this is how i think a conversation would go:
Me: Can i play a game?
Switch: What game do you want to play?
Me: Mario maker 2?
Switch: Oh ok sure.
Me: Can...Can i play online?
Switch: *_N O_*
@@theemptyone7739 damn that was actually funny, please
make youtube channel content so i can laugh more
mariyume been thinking about it actually 🤷♂️
More like Nintendo is dumb.
And naturally, Nintendo is leaving money on the table by either neglecting or refusing to release a portable dock.
i honestly think if nintendo made a "revised" dock that is meant to be portable and maybe had less USB ports or something, it would be one of their cash cows
no they're letting it happen they're making money on it when people rush back to the store to buy a new switch
I'm missing the point. If docking to play on a TV why wouldnt you plug the dock into the same thing as the tv?
You can re-shell it yourself, the actual dock is minuscule vs the amount of plastic it carries
Honestly, what's the point of a portable dock if the Switch has a built-in kickstand?
It boggles my mind that Nintendo uses one of the world's most widely-used ports, but with their own specific protocols that are incompatible with standard power supply circuitry. AT LEAST USE A CUSTOM PORT LIKE WITH THE 3DS!!!
It's actually quite usefull for when you need to charge the switch. It's not a problem for chargers, only docks.
@@psi9343 Ah ok, that makes sense
@@psi9343 It is also an issue with chargers for sure, ONLY use the switch charger.
@@reshadegaming6285
While it is a problem for chargers. I havent heard anybody using a PD charger frying their switches in mobile mode.
I would assume chargers are probably fine as long as you're not trying to play the game while charging, but who knows.
2017 - we hate the OEM switch dock, it scratches our screens!
2018 - don't use 3rd party switch docks, scratched screens are better than bricked consoles!
Invest in copious amounts of glass screen protectors!
And Silk/microfiber dock cozies!
Literally just get a cloth and lay it on the inside of the dock
Get a switch dock sleeve
Rip the front off the dock
I can't wait to drop out of the Vbus with Reggie
Brookes Eggleston - Character Design Forge and met you on the battlefield
I can't wait to drop Reggie out of the battle bus.
Now, thats all the time i got. I got to get back to playing animal crossing on my nintendo 3ds
Brookes Eggleston - Character Design Forge fortnite on 3ds confirmed to be coming 3 months from now
Where u droppin?
The Jumpgate dock from Skull and Co is safe though ;) just letting you know.
It's a two-sided problem.
Nintendo made 1 'mistake', not having a 9volt mode in their USB Type C charger.
Which is only unfortunate when you're using it to charge other things than your Switch.
The main reason for this problem was 3rd party docks not using an actual PD controller for the voltages.
If you use a proper PD controller, and not just a microprocessor acting like a PD controller, you're perfectly fine, no matter how many updates will come to the switch.
The cheap 3rd party docks not using a proper PD controller just send 9volts to a circuit in the Switch that is designed to only handle 5volts, and will fry at above 6volts.
WHen you use a PD controller in your dock (the manufacturer has to do that, but it's more expensive, which is why they mostly don't) this problem does not happen.
All docks that brick switches did not have a proper PD controller.
And that's the most up to date information we have know.
The Skull and Co guys figured this out by the way and are using a proper PD controller in their dock.
Hence theirs is safe to use.
The Amazon one, nobody seemed to have a problem with, also has a PD controller as far as I'm aware.
Beware of using power packs, since information on if they have a proper PD controller or not is limited.
I really hope people see this and get more and proper information on this issue.
@@SpaniardNL I agree, People like Bob have really muddied the waters on this topic. A lot of what's available online is conspiracy theories. Although it does seem like people have been catching on, the only person still making negative posts is Bob here, most of them are heavily conspiratorial.
This is stressing me out and I don’t even own a switch 😭
So in short, nintendo's still pulling proprietary bs
And 3rd parties are being stubborn idiots and not trying to work around that properly. Wonderful
Now I want to hack an Arduino in my dock, and let it monitor WHAT THE F*CK IS GOING ON!!!
the conectionwas priority by default its not a universal poert its a dock switch ONLY PORT idiot
vic twenty calm your tits
Well that escalated fast
vic twenty could you make that a bit easier to understand?
Your video title should read "Nintendo's problem with USB-C compliance" lol
What compliance? When USB-C standards are not mandated....
@@brosplit Standards don't need to be "mandatory" to be complied with. Standards exist, and the Switch is non-compliant, plain and simple.
@@PixelOverload duh, you clearly dont know what exactly is USB-C port. Educate yourself then chat me up.
Hint:
A device that implements USB-C does not necessarily implement USB 3.1, USB Power Delivery, or Alternate Mode, as USB-C devices are not mandated to have these standards.
Now go complaint about thunderbolt to intel, complaint to qcom for their approach of USB-C as well.
@@PixelOverload Another thing you need to consider is the Switch was in development for years before release. The current USB standards were only just recently established as the standard, even newer phones and tablets released as recently as mid-late 2017 did not meet these standards due to them being in development for so long, and not having enough time to make such huge hardware alterations so close to release. The Switch is no exception to this, as it was in development since 2013. If Nintendo really wanted to try and meet that USB standard, the Switch would probably just now be launching, and the Wii U would still be their primary platform.
Seems like unethical practice from Nintendo using proprietary USB C ports and cables. The U in USB stands for universal. FCC should be on Nintendo's case for this BS.
