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Sliding the Switch in and out of the dock will inevitably scratch the screen

G

GiantBreadbug

Member
For what it's worth, I had Nintendo fix my OG 3DS for a similar issue (screengetting scratched because the console was designed by neanderthals). They did it for free because I told them there was no chance I'd be buying another Nintendo product if they didn't. Shit like this is absurd.

If I had a single scratch because of the dock, I'd be informing Nintendo themselves that they were going to replace or repair my Switch free of charge.
 
W

Wildean

Member
Got the official carry case which comes with a sceen protector- wasn't going to bother applying it, but seeing this I did it just in case. Even without a protector I think it should be all right as long as you're somewhat careful docking it.

Slaythe said:
In what world is using a tempered glass protector more bothersome than sawing the dock part ?
Click to expand...

Yeah if you are cutting the dock you're getting too worried about this! And that would surely increase the chances of the unit falling out and being damaged.
 
T

ToTi

Member
I "fixed" mine like this:
smHSd7z.jpg

The switch still fit perfectly.
 
H

Hahs

Member
That's why I don't buy day 1 consoles, but I appreciate those that do, because they're basically testers...thank you!

I'll wait till it gets tweaked just a bit more - its not like the games are limited/going anywhere
 
L

Lom1lo

Member
Wildean said:
Even without a protector I think it should be all right as long as you're somewhat careful docking it.
Click to expand...

No Im really careful with my electronics and Ive got already scratches after: docking the switch, inserting zelda while docked, undocking the switch.
I ordered now a screen protector and I hate those things.
 
PepperedHam

PepperedHam

Member
I went from gung-ho as soon as this is in stock (it is now at my local target) I'm grabbing one to gung-no seeing this thread.

The OG 3DS thing claimed my soul back when I got one and I was so bummed about that. These things never totally ruin your enjoyment of the system but they're just completely dumb to have to worry about day one. Nothing like this should be damaging your hardware on day fucking one like this. Wear and tear yeah, going to be expected, but the damn dock's design straight up hairlining and scuffing people's shit so fast bums me out so much.

I'm wrestling between throwing pants on and running to Target but I hate the song and dance of waiting for protectors and acting like I'm defusing a bomb every time I handle hardware I own. I'm not asking to be allowed to be a bull with this thing but I wouldn't mind at least using the damn thing as intended without it scuffing it up. Jesus Christ, Nintendo.
 
E

eoa-swam

Member
I've done a bit of modding along the lines of others in this thread. I found some 'Surface Protector Pads' in my local Poundland which have a range of sizes and thicknesses.

I went for the smallest and thinnest version as they sit well on the 'beam' which runs down the inside of the Switch dock.

This reduces any 'plastic dock on screen' rubbing whilst also keeping the main unit a lot more secure whilst in the dock.

I've taken some photos so people can see what I'm describing - http://imgur.com/a/ZZ6ZU

(I also have a screen protector which came with the official case applied)
 
V

Vidiot

Member
Would putting a strip of electrical or any other kind of tape do the trick? First thing I did out of the box was put a screen protector on though.
 
K

KAL2006

Banned
I personally think this issue will affect sales

This is quite serious, as the Switch is designed to slide out and in from the dock.

The fact that this design scratches the screen. The word will spread.

Let's hope 2nd batch of shipments have fixed this issue early on and this is forgotten but it's not a great start especially for Nintendo who could use a great launch after the Wii U.
 
M

mjc

Member
I have a microfiber cloth draped inside the front to keep it safe, but I'm kinda concerned about it getting to hot or starting a fire. Am I overthinking it?
 
G

Got

Banned
KAL2006 said:
I personally think this issue will affect sales

This is quite serious, as the Switch is designed to slide out and in from the dock.

The fact that this design scratches the screen. The word will spread.

Let's hope 2nd batch of shipments have fixed this issue early on and this is forgotten but it's not a great start especially for Nintendo who could use a great launch after the Wii U.
Click to expand...

expert analysis here
 
T

The Boat

Member
I don't understand either these glass remarks or the panel lottery.

The fact that barely no one mentioned whether it's glass or plastic pretty much shows how little difference there is. The screen is great and there is nothing inherently inferior about plastic, in fact, I'd say it's much more suited to a portable device since it doesn't break as easily.

