When you first set up your Nintendo Switch to connect to your TV, you may have been aware of the dock's limitations when it came to connecting the necessary wires.
Looking at the dock from the back, the 'AC Adapter', 'HDMI Out', and 'LAN' ports all face toward the left. If your TV houses its ports on the right-hand side, this means you need to either loop the wires around to the right in order to connect them, or strategically position your dock to the left of your TV in order to alleviate the issue. copper clad steel wire
Well, this might well be a thing of the past if a recent patent from Nintendo eventually comes to fruition (it's also equally likely that it won't, by the way). Dated 2nd April, 2024 and posted to the Reddit 'GamingLeaksAndRumours' page, the patent is essentially a rotating I/O (input/output) panel designed to allow you to position the dock's ports on either the left or right-hand side.
As Nintendo itself states, this is to theoretically streamline the connection of cables from the dock to the TV; something it describes as potentially 'troublesome' with the dock's ports currently locked to one side.
The below images show the solution in action, showcasing what Nintendo describes as the 'swivel block' rotating 180 degrees to allow the ports to swap from left to right. Two USB ports are also located on the opposite side, so these would also flip over accordingly. As you're no doubt already aware, the USB ports on the current dock are located on the right-side exterior (again, looking at it from the back).
We should stress that the likelihood of this ever becoming a reality is somewhat slim, at least with the current Switch models. The console is now over seven years old and presumably nearing the end of its lifecycle (having sold over 139 million units), so for Nintendo to produce a solution such as this now seems somewhat needless.
As for the console's eventual successor..? Well, who knows. It does seem like an elegant solution to a very specific problem, but right now, how the 'Switch 2' will actually function is anybody's guess.
Keep it secret, keep it safe
What do you make of this dock patent from Nintendo? Would you like to see something like this come to fruition? Let us know your thoughts with a comment down below.
[source ppubs.uspto.gov, via reddit.com]
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Hmm, I've only had the Switch since last summer (I was still happily on the Wii U until then!) but I've not noticed them being a problem....
I just position my dock sideways if I need to so that the cords come out the back instead so I haven't really ever felt a problem. More options are never a bad thing though if they were to implement this in the next dock.
Although I doubt it will ever happen for Switch and have my doubts also for its successor it's interesting that such a thing has been considered by Nintendo at some point!
I was thinking they'd do away with the dock altogether and have a physically"simpler" yet "more advanced" connection to the tv.
3rd party docks are also cheap as. They're nice if you like to switch the switch between televisions frequently.
Patents are weird. They just added a pivot to the ports.
If they're only patenting it at this stage of the Switch's life it seems likely it's for Switch 2 and it'll be another dockable console. I hope so. I'd be very surprised if it was TV only after Switch's enormous success.
@LEGEND_MARIOID its a pretty elegant solution imo. I would rather they make it so any USB-C dock was compatible though.
Recently I got a second dock, because I tend to switch (pun intended) between television and monitor for playing games. When I stream I use my monitor, when I play casually, I play on my TV. But moving the dock between both locations was always a hassle. This looks like it could be a QoL improvement.
imo the cords come out the back already, but everybody likes to turn their dock sideways so the logo shows. 😊
I'm trying to imagine someone so annoyed that the switches cables come from one side of the dock.... But the dock weighs about 200g and can be faced towards the wall and the cables will magically be coming out the other side.
Just means placing your switch into the dock also facing that direction but since everything connecting it is wireless or via USB cables also on the sides of the dock it makes absolutely zero difference if it's facing forwards or backwards.
Surely it should swivel 1080 degrees instead
We have just discovered the only difference Switch 2 will have from Switch 1. 😀
I have had my Switch topple over several times which is annoying, I'm just glad that I keep it on the floor and now I always have some sort of obstacle in front of it.
As @chiptoon already pointed out, this is a weird “patent” idea, like no one has ever invented a swivel before?
If they just remove the fold down back, which I’ve always kept open anyway b/c I’ve read it’s better for heat dissipation, then they can have the ports face up or straight back like every other device.