Europe won't be happy
They are to busy selling the internet to the highest bidder to be helpful
Last I checked that was mainly for phone charger issues and even then Apple cheated the system.
I'm pretty sure it's more incompetence than maliciousness due to the fact that even the official dock throws out bus errors.
that too. although maybe less incompetence than "we couldn't make this stuff work with the standard protocols so we made our own, which still isn't exactly perfect"
Informative, interesting, and sometimes even humorous. I give this video 5 bricked systems
I bought an empty shell of a small scale dock that had me use the official dock circuits. Cost me $10.
If the port does not follow the standard for the connection, then it shouldn't be shaped in such a way to allow a bad connection.
Or, just FOLLOW THE FUCKING STANDARD
Like ninty is the only one to break standers. me St things from 2014-early 2017 break PD standards.
The Standard would not give the system the power it need's to run full speed in docked mode. That is why they don't use it.
It is like blaming 3.0 type C cant power a thunderbolt port. #lmao
@@brosplit Isn't Thunderbolt a proprietary Intel standard? Doesn't sound much better.
I've got a switch and love it, but Nintendo doing shady stuff like none standard protocols and the insane fact you can't back up your save data on your MicroSD card is just not on. It's obviously to keep us in fear from using 3rd party stuff and to sign up to Nintendo paid online services for cloud saves when it's released.
I genuinely believe it's more fear of pirating that drives those decisions. I still don't like the decisions though.... At all
If Nintendo didn't have the best propagandists in the industry, they'd be much more reviled considering how much questionable stuff they've done. It annoys me to no end that so many of the kiddos think these corporate sharks are their best friends.
i think the reason their not universalie hated is because of because off their past.
There's a homebrew app for backing up save games. If your switch is susceptible to the TegraRCMSmash exploit, you can use it with no risk to your switch and back up your saves. Cloud saves are a no brainer though and obviously just how a console like this should work. In no way should save games be tied to a device that can potentially brick itself on any other USB C charger than the one it came with. Unfortunately, like most things Nintendo, you have to take it into your own hands to get the kind of functionality you deem necessary.
@@C4103 Thanks for the suggestion, my concern would be isn't Nintendo bricking switches that are homebrewed ? Do you still have access to the e-store or have to keep the console "offline" ? The more I think about the whole switch using usb type c wrongly the more it annoys me, why use a "universal" connector if you risk bricking your console simply using a non Nintendo charger. Surely there could be a lawsuit against them for this ?
Put simply: Nintendo Switch + 3rd party device = 💀 Nintendo Switch + first party device = Sometimes 💀
Exactly why I fear getting one.. its all ballshit
What do you mean sonetimes
So, don't plug the switch into other devices?
Nope
@@animoobunny2853 Just don't charge your switch
Now the BIG question is. Has this been fixed on the Switch 2019 modell?
Game Zerge no
My usb c cable was able to charge my switch
@@noyu8 mine too
@@noyu8 EVERY AC ADAPTER
@@soundwavesuperior6761 it's more laziness on their part not to replicate it. If they did the work like they should have these problems wouldn't have happened in the first place.
Nintendo: “All Nintendo Switch owners must use the official Nintendo switch dock”
Also Nintendo: *makes sure that all stores have barely any docks for sale*
You literally get an official dock when you BUY a Switch, what a dumb comment
My dock actually broke and i don’t know why. I bought two third party docks and one was a shell that never said it was a shell and the other didn’t work. I haven’t had a working dock in a year because I haven’t been able to find ANY real Nintendo docks
@Samori Galan if you buy one pre-owned and expect a dock when it doesn't state there is an official dock, that's on you.
For any one looking for a real switch dock or charger look on eBay Amazon or crages list. Are some places I know of
@@maryrust569 how do I find a real Nintendo switch dock
Wow this seems really complicated so basically short term don’t use third party chargers for your switch
But it explains WHY you shouldn't use third party chargers.
@@loic7867 I've heard that this actually prevents the bricking from other people too
You can use power banks with the Switch as long as there from a trustworthy company like RAVpower(I have the 20100 May version with QC 3.0), or Anker.
In theory the chargers that doesn't support USB-PD should be safe to use (the old 5V ones). Nintendo suggested to use a USB-C cable with a 56k resistor though.
I wouldn't trust any third party charger that claims to ouput 15V at all.
I use a first party dock but a third party usb c adapter and it works fine.
"That was Thursday night, it's now Monday..."
So, it's been possibly a business day...
You got a fair point.
If it's not instant, clearly they're lying.
I agree, it doesn't seem fair, especially about a touchy situation. I wish he'd have done an update on this, but this whole video was informative so I can forgive him.
Good recap dude - always tricky trying to figure out what kinda third party things to use with Nintendo goods!
Why not officially licensed things?
bigdawg3683
becouse they are more expensive.
yes, ionic0
is right, Nintendo has always taken huge commissions on games and licences...far more than others.
Probably none of them when it comes to the power supply. Don't go cheap on things that need to handle dangerous amounts of electricity.
@@Ionic0 your point? With that logic, you're probably one of those people that would rather buy stale, expired gas station food then go to a supermarket and buy fresh food. But I guess that's "more expensive" right?
Hey! This video is now 3 yrs old, and I was wondering if you have an update on this? Is this something that people still need to worry about? Does it make a difference with the OLED version compared to the normal switch? Etc. I really appreciate the testing you did, and was wondering if you'd recreate those tests with modern switches with up to date firmware and everything.