Isn't every single device with a screen subject to panel lottery? I mean, I've bought monitors, TVs, 3DS, PSP, Vita, every single one of these products is subject to panel lottery.

I actually didn't think of this since my Switch is scratch free and I've been taking it in and out of the dock some times a day for more than a week. It seems relatively easy to scratch the bezel though, don't know how they didn't include a softer material on the inside.

The typical launch overreaction and hysteria is always entertaining though. Keep sharing and reporting these issues, just don't jump to conclusions. The Internet shows a very skewed perspective of how common problems in a product can be, this happens... all the time?
 
F

Futaba

Member
Folks, I think I've found one of the contributing factors and why it seems hit and miss for some users to have no issues and others to have lots.

T1Fq4LQh.jpg
Click to expand...
While it's subtle at a glance, the front plate actually bends inwards gently, making it tighter at the top then at the bottom, and since the slotted plastic tabs on either side run almost to the top, what you're getting is a pinch point where the screen has a higher chance of touching the screen, I measured with digital calipers and the depth of the dock at the bottom was 51.3mm, at the top it was 47.8, a difference of 3.5mm, meaning you have 1.75mm less space either side of the console at the top than you do at the bottom, and the severity of the bend will no doubt differ from unit to unit.

If it was perfectly straight you would have a slot that was 19mm wide from top to bottom, but at least for my dock, it isn't. I will not be surprised if many others (especially those that have scratches) find the front panel of theirs bows inwards too
 
T

TangoAlphaLima

Member
TranceKuja said:
Not taking any chances, here's my temporary solution from this thread. Cut the piece of cloth (or what is it?) that the screen came in to the size of the dock, stick it on the inside, stick it down with tape.

bmLJd0d.jpg
Click to expand...

It was a tight fit, but I just slipped that plastic protector right over the front side of the dock. Thanks for the heads up on using this piece.
 
N

NaDannMaGoGo

Member
The Boat said:
I don't understand either these glass remarks or the panel lottery.

The fact that barely no one mentioned whether it's glass or plastic pretty much shows how little difference there is. The screen is great and there is nothing inherently inferior about plastic, in fact, I'd say it's much more suited to a portable device since it doesn't break as easily.
Click to expand...

Did you, by chance, miss the very thread your commenting in?
 
M

MrFrankFontaine

Banned
I haven't had any issues and find it hard to believe i'd get any scratches if I'm careful given how the inside of the dock looks.

However, just in case I ordered some felt tape from Amazon that arrives tomorrow. Should work great and will be undetectable.
 
N

nampad

Member
KAL2006 said:
I personally think this issue will affect sales

This is quite serious, as the Switch is designed to slide out and in from the dock.

The fact that this design scratches the screen. The word will spread.

Let's hope 2nd batch of shipments have fixed this issue early on and this is forgotten but it's not a great start especially for Nintendo who could use a great launch after the Wii U.
Click to expand...

Deservedly so, this should have never happened.
 
R

Rodin

Member
Now i used the cloth to clean my sunglasses that came with them, it seems to cover all the front. I can trust Christian Dior with this, right?
 
V

Vampirolol

Member
This is really really stupid. I put the official screen protector for security, I have to say that for the first time in my life I had no problem with air bubbles.
 
B

bs135

Member
NaDannMaGoGo said:
Did you, by chance, miss the very thread your commenting in?
Click to expand...

The dilemma I believe Nintendo had is would they rather have the scratching of plastic or the shattering of glass.

But either way they should have done a much better job with the design of the dock considering how easy it is to scratch a plastic screen.
 
D

DeuceGamer

Member
The Boat said:
I don't understand either these glass remarks or the panel lottery.

The fact that barely no one mentioned whether it's glass or plastic pretty much shows how little difference there is. The screen is great and there is nothing inherently inferior about plastic, in fact, I'd say it's much more suited to a portable device since it doesn't break as easily.

Isn't every single device with a screen subject to panel lottery? I mean, I've bought monitors, TVs, 3DS, PSP, Vita, every single one of these products is subject to panel lottery.

I actually didn't think of this since my Switch is scratch free and I've been taking it in and out of the dock some times a day for more than a week. It seems relatively easy to scratch the bezel though, don't know how they didn't include a softer material on the inside.

