Nintendo Switch 2 uses new GPU but offers only RTX 2050-level performance

According to newly revealed specs shared by YouTube channel Digital Foundry, the Switch 2 is powered by a custom system-on-chip (SoC) developed by Nvidia. The GPU inside is based on the Ampere architecture, the same as the mobile GeForce RTX 2050 introduced in late 2021.

Specifically, the Switch 2’s SoC features an 8-core ARM Cortex A78C CPU with 64-bit instruction support and hardware encoding features. Each core includes 64 KB of L1 instruction and data cache, 256 KB of L2 cache, and there’s a shared 4 MB L3 cache. Six of the eight CPU cores are dedicated to gaming, while the remaining two handle the operating system. The CPU’s maximum clock speed reaches 1.7 GHz but is capped at 1.1 GHz in handheld mode and 0.998 GHz in docked mode.

The Ampere GPU inside the Switch 2 comes with 1,536 CUDA cores, fewer than the 2,048 cores in the RTX 2050. GPU clock speeds are also significantly throttled: 561 MHz in handheld mode and 1,007 MHz in docked mode, much lower than the 1,400 MHz maximum potential of the chip. As a result, even with its newer GPU architecture, the Switch 2’s actual graphics performance matches that of the RTX 2050—a mid-range laptop GPU released four years ago.

Nonetheless, adopting the Ampere architecture gives the Switch 2 some notable advantages, such as support for real-time ray tracing and DLSS image upscaling technology. While Nintendo hasn't revealed any titles with ray tracing, it has confirmed that some games, including Cyberpunk 2077, will support DLSS.

The console is equipped with 12 GB of LPDDR5X RAM, offering 68 GB/s bandwidth in handheld mode and 102 GB/s in docked mode. Out of this, 9 GB is allocated for games, and 3 GB for the OS. It features 256 GB of UFS internal storage, expandable via microSD Express cards up to 2 TB. Additionally, Nintendo has integrated a dedicated decompression processor to accelerate data retrieval from storage.

The Nintendo Switch 2 has already seen tremendous early success. Several retailers have reported record-breaking pre-order numbers, making it difficult for many to secure a unit in the first wave. Despite all that, the original Nintendo Switch still delivers everything fans love—versatile play, a massive game library, and iconic titles that never get old. As always, for the latest news on hardware launches and industry developments, be sure to follow our dedicated hardware coverage.