3:06 Correction: That's 200% more power than it asked for.
Calculating % change is difference/original.
(1.5 - 0.5) / 0.5 = 2 which after you multiply by 100 to get in % units is 200%.
It's drawing 300% of what it asked for, which is 200% more than what it asked for. The keyword is more.
Cough cough nobody cares... Everyone can do simple math we don't need a smartass 12 year-old to explain it
You'd be surprised how many don't get the difference.
Glad to know that I'm young online though :)
ZeikJT but really, we didn’t ask for it
Sorry Mr. Jensen!
True
Why am I even watching this
I don't have a Switch
*EDIT: Wow thanks for the likes guys*
You don't have a Switch.... yet! 👍😉
Too bad that this video had whole misinformation...
@@nowonmetube
Too bad you didn't link a "correction."
Get a switch
@@blazeknight4120 watch your mouth big man
Thank you, I was on the fence about getting a 3rd party dock but you helped me jump off the fence and walk away.
Nintendo's hardware manufacturing is the equivalent of my own programming;
"Bit of fluff here, and a bit of fluff there... ANNNNND it works!
... ... ... ...
"Why does it work? WHY DO YOU WORK!?"
I feel like the title "The Problem with EVERY 3rd Party Nintendo Switch Dock" is kinda wrong...
Instead, it should be named something like "The Problem with the Nintendo Switch" or something...
The problem isn't with "EVERY 3rd Party Nintendo Switch Dock", the problem is that the Nintendo Switch went hipster and put some pseudo-DRM on it's charging.
It's not their problem. It works well for them.
Bernie Bernie right. It’s our problem, because they make us buy their $90 bullshit if ours break, while they make money money money from us. Not to mention that switch online doesn’t let us upload all our data to the cloud, it’s pretty fucked up
@@soundwavesuperior6761 they're not asking for a free dock, it's just ridiculous how much it costs when the majority of the thing is molded plastic
But the companies that will create the docks don't care about the Switch they just want to make a profit. The email at 10:29 speaks volumes. They claimed it was all falsified and that people stopped talking but when someone got direct communication to them they were the ones that stopped talking. It doesn't matter if Nintendo intentionally or unintentionally created some kind of DRM these 3rd party companies are still willing to destroy your device for themselves. The problem with every 3rd party dock is that there is a flaw in the switch and they don't care.
@@SirNarax While a lot of 3rd parties undeniably think like that, there are also some that don't.
I have been using a dock called the "Jumpgate" (or something like that) by a company called "Skull&Co.".
They have put a lot of effort into making sure the thing works and doesn't fry your Switch.
While also adding some extra nifty stuff for your phone/laptop (yes, you can use the "brains" of the dock for your other devices!).
Sidenote: I'm not affiliated with them, I just love the product :)
Imo, this Jumpgate is what the original dock should imo have been.
This is just Nintendo being Nintendo with all it's ignoring industry standards and practices. How they did voice chat just shows how horribly out of touch they are.
Those industry standards came into effect just a few years ago. By then Nintendo had already put in a lot of work into the Switch
Fuck nintendo
You mean the Nintendo Switch app? I haven't heard any news about it since they released it.
@@endre4342 no
10:20 Liking that confidentiality notice you broke, Respect though.
See, this one of the downsides of using a 'standard' connector type.
Nobody ever had the problem of mistakenly thinking the video output on a SNES or N64 followed some 'standard' protocol, because it didn't, and the connector was non-standard as well.
Meanwhile, at the time Sega had a 'standard' Mini-DIN connector. Great, right? Not even slightly! You see, the proprietary connector made it clear that the connection followed a proprietary standard - so at the very least you had to figure out what that was before you tried anything.
The Mini-DIN connector is a standard part, but the protocol used by the Sega consoles wasn't even standardised between revisions of the same console!
Frankly, while proprietary protocols and connectors sort of suck, it's much better to have a proprietary protocol over a proprietary connector, than to have a proprietary protocol over a 'standard' connector.
You can't make mistakes like this if the connector is also proprietary.
Either follow an official standard and it's associated connector, or don't. But don't do this weird half-way crap. It's the worst of both worlds, for sure.
First, I had an original Nintendo Switch dock that had the flashing LED of Death, then quit completely.
I bought an Ikedon Switch dock I bought off of Amazon. I have had it for about 2 weeks with no issues. It does not come with a power supply, so I use my regular power supply that came with my Switch. No issues so far.
Why is charging a switch so jank
Because Nintendo wants $$$$
Benji The Rabbit
Yeah it sucks
I sent an email to Anker regarding their PowerCore 13400 Nintendo Switch Edition recently. I was told that the Nintendo Switch Edition and the regular 13400 is not the same.
The standard 13400 is not powerful enough to charge the switch and they recommended me to get the PowerCore Speed 20000 or the PowerCore+ 26800 PD. I’ve yet to purchase any so I can’t confirm if any of them are good for the Switch.
This comment needs more publicity. An actual reponse from Anker(after developing their "Nintendo battery) still recommending their other batteries?? nice!
Lycus ‘ I have been using the Anker PowerCore+ 20100mAh USB-C for a while now (since December 2017) It can deliver enough power to charge while playing the most demanding switch games (Doom, Zelda, Skyrim). All I can say is that nothing has exploded yet. And It has saved me from long boring flights and train rides so often now 🤙 i can only recommend.
Yeah I think the one I got is the 20100 Powercore+ and it works great.