The typical launch overreaction and hysteria is always entertaining though. Keep sharing and reporting these issues, just don't jump to conclusions. The Internet shows a very skewed perspective of how common problems in a product can be, this happens... all the time?
Click to expand...

After watching a drop test on YouTube, you may be right about why they went with plastic. The system twisted pretty violently in a drop and the screen would have shattered if it was glass. It may have been an intentional decision.

Edit: Nintendo may have felt a few scratches were better than broken screens. Still it makes me extremely nervous waiting on my screen protector that was preordered weeks ago.

Here is the drop test vid for anyone curious.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=kqMgv9hHmrY
 
P

PikkonX

Member
Rukumouru said:
Jesus, I have no idea how you guys are getting these scratches. My Switch barely even touches the dock when sliding down to begin with.

I've checked mine and no scratches anywhere, not even tiny ones. Been switching from dock to handheld often.
Click to expand...

I'm totally confused too. Myself and a friend must have docked and undocked these things more than a dozen times with no ill effects.
 
S

spekkeh

Banned
Still think somebody of that website inserted it the wrong way around and now tries to blame the other guy. The scratches match the grooves on the back. And I myself have also had no scratches and must've inserted it a dozen times already too.

But yeah who wants to take a gamble. I'll probably add some extra padding myself.
 
Z

Zafir

Member
I got a screen protector because I thought this might happen, but I sadly bought the premium hori one which as it turns out is useless.

Sigh!

This launch has not been good to me.
 
B

Bony Manifesto

Member
DeuceGamer said:
After watching a drop test on YouTube, you may be right about why they went with plastic. The system twisted pretty violently in a drop and the screen would have shattered if it was glass. It may have been an intentional decision.
Click to expand...

I'm sure it was. But the thing is, no matter if it has a glass or plastic screen, the Switch is in no way durable enough for young kids in the way that the DS (and the Game Boy) was. The Switch as it is now feels caught in an awkward place where you can neither describe it as 'premium' nor 'kid-friendly'.
 
C

Costia

Member
The Boat said:
I don't understand either these glass remarks or the panel lottery.
The fact that barely no one mentioned whether it's glass or plastic pretty much shows how little difference there is. The screen is great and there is nothing inherently inferior about plastic, in fact, I'd say it's much more suited to a portable device since it doesn't break as easily.
Click to expand...
As you can see in this thread, the problem with plastic is that it gets scratched rather easily.
Since Nintendo decided to go with plastic, which isn't bad by itself, they should have made sure that their official dock doesn't scratch the screen during normal use.
Which apparently they didn't. This is the actual problem here, not glass vs plastic.

Isn't every single device with a screen subject to panel lottery? I mean, I've bought monitors, TVs, 3DS, PSP, Vita, every single one of these products is subject to panel lottery.
...
Click to expand...
Not to the extent it is with the 3DS.
In other products you might get a better/worse calibrated screen with more or less light leak. But with the 3DS you are getting random screen types (TFT VS IPS).
If it were a TV or a PC monitor, those would have been different products, sold at different price points.
People are afraid that something similar might be going on with the switch (i.e. huge differences in panel quality, and not just minor calibration issues).
 
U

Unknown Soldier

Member
Bony Manifesto said:
I'm sure it was. But the thing is, no matter if it has a glass or plastic screen, the Switch is in no way durable enough for young kids in the way that the DS (and the Game Boy) was. The Switch as it is now feels caught in an awkward place where you can neither describe it as 'premium' nor 'kid-friendly'.
Click to expand...

Well that makes sense as it's also in an awkward place where you can neither describe it as 'portable' or 'home console' :D
 
M

MrFlooD

Member
Can't wait till we get some third party open faced docks.(like Wii u charging cradle) Current dock makes it difficult to use in my entertainment center.

Also for those asking. System works fine when docked horizontal. This is my temp solition until I get my screen protector.
 
Rellik

Rellik

Member
Resilient said:
One picture has driven screen protector sales through the roof. This site is so gullible sometimes.
Click to expand...

One picture? Try looking though the thread. It's not just one person.

This site never fails fails to produce a defence force for absolutely everything.
 
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