The Nintendo Switch console, in its different versions, has sold more than 122 million units. This is due to its good capabilities and, above all, to great video game sagas such as Super Mario, Zelda or Pokémon, among others. Although the nintendo switch console It has its limitations, especially with regard to the RAM.
First of all, the first Nintendo Switch launched in March 2017, more than six years have passed since then. Nintendo at the end of September 2019 launched the Lite version, which introduces few changes compared to the original model.
More recently, Nintendo has launched the OLED, specifically in October 2021. This console does not bring any hardware changes compared to the original model, just like the Lite.
Nintendo Switch: how much RAM it has and how it is distributed
As we said, the console of the Japanese company in these six years and despite the existence of two “revisions” has not changed at the hardware level. Although new models have been released, the basic components have always been the same. Only the screen has changed, being a little smaller on the Lite console and a little bigger and better on the OLED model.
All models of nintendoswitch count on 4GB of LPDDR4 RAM. Initially it was thought that the OLED model would expand the capacity to 8 GB, but this has not been the case. Let’s remember that this model was launched at a time of a pandemic, where there were major hardware supply problems.
Something interesting is that these 4GB RAM are distributed as follows:
- 1 GB of RAM exclusively for the operating system
- 3 GB of RAM for games and shared with the operating system
At the time of its release (2017) it was a fair amount. At that time, any computer had 8 GB of RAM, whether or not it will be used for gaming.
Obviously, a computer is not the same as a console and less than a portable console. In addition, Nintendo games tend to opt for more Cartoon-style graphics. Said type of graphics are less demanding, we can say that they are lighter. So for this type of graphics, 3 GB amount of RAM is fine.
Yes, there have been problems in some games, like the new one Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. Initially there were some performance issues, but it is quite common in the launch of video games.
How much RAM should a Switch 2 have?
First of all, Nintendo should already stop using NVIDIA SoCs. Currently, the company is no longer working on these chips and insisting on them is absurd. The Steam Deck uses a semi-custom AMD Ryzen APU and the ASUS RoG Ally uses the AMD Ryzen Z1, two very powerful chips.
Obviously, Nintendo has to make the leap to AMD’s solutions, which have already proven to be brutal. This, at the same time, means that the amount of RAM could be easily doubled or quadrupled. Just thinking about a Switch 2 with the Ryzen Z1 and 16 GB LPDDR5 makes you want to buy it.
Realistically, Nintendo has copied the model that it already introduced with the Game Boy, launching new models that do not contribute anything. Remember that the Game Boy was plummeting and was saved by the Pokémon saga.