I have used the same one with my Switch and it dose the job good. When playing game's it charges kind of slow when playing but it dose charge the system up.
I have that giant 26800+ and confirm it works great -- in portable mode. But really, if you're using a battery, why would you need it to work with a dock? You'd be plugging into a TV and likely right by another power outlet...
They're finally using usb c, they said
They're being more open with fans, they said
They've changed for the better, they said
Meanwhile the same old crap keeps spewing from Nintendo.
this is nintendo
step 1
we do it our way
eg. cartriges with the n64, chargers u can buy from them only
step 2
we do it their way but with a bit of nintendo
eg. mini discs with gamecube, usb c but only our chargers work
step 3
we do it the correct way
eg. discs with the wii, ???
they will probably get it with the chargers with their next console
@@waifu_png_pl6854
Supposedly, the Wii discs read backwards. Even if they don't, they're still proprietary and can only be read by the Wii console and two DVD-ROM drives.
The Wii does indeed read discs backwards (or, more specifically, it spins them backwards). With the right firmware and/or hardware, plenty of modern optical drives can read Wii discs, but it's basically another Nintendo spin on an existing technology... and also somewhat necessitated since the Wii can play GameCube games which also spun backwards.
@@GareWorks
What firmware? I know that there is a VERY short list of drives that can read Wii discs but now that you say plenty, I'm intrigued.
But then they used cartridges for the DS, 3DS and Switch, so that's not really evidence of a trend.
At this point even if Nintendo updates the firmware I won't use a 3rd party dock because of how blatantly ignorant those companies have shown themselves to be about the technology.
As far as I'm concerned their response to this whole issue is callous and a sign of poor customer service.
Collymotion Nintendo’s even worse for purposefully bricking switches that don’t use their dock specifically.
I see what you're saying but I don't think it's that malicious. The Switch only bricks because the 3rd party docks are frying a specific chip. To be fair, that chip is completely flawed and that's on Nintendo, but I imagine it was a crappy classic-Nintendo mistake more than a calculated move. Nintendo needs to fix that overall.
Either way, my problem is that the 3rd party companies are outright lying to customers saying that their dock still works fine after the update or they just use any old USB-C hub and re-purpose it into a Switch dock, completely ignoring the known specifications of the Switch. Nintendo's proprietary shenanigans are one thing, but the other companies are being very shady about this. Just my personal take on it all.
My switch actually fried on the first party dock. That’s unacceptable.
Same here. So I call that "using third party dock fries your switch blah blah blah " bullshit.
I actually don't use my switch much, one night I put it in sleep mode and dock it on the official dock, next day it feel so hot and never turn on again. Had to pay for someone to change the chip inside , bullshit Nintendo quality.
Personally I feel these 3rd party companies don't have bad intentions, they just wanted to provide alternatives and make a good product but it just failed due to nintendo using a universal port but making it only work with their own dock. I blame the bricking problem mostly on nintendo. 3rd party companies should be blamed to a certain extent maybe if they did more testing or research.
They wanted to provide *cheaper* alternatives. You always run the risk of cheaper alternatives being inferior to the original in any situation, this is just a particularly complicated and potentially damaging case of it.
But companies tends to OVERCHARGE for their products too, without any good reason.
Causing cheaper alternatives to be. Reasonable.
So there's that.
Honestly I can't help but wonder how much of this was intentional on Nintendo and if they just had a kinda fucked it all up partially on accident with the 5.0 update. I wonder if the next big one may fix it
the anti 3rd partys bad intentions are 100% real and have been a curse since 1980s THERES BOOK WRITEN ABOUT THIS the industry hates louths and fears nintendo THAT IS A FACT its summed up in statments made in america over the ages te most famous one being the only thing i fear is NINTENDO steve jobs
ayari and congress took nintendo to supreme court asking the courts to give atari ALL OF NINTENDO PROFITS AS THE INDUSTY IMPLODED AND NES AND GAMEBOY TOOK OVER IT HAS BEEN THE EXACT SAME THING THRU THE AGES tey even called wii racist and the name inpliyed ww2 thats how far the statmenrts go its THAT RETARDED nintendo are litterally feared as they desimate everyone else in qoality and profits
vic twenty
Dude what the fuck; get your tin foil ass hat off of yourself and go back to elementary school. You can't communicate to save a life. You're just spouting garbage.
I heard about the bricking and instantly said nope to third party docks can't lose my data or my switch i love the thing too much
I guess that projector is gonna lose all its funding. shame its a cool idea but i bet it's not safe either
I have had no issue with chargers in portable mode but I’m still too scared to try a 3rd party dock
I’ve used my iPad Pro Charger with my Switch and I’ve had no issues.
If it's the official iPad Pro Charger then I'm not surprised. Probably way better quality than the 3rd party chargers that Bob is talking about.
macbook pro works fine too
me too, i haven't had any problems but is it possible that it could cause any?
Its not about charging your switch w usb c but getting a second affordable dock
4:10 They misspelled Nintendo
i snapped when he just finished reading the entire email throughout the video and saw that confidentiality notice at the bottom. its just so damn hilarious. lol.
"For power consumption the switch does not abide by-"
My brain: The dude abides.
The insignia bestbuy dock works great
Just bought a second one so I can dock to either my tv or pc monitor and got rid of the official Nintendo dock
Hows it still holding up mines coming in tomorrow
@@calilife8803 No problems with mine. I've had it a few years.