So, it’s not really necessary, but even if they add it, it’s just a swivel, not patent material to me.
Swivel connectors can easily become a problem of its own. Specifically, a connection problem, or worse, short out other components in the dock, or any electrical devices connected to it (tv via HDMI, physically wired controllers/headphones/mics/keyboards/etc.).
Like the article, and everyone commenting, this seems more likely for the Switch successor. I could see Nintendo releasing a new model Switch with a swivel, though that is a long-shot, and unlikely.
I just hope the Switch 2s dock has a lil gpu inside it to give it a performance boost when in docked mode. to me that makes so much sense. Even if it makes the dock more expensive it would be worth it for me.
@Uncle_Franklin clearly they haven't been doing enough stability updates.
@chiptoon I don't think it's that simple. If it was only ports connected to nothing then sure, a swivel seems pretty trivial. But these ports are connected to passageways for data and electricity, which don't spin themselves.
I don't trust swiveling and turning parts handling wires so much. More chances of something eventually snapping off or wires breaking.
But the skinny side of the dock is supposed to be facing forward... because that's where the USB ports and the power LED are. And thus the cords come out the back of it. USB or controller ports and power indicator are at the FRONT. Cords come out the BACK. Like every other console ever made. I get what they're trying to do, I just don't know why.
If one can Dock gen1 Switch would help as well.
People have had a problem with this? It's a dock, not a display screen, so it doesn't matter what direction you face it as long as the connected AC/HDMI cables are facing the proper ways. Those cable issues can be alleviated with ease; it's the two USBs on the outside that I can see people might have an issue with, but still, inner AC/HDMI exit out the back and outer USBs exit out the front, like nearly every console in existence.
Maybe this is how the Switch 2 dock will work, and be slightly nicer when it comes to cable management...not that it's a big deal, you can route the cables either out the side or the top now...
I've had my switch facing sideways, even tho it's on the left side of the monitor. Not sure why I put it like that, maybe coz the power cable goes to the left. And I also didn't have any space on my desk. I've got 2 monitors now and the 2nd monitor is in the way of the switch, so now I can't get the switch without having to lean over the monitor.
My uncle who works for Nintendo says that Switch 2 will be a handheld with TV part solved as in WiiU - wireless ( also same game quality for handheld and TV )
My switch dock is getting dust somewhere. Never I have need for it.
This is actually a thing for me given where the plugs are and the path the power chord has to go between wall and dock. I had to point the dock backwards for the tension in the cable not to topple the deck over. I hope they do this for the Switch 2 dock. It would be a welcomed feature given how lite the system is.
@NoLife sounds like you need a stability update
@Savage_Joe I literally don't even know where my dock is. Haven't used it since last year.
It was probably meant for the "Switch Pro". 🤣
They should also have a cutout on the top and bottom, for those who prefer to shelve their docks sideways like Sakurai
This is strangely pretty definitive looking for a Nintendo patent which tends to be much more vague in shape and form. I’m not saying this is a guaranteed for the next console but this seems more likely of a feature than not.
these docks have SOOOOOO much potential for Nintendo Fusion..... Id love a Switch 2 with the "fusion" dock. EXT GPU POWWWWWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!
The sad thing is making patents prevents anyone else from doing it. Addressing a hardware design issue that should've been addressed early, very late in the console's lifecycle. Reminds how many third-parties made rechargable battery stands for the Wii so shortly after the 2006 launch, and then Nintendo comes along with an official one in... what year was it? Was it 2011? Or was it even later than that?
What if Power is on the left and HDMI is on the right?
"I don't trust swiveling and turning parts handling wires so much. More chances of something eventually snapping off or wires breaking."
I feel the same way, but surely most people would be "swivelling" their wires zero to one times depending on how they set up their switch initially.
Never once had an issue with this. A solution looking for a problem...
Nintendo: just have ports at the bottom of the dock, at the back. See Steamdeck dock. It doesn’t require a patent.
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