Nintendo Switch 2 USB Port Lockdown Poses Challenge for 3rd-Party Dock Makers

[Cpt.Jank]

It appears as though Nintendo has once again deliberately attempted to lock out third-party accessory makers from making docks for the Nintendo Switch 2. According to testing conducted by The Verge, the Nintendo Switch 2 uses proprietary, encrypted signals to effectively authorize a dock before video or power is sent over the USB-C connection. This behavior was confirmed by a USB power bank tester, which monitors the USB connection packets and can output the signals on another device for inspection. The Switch 2 also demands a higher voltage from its dock, requesting as much as 20 V, instead of the usual 15 V, although it does not appear to use the full 20 V for functionality, instead it uses it as a sort of check before dropping back down to 15 V.

In the case of the Switch 2, there was one particular third-party dock that was compatible with the new console, and upon inspecting that USB connection with the power bank tester, The Verge found that there were 30 "unstructured" packets being sent back and forth before the Switch 2 even attempted to send a video signal or negotiate power with the accessory. There was one particular string that was sent between the Switch 2 and the dock that appears to be an encryption key of sorts. If the dock fails either the voltage test or the aforementioned proprietary communications, the console defaults to a USB-only mode with no video or power delivery support. According to two accessory makers who spoke to The Verge, the Switch 2 also uses a dedicated encryption chip to lock out third-party docks and unlicensed accessories. At the time of writing, the only dock that is compatible with the Switch 2 is the Antank S3 Max, although even Antank's representative says that this can't be taken for granted, since Nintendo can, and likely will, change this authentication method with a firmware update if enough third-party dock makers catch on. So far, these changes to the USB protocol on the Switch 2 have already resulted in JSAUX putting its plans for a Switch 2 dock on hold, despite its prominence in the Steam Deck dock market.


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[TechLurker]

They've probably become paranoid someone will figure out how to reverse-engineer access via the USB port somehow.

All the more reason I hope for an eventual breakthrough and full jailbreaking.

 

[Flanker]

MacIntendo

 

[Rais]

Plainly evil corporation that hates his customer. Stop buying from them.

 

[Chaitanya]

Plainly evil corporation that hates his customer. Stop buying from them.

They started out with gambling so nothing is surprising anymore.

 

[TheDeeGee]

Amazing how many units sold of this piece of shit.

 

[_roman_]

Nothing new - most hardware and vehicles are locked down.
the phrase "windows only hardware" term was not invented by me.

 

[DeathtoGnomes]

knock, knock
who's there?
Dongle.

I dont see the problem here. One company is out smarting other companies to keep the profits flowing.

 

[duckface]

for rich kids from rich countries it's an excellent video game

 

[dismuter]

I would say that it poses more of a challenge to Switch 2 owners. It's annoying to not have options, to have to carry the bulky dock instead of a more compact USB+HDMI charger combo.

 

[Grimling]

Nintendo should fine a fee for every single pixel in every single display that exist on earth, because those pixels could potentially display Nintendo owned contend!

 

[Vayra86]

Amazing how many units sold of this piece of shit.

Right? I don't get it either. There's practically nothing that's really great about it. Even now if I would get a Nintendo console, I think I'd just get a Switch 1 second hand or something.

 

[wgg_71]

Surely learning from NVIDIA designer's best-pratice handbook

 

[Craptacular]

I don't really see it to be that big of a deal, it comes with a dock in the box. The vast vast majority of people only use one dock.

 

[phil995511]

If this is not compliant with European directives on the USB C port, Nintendo will be entitled to heavy fines...

 

[Craptacular]

If this is not compliant with European directives on the USB C port, Nintendo will be entitled to heavy fines...

That is only for charging. It is compliant with the charging directive regarding usb c.

 

[jak_2456]

Nothing new - most hardware and vehicles are locked down.
the phrase "windows only hardware" term was not invented by me.

I imagine you're referring to Winmodems and Winprinters. The difference between those and this development is that you could buy other modems/printers. In this case, you cannot buy other docks.

Also, on a different note, this is really dumb as it prevents people from using smaller, more portable dongles rather than full-size docks.

 

[TheinsanegamerN]

So glad I dont own one.

 

[thevoiceofreason]

requesting as much as 20 V, instead of the usual 15 V

Huh? USB-C Power Delivery is specced up to 20V (before Extended Power Range comes into play).

 

[ixi]

Off-topic and maybe not. I'm surprised people are bashing nintendo for this. If nintendo provides dock with console itself, why would you want a different one?

Why nobody is bashing apple for they limitation with bluetooth? Wana send files over bluetooth from apple to samsung, oh no, you are in trouble.

 

[zzd911]

Conservative, parochial, greedy, that's why Nintendo succeeded

 

[Dr. Dro]

They started out with gambling so nothing is surprising anymore.

I have an extremely strong conviction that neither Hiroshi Yamauchi (full disclaimer: I idolize this man) nor Satoru Iwata would have led Nintendo down this path. Modern Nintendo is ruthless and cold, you can feel the corporate Japan atmosphere emanating through each and every action they take. It's suffocating, they forgot what it meant to place fun first. Which is why Nintendo was successful to begin with.

 

[tpa-pr]

Off-topic and maybe not. I'm surprised people are bashing nintendo for this. If nintendo provides dock with console itself, why would you want a different one?

Why nobody is bashing apple for they limitation with bluetooth? Wana send files over bluetooth from apple to samsung, oh no, you are in trouble.

Choice is good, basically. Cheaper choices in dock, smaller choices in dock, more versatile features in dock etc. Just because Nintendo offer a dock in the box doesn't mean everyone will be satisfied with it.

People DO critique Apple for the more limited functionality on their devices. But that is completely irrelevant to the topic at hand anyway.

 

[Rightness_1]

Appart from children who like puzzle games and Mario Cart, why would an adult buy one of these? The worst handheld on the market, with no redeeming qualities whatsoever.

 

[Geofrancis]

I bought a switch lite for my daughter and it was almost unusable. online services are poor, games are far too expensive, Bluetooth headphones dont work properly. it ended up just playing minecraft and fortnite and youtube. i just bought her a laptop with a AMD 4650u after that, its far more practical and the game selection is infinitely better with access to steam, old games and emulators.