Alyx Roberts thanks got mine yesterday and it works great
Do you use an official charger
What I've been looking around for is an easier solution;
On many sites, there's dock 'shells' for sale, literally just the plastic casing. All you have to do is disassemble the original dock, and move everything over into the other dock, and there are no other issues. This at least evades the 'third party' problem, as the only third-party thing about it, in this case, is the plastic shell. The chip, plug and all are still all Nintendo.
I'm sorry to all who had their switches bricked, even if they used the original dock. I'm just showing an alternative solution to have a better dock.
Until someone does the testing, I won't trust 3rd party docks, but I want to see actual testing be done. Yes, you can say that Nintendo's dock is proprietary and all but that doesn't mean it's the only way to get the dock working without overcharging.
Check out the link in the description for Nathan K's rundown. He ran the tests.
I've been using the *Qualcom Quickcharge 4.0* from my *Razer Phone* to charge the switch on the go lately as it is the only other usb-c charger I have besides the one on my switch dock.
But that was NOT using dock mode and it DID give enough power to charge the switch while still playing... no issues there (yet?).
As for smaller dock alternative...
I'm going with an "original dock" ripped out of the big plastic case and installed in a smaller one and original charger. So the dock technically is an original one...
I didn't expect anything else. Which game are you playing though? I want to see you play Breath of the Wild, with WiFi on, Joy-Cons connected, screen brightness full. In the Kokiri Forest. Does it still charge there? 😄
@@nowonmetube lmao
Never charging my Switch again
Damn! Thank you for this. I've ordered a portable dock online and you probably just saved my new switch (that hasn't even been delivered yet).
For info, emailing a company on a Thursday evening and expecting a response by Monday (1 business day...) is unreasonable. Most businesses will advise a minimum of 5 working days to respond to queries by email, if not longer.
Also, seeing a lot of hate for the third parties but this is ultimately being caused by Nintendo's anti consumer behaviors...
Seriously, why use USB C (UNIVERSAL serial bus) at all if you aren't intending on abiding by the standard protocols? They are just inviting trouble, and this comes across as nothing short of a cash grab (I.e. Forcing people to purchase their £70 USB hub...)
Gererally a good informative video though, thanks.
even if the problem is primarily due to nintendo's choices, being a 3rd party that releases a product which isn't 100% tested to not break your $300 switch, is irresponsible.
all the corps know by now, "3rd party devices can brick the switch", its on them to make sure it works.
USB type C is a connector type, just like USB type A, USB type B, USB mini type A, etc.
It has nothing to do with the protocols being spoken over the cable, other than the fact that it it physically capable (sufficient wires) of being used to support the USB 3.1 family of protocols.
@@Vessekx Imagine if Apple, for example, made an iPhone that bricked if you plugged the charging cable into an Android wall adapter. They may not have to follow protocol standards, but making a device that bricks itself when plugged into something that does follow standards is just not okay.
Felix Yancey, as others have pointed out, the protocol standards in question did not yet *exist* when the Switch was being designed.
But, as I pointed out originally, the *connector* is not the protocol.
Imagine if an Android phone was released with a quick-charging protocol that would damage the phone if used with another android phone’s quick charger. (Actually, you don’t have to imagine it. It actually happened, because, again, the standard protocol didn’t exist yet when that phone was developed.)
Let’s simplify this for a moment.
You remember the common ‘barrel plug’ power connectors? The size of the plug told you one thing. Will it fit the receptacle on the device I want to plug it into? If you were really familiar with electronics it might also tell you the *maximum* voltage and amperage appropriate for said connector, but it told you *nothing* about whether or not the charger at the end of the cable was usable for the device you had.
You also had to pay attention to the voltage, the amperage, and even more importantly whether the center pin of the barrel plug was positive or negative. Get that one wrong, and you’d permanently fry your device.
The simple way to deal with that was to buy a charger specifically for the device you wanted to power.
Nintendo has *never* claimed that the Switch supports the USB PD protocol, and has *always* said not to use unlicensed chargers, specifically *because* doing so can cause issues ranging from simply not charging, to damaging the power management electronics on the Switch.
If you choose to ignore those warnings, and burn out your Switch, that’s your fault, not Nintendo’s.
Do I hope Nintendo manages to make the Swotch play nice with USB PD compatible chargers? Sure.
Will I insist on pretending that it already does, when we know it doesn’t, and then blame Nintendo for not doing something they have never said it does? No. That would be stupid.
Result of this mess: just bought myself a dock CASE and "DIY"-ed the insides of an original Nintendo dock into it... also using only the original power brick with that
Without a dock I've been using a Razer Quickcharge 4.0 charger (came with my Razer phone 2) and not having any issues with that, even when charging AND gaming at the same time
(probably because the undocked switch doesn't draw that much power)
So I can buy the Wall Charger made by Nintendo?
yes
The 29.99 AC Adapter made by Nintendo is the one you get if you want to charge your switch safely
From the sounds of it any charger should be safe to use as long as you don't charge it while playing docked
Nirual86 don’t risk it. Just buy Nintendo. I just bought usb c cables for $10. Not going to use it at all. I wanted it bad to charge in car but not worth it. Going to have to sacrifice to keep switch safe
Vince now we have no choice but to pay 30 dollars when I could have used the car charger that came with my 20 dollar Nintendo switch carrying case with a car charger to wall outlet converter which will ruin my switch! The stupid adapter just came in and I can’t use it for what I intended for anymore!!!!!
