I don't think they'll support USB HDDs. Larger games will probably have cartridges anyhow, and games don't need to be installed (don't know why they would need to be?). For the people doing entirely digital libraries, 256GB+ SD cards already exist and in the coming years it'll get better. The main issue with USB HDDs though is that there's no real way to prevent the user from removing the Switch, and if the Switch were removed the game would immediately have to halt. Resuming would be weird because if the Switch is removed in the middle of a read/write... from a software point of view, that would be difficult to handle. The only really clean solution would just be SD, which works fine and is standard storage. I'll personally be grabbing more game cards just because they're more convenient, don't have to install, and I physically own the game and can't have it taken or corrupted.
I understand that a lot of you, guys, want digital to have all your games when you're going out, but...
Cartridge + microSD for updates/dlc is the way this home console has been in mind released.
Now a question, how many of you plan to be actually playing outside in a 6" screen with up to 720p?
I think that, if that happens, you know exactly which game you want to play, and, or you already have it inside the console, or you can just take it with you in a pocket, it will be playeable as long as you have the updates on the SD.
Again, this is a HOME CONSOLE, with some portable features, not a handheld!!!
Cartridge + microSD for updates/dlc is the way this home console has been in mind released.
Now a question, how many of you plan to be actually playing outside in a 6" screen with up to 720p?
I think that, if that happens, you know exactly which game you want to play, and, or you already have it inside the console, or you can just take it with you in a pocket, it will be playeable as long as you have the updates on the SD.
Again, this is a HOME CONSOLE, with some portable features, not a handheld!!!
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I'm still pissed they went with a MicroSDXC as opposed to a full sized SDXC. Larger sizes of the latter are available and prices are a bit cheaper. The Switch is already a thick console so there's room for the larger card. It's possible that MicroSD cards may never get to their full theoretical size, as we're already touching the limits of how small we can pack memory in that standard. Maybe only the sull-sized SDXC will ever get 1TB and 2TB cards.
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Yeah! There's actually 2 USB 2.0 ports in the front, plus the USB 3.0 (from the color it looks like it, anyway - but color doesn't prove anything of course) port in the back. So they are definitely planning *some* use for those USB ports...
USB Type-C connectors are meant for USB 3.1 even - so who knows what those ports have as actual speeds.
You do realize there are micro-SD-to-full-SD cables you can get that stick out a little bit, right? It will look ugly, but nothing is stopping you from using a full size SD card if you really want to.
(Also, we're nowhere near the limits of MicroSD, just saying.)
Last edited by Thulinma,
1. A MicroSD to SD adapter will interfere with the Dock and make it impossible to properly use the Switch. Kind of a biggie.
2. I'm still trying to find the article, but the 1TB SD card prototype uses a chip that's like 13nm or so and uses the full width and length of the full sized SD card. Even Intel is having incredible difficulty getting smaller than 16nm, as we seem to be bumping up to the highest density possible with the technology we have. A 2TB SD just might be possible barely, but we may never even get a full terabyte on a MicroSD. Why do you think the largest reasonable sized MicroSD is a rounded 200GB and not the Binary 256GB? Even adding that additional 56GB is proving difficult. Why has SanDisk not even hinted at a 512GB MicroSD, with the only hints being from an unknown company that seems to reek of vapor ware?
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You could easily mod the kickstand thing to make room for it, or use a ribbon cable to fold it to the side of the console.
You're confusing transistors and memory. Those are related, but not as closely as you make it seem. Also, there's all kinds of cool new advances in 3D memory arrays coming that could easily enable sizes up to 8TB or so in the MicroSD form factor in the next few years.
Prices are still dropping quickly, though, showing that production is becoming easier. 256GB cards went down about 30USD or so since they released, and they have only been available for a few months to begin with. 512GB and 1TB will come - but it will take a while longer. Tech goes fast, but not *that* fast.
No way to stop a user from ejecting the cd (or in this case the cartridges) while the game is still running either. Doesn't mean they shouldn't have any physical media.
We don't know how much room the console got inside. So, you can't say it has room.
Let's be honest, even if they did that (copy the assets for the game you're playing to SD before you have the chance to take it out of the dock), ya'll would still be complaining about the insane loading times.
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They kind of was going as small as possible, otherwise it would have been as big as the gamepad.
Full size SD cards are not typically cheaper nowadays. It's the other way around. Micro SD cards are cheaper now and are more accessible. I think full sized SD cards are mostly produced now for use in Digital cameras which is turning into a niche market. So, placing a micro sd reader instead of a full size one is guarantees that the Switch will be supported well into the future. Also, not just because a there is space for something you should put it in. Most people I know with a background in engineering like me appreciate the design of the Switch. Until we can see the thing and take apart, I'm guessing the thickness is dual purpose. First, to level with the dimensions of the Joy-cons. Second, to improve airflow because the Tegra chip inside is know to run hotter compared to other mobile SOCs.
If they are going fat32 for microsd, they would be limiting games to 4GB... so if that is the case, you wouldn't need anything bigger than 256GB, let alone 128GB.
EDIT:
128GB and 4GB/Game would mean 32 digital games at most
256GB and 4GB/Game would mean 64 digital games at most
EDIT:
128GB and 4GB/Game would mean 32 digital games at most
256GB and 4GB/Game would mean 64 digital games at most
Last edited by seijinshu,
Every MicroSD card I've ever seen has come with an adapter. And adding a couple mm to the overall thickness could be enough without being even perceptible.
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