For what it's worth, I backed the Skull&Co dock on the Kickstarter and have used it every single day since the moment it arrived on my doorstep without a single issue. It's nicer to look at, can be used as a stand and keeps the Switch cooler too, bonus that it's so compact that it fits in the Switch carry case I have when travelling.
I've actually been such a fan of it that I bought two more of these docks recently for my partner and a friend and they've had no issues either. Honestly I highly recommend it as a product.
I have a 3rd party dock, and I haven't had any problems with it at all so far and it's been around 6 months since I've had it, and I usually keep my Switch docked. The only reason I'm using a 3rd party dock is because my original one stopped working randomly only after about 3 months of having it. Just like the Switch Joycons the docks are horrible. Just goes to show you that Nintendo doesn't have a single problem for making you pay around 70 bucks for a hunk of plastic that's just extremely poorly made. The Switch is great, the accessories and the prices for the accessories are cash grabs. Nintendo kinda compares to what Apple does.
You have 2 options: 1) wait til Nintendo patches the issue or 2) wait for Nintendo Switch Online so your saves are backed up and you can use ALL the accessories with reckless abandon, knowing Nintendo will repair it for free if bricked
Nintendo is not repairing shit. There's only 1 year warranty, and I got my Switch since launch.
@@nowonmetube Wrong, they are repairing all Switch units with this issue for free regardless of warranty. I had a launch unit that bricked in April and it was repaired free of charge.
Probably depends on whether hardware components need replacing or not. A brick can be fixed for free because it's just resetting the firmware.
@@The_McRib If a chip is overloaded from 3x the voltage it might become a hardware issue.
I had my Switch bricked by the Nyko dock last October. I figured it was the wall charger, so I used the dock with the Nintendo charger with the dock and it bricked again on the 5.0.0 update. Lost all data both times. I have the Skull&Co dock pledged on kickstarter and will try that, mostly because cloud saves will be a thing then. Am I crazy? Probably.
You should have never used anything but the Nintendo dock that it comes with. Need another dock then but another Nintendo one, can't go cheap you get what you pay for.
you may be crazy but for everyone else i think we should thank you for testing it haha
There's empty shell docks where you can install your ordinal dock circuit so that's the safest way to go if you wanna have a small dock, that's what I did
mrjspeed be our Guinea pig and report back what u find out
still use my nyko dock since it came out day one (when i did the 5.0 update it was using the nintendo dock) and my switch has not bricked. But i also make sure to do all my updates on the nintendo dock as well.
So are you gonna make an update video on this issue? I'm still worried about it.
I got a QGeeM usb-c hub off Amazon, it charges my switch via the official switch charger plugged to the power slot, hdmi to the elgato/TV, USB ethernet adapter connected to it as well. Has SD and MicroSD slots too for phone/computer use, and its USB 3.0. Was like 20, maybe 30 bucks, works great, well worth it. I use it on my PowerA Zelda Stand, much smaller profile than that goddamn brick of a dock that Tendo decided on...
One thing to keep in mind is that the negative reviews on third-party docks could be issued by the 10 of Representatives as a way to defame them so that all the money stays in Nintendo's house
So my switched actually got bricked on Nintendo's own dock after said update when I tried shutting off the switch using my TV (through the connected HDMI )
Watching this video a year later, has anything changed in that regard? Has Nintendo released said firmware update fixing that issue since?
I'm really happy with the original dock (I have my screen protector of course)
Yeah I put my tempered glass protector on before I even turned the thing on because of all the articles claiming the screen gets scratched easy
@@supersonicultra2 same
My dock worked the day I bought the console, after that it just didn't. I checked every single thing thrice (HDMI and charger work fine with any other dock). Thanks Nintendo, for using an oversized chunk of plastic shit that scratches your screen with indecipherable Protocols, and selling replacements for 80 quid. Whoever thought that that is consumer ready should be fired.
The dock scratching the screen is fear-mongering, it only happen to a very small group of people (the same is true for the warping) just because you had a problem with your product does not mean that there is a problem with *the* product. There will be defects in any product, contact Nintendo and request a replacement.
I was about to get 20 Switchblade Hubs on Indiegogo, but I saw a comment there about bricking, then got here. Thanks for such vital information! You've saved the lives of hundreds of Switches
Well, the 15 volt is only required when switch is in docked mode. Only 5volt 1.4 amps are required for direct charging so yes, every 10 watt adapter is safe with only one voltage requirement. While chargers with multiple volt output are not safe has they can output wrong voltage. BTW more amps is not dangerous, more voltage is.
Why in god's name the switch comes with a perfectly servicable dock.
But no it dosent it's too big and can damage your screen. But I would say if your using a official charger your 99% safe
@Temmy gaming.i hear some indeed scratch up your'e switch mine doesn't.
@@klaassiersma4892 open scratch my switch but I know others have been scratched
I have the fastsnail dock since it released and I've been fine.
8:25 you act like you are reading the mail on your phone but this is the desktop version of Gmail lol
He probably was reading it on his phone but he put up a screenshot from his computer during editing so you could follow along.
Isaac Smith exactly
Maybe it isn't a flaw in their programming for the switch dock / switch console but a unique way of controlling 3rd party retailers from making clones of their charging cables and docks while looking like they are supporting new types of charging ports but in actuality they are just using their own proprietary charging.
Nintendo is that one company who hates 3rd party docks, controllers, or even hacking
I'm using a Microsoft usb c charget.
Seems to work fine and from what I've heard it's a pci-e power one.
It's also capable of 3A
i am using the charger from the microsoft display dock (the thing that you plug on the lumia 950xl)
Well usually it takes a while for switch to die, some people says they use third party stuff for 1 year until suddenly switch doesn't work anymore.
Are battery packs like the Nyko Power Pak safe?
So far I haven't had any issues with it... but your video makes me nervous.
I didn’t know that third party chargers also caused problems. I’m never using mine again.
I have used my switch with regular phone charges and have been fine though I don't know about ones designed to handle the high voltage of the switch
It's not a widely reported issue. Bob mentioned that using a third-party charger with a dock may cause an issue, but you shouldn't be using third-party docks right now anyway. The Switch is pretty resilient for charging in portable mode.
I'll be straight up.... I bought a Blackweb 10,000 mAh battery pack from Walmart. 2 usb ports... one at 5v 1a, the other outputs 5v 2.4 amps. The switch uses 2.6 amps I believe.... I've had no problems in the last 10 months to this day. It charges while I play, game depending. However this setup (game depending i.e. botw) wont charge but will parallel discharge along side the switch still increasing playtime while having less drain. Works for me. I get about 4.5-6 hours on botw this way. Portable and tabletop. The battery was like 25$
The Insignia Dock from Best Buy is 100% safe to use.
@@aerissai8341 yes
Nintendo will never fix this. This forces people to buy their official dock instead of a 3rd party one
but their dock comes with the console
@@warriorseamonkey1693 No they sell separate Docks
this guy could go as John Wick for Halloween
More like The Plague from Hackers
I should stop using my MacBook Charger then.
anil2 yeah 3rd party chargers are fine, it’s only docks.
@@SameerHameedy Uhhh... no. He states this in the video: If you ABSOLUTELY HAVE TO use a third party charger, only use it without a dock, but also switched off. If I got all that information correctly, the bricking is caused by the Switch having problems negotiating the power it is drawing with the power supply (and when docked with the dock). This could still happen with a third party charger while you are playing; If the Switch needs more clock speed because you're playing Smash or Mario Kart it could need more power and thus draw too much from a third party supply which would fry the chip that does those (faulty) negotiations.
James Hall he said that but there haven’t been any cases of it being the charger that I’ve heard of. Every situation I’ve heard of was cuz of the dock supplying power incorrectly.
I've been playing on my switch for over a year and a half now and I've used many different brands of USB-C cables combined with many different USB wall hubs/computer/car hubs and they all work well. But I've had various different charging speed on the cable/USB hub combos. But for the most part none of them have done anything bad to my Switch.
@@jameshall36 The weird power requests only happen because when docked into an HDMI connected dock, the Switch knows that it is displaying visuals to a larger monitor and therefore can ask for more power.
Addition, it appears that the problem exists due to chargers that support fast charge, those chargers can be asked to be put into fast charge mode and they then supply 9V instead of 5V, supplying the switch with 9V will fry it. Unfortunately the switches implementation of the USB C protocol is non standard and many fast chargers may miss intemperate the data from the switch and they switch (no pun intended) to fast charge mode, supplying 9V and killing the switch.
As a Senior Software engineer with ECE background I confirm it does in fact use magic. Make sure to not let the magic smoke out of your electronics or they won't work.
I bought a Mini Docking Station on eBay for $5.99. Then I opened the original Nintendo Dock and took the chip and transferred to the new Mini Docking Station. Now I have a portable Dock, smaller than my hand. But I have a question. It’s safe to charge the Nintendo Switch using only the Original Nintendo USB-C cable without the dock? I tend to do this cause I’m always using my Switch on the go.
AFAIK it's just docks that cause bricking. In portable mode you can charge even using a random phone charger.
Thats a relief
for the mini dock assuming all hardware is the same it should be fine
@MrRibbotron But in the video he says not to charge if you're playing a game. Is this true in most cases? I'm trying to find more information.
If your transfering the chip and guts from your original dock into the smaller dock, then you do not have to worry about it bricking your device. As it is the original hardware that came with it.
Thanks Bob, very informative. I'll be plugging my Anker battery into my dock from now on!
:O
plz no stahp
I personally use a third-party dock, but not for travel. No, its because I dont trust Nintendo's official dock. Why? It's design prevents passive dissipation on the back where the heat sink is. Although the switch has fans, they actually aren't strong enough to remove all of the heat if you play for hours on end. As a result, there have been numerous reports with photographs of partially melted warped switch units. I know myself, I know that I would play high-end games long enough to cause the same problem, so I'm not going to risk it. Of course, I also know that Nintendo is weird with their power supplies and adapters, so I use the official Nintendo power adapter and the official HDMI cable that came with the switch unit.
Another reported issue is scratching the screen, but that's what we have screen protectors for.
The dock that I'm using wasn't mentioned in any of the reviews here, but it has a third USB port that's USB 3.0. I have a powered USB 3.0 Hub plugged into it and into that I have a GameCube adapter and to USB adapters for using a PS4 controller and all six controllers work just fine at the same time while leaving to USB ports still open. And of course, since the second USB cable for the GameCube adapter is sore extra power draw, and that's plugged into the Hub which has his own power supply, that's less power drawn from the switch.
I have no plans of ever using the official Nintendo switch dock. I'm considering taking mine apart to see if I can solve Nintendo issues by removing all the bulk that's not doing anything, then I might use it, but in the meantime it's just too risky for me.
I've never encountered a single error with the dock I'm using, but it doesn't surprise me that the Nyoko dock bricked consoles. The last time I used any of their products it was plugged into An Xbox 360, it was advertised as a means of increasing cooling, but it was poorly designed trash because it just drew its power from the console which increased heat and its fans were slower than the console's own fans. I literally had the red ring of death within 5 minutes of using it, and then spent more money on repairs than the console itself cost to begin with. A better question is if any of their products for any console has ever failed to brick a console. just because their products are trash doesnt mean all third-party products are trash so of course other companies are throwing them under the bus.
Elliander Eldridge what dock do you have?
I bought the "StarPlayer Docking Station". I actually went to buy a second one for my 2nd Switch I am buying, but it's unavailable on Amazon so decided to buy the "J&TOP Portable Charge TV Dock" because the design and features are literally identical. Interestingly, on the same page as the J&TOP dock there is a DIY dock which is really just a plastic case for you to buy the circuit board for an official Switch dock into, so I will probably buy two of those and test it out. Since all the functional hardware on that is official from Nintendo there's no way it can cause any of the issues described here.
Here's a link to what I was talking about: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B072V9ZBSK/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&th=1
(the one I already bought and tested was not the DIY style though)
I bought a dock extension cable so I can just plug it into the official dock without needing to take my case off and it fixes the heat dissipation issue, too.
I don't think Nintendo CAN update their power delivery protocol. You can change how the Switch itself asks for power, but you can't really change how the power brick interprets your request. Unless the Switch can tell exactly when it is connected to an original dock and charger, if you change the language of the Switch's PD protocol, they will become incompatible with the dock and charger that came with the Switch.
Me remembering I have done everything you said not to do with the dock, but my switch is some how still functional after a few years
Love that Simpson's reference
Pelican Player hahahahaha same here good old homer and his crazyness
I'm so glad to see this. I just got my switch a week ago.
Congrats on 1 year🥳
this is why i only use confirmed licensed Nintendo products the risk isn't worth the lower price
ikr
Almost bought one too...Great video and thanks for the save
I have only heard of the Nyko dock doing this. It's always the Nyko dock. My Best Buy Insignia one has been working like a charm and I use it all the time.
To add to this many bricking reviews on other Docks besides Nyko seems to be US exclusive, which is strange. Willing to bet that some of the reviews i.e. Jumpgate and Genki Covert Dock might in fact be slanderous reviews.
3:58
Lower the price 30 cents please
I agree
The CharJenPro did my Switch in. Within minutes of updating to 5.0.0 my Switch was toast. Any outreach to CharJen did not see any answers. Mine was returned to Amazon and off I went to Nintendo’s OEM dock and charger. Lesson learned!
Lucky while being unlucky.
Great video Wulff and a well done comprehensive summary of this whole mess.
Nintendo has a lot to answer for with their proprietary crap. I love the Switch but this dock business is ridiculous. The Nintendo dock is a POS but sadly it is the only choice we have if we don't want to brick our Switches. What I have done is transplant the insides of my Nintendo dock into a BASSTOP portable dock case so at least I am still able to safely use the Switch docked without being forced to use the horrible original dock case.
I want to point out 2 things: You can use the Nintendo dock with an extension USB-C cable bridging the Switch to the dock and it can be a workable solution for some people. I came up with it to prevent the dock from scratching the screen, but now use it so I just have a small cable coming out from behind my TV. This makes it easier to reach without digging behind the entertainment center to fish out my Switch from the dock. The second point I want to mention is that I have been using the Best Buy Insignia dock with no problems and being completely unaware of any issues. I've been using it for almost two years.
I just saw this video in January of 2020 a year and 5 months later and best buy still has that dock for sale. In fact it's gone up to 49.99 lol
So the only solution would be to butcher an official dock! Expensive solution but I travel a lot so guess I have to bite that bullet.
Genuinely baffled by Nintendo not cashing in on making their own portable dock. It’s so evident the market wants them. Seems like a guaranteed sale to a large portion of their install base.
But it’s Nintendo, they don’t play by the rules. 😂
Nintendo clearly doesn't know how to abide by their own protocol to even make a safe portable charger lol
You can pick up a used Official dock online, about $40.00 or so, and an enclosure is about $10.00. Make a diy dock. So you can keep original at home and take portable one with you.
1) We make the save data impossible to backup
2) We patch your Switch so that it fries unless you use exclussively our overpriced dock and charger
3) We charge you to backup your data
Hail Nintendo!
making money.... Nintendo still a smaller company compare to sony and microsoft...
What about 3 party controller 8bitdo sf30 ???
What about it?? Works like a charm.
nowonmetube so good ???
i have a 3rd party dock. my dock is supposed to be used with the original charger. it looks like the nyko dock comes with it's own charger and that might be the issue. also the fastsnail dock states that you should not use it while updating the switch. i have no idea how a 3rd party switch dock can fry a switch while an update, but this my be the case with some (?) docks. also the reports that the fastsnail dock kills your switch could be because they didn't use the original charger with that dock.
i *THINK* it should be ok to use docks that use the original switch charger, but if you want to stay on the save side, use the original dock.
imo, there is a missed opportunity to make room for the charger in the top part of the original dock to act as a support so that thing does not break when i put it in my bag. or, heck, even some overengineered piece of plastic would be fine. yeah, nintendo likes those.
Fette Taube I think you’re right. If you use a dock with an original charger, will not be a fast charge