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Nintendo Switch Battery Beats iPads And PlayStation Vita

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Nintendo Switch lasts longer than iPad Air and PlayStation Vita in this continuous battery test.

One of the biggest factors to how much my family uses any device is its battery life. Even when a bigger battery means larger physical footprint, we usually go for that option.

With this in mind an important challenge for the Switch in handheld mode is just how long the battery will last. Of course you can take around portable chargers with you, but without karting extra paraphernalia, how long with the Switch battery last.

To this end I spent the weekend gathering together all the gaming devices in our house (as well as borrowing a few from friends) to create the ultimate battery test for the Switch. The aim is not only to compare like for like, but also see how it compares to gaming devices of years gone by.

By the time I had finished I had pretty much every handheld Nintendo system, three iPads, a PSP, a Vita and even a Gameboy Micro. I set these up with a clock, each device on maximum brightness and with power save or screen dimming turned off. This meant that for the Switch and the Vita I had to tape a stick down to stop it switching off. Wi-Fi and Bluetooth were switched on where the devices had this and each was set to their home screen.

I set the clock going with some fascination over not only how the Switch would fair against these other gaming machines but how the rest of the field would shake down. To ensure it was all recorded I also setup a time-lapse video that you can see below.

With the results in the headline is that the Switch outlasted not only the majority of the 3DS and DS peripherals but also the iPads and the Vita. Here are the results in full:

  • DSi - 2.41hrs
  • 3DS - 3.25hrs
  • iPod Touch 2 - 3.39hrs
  • 2DS - 3.55hrs
  • GBA SP - 3.59hrs
  • iPad 2 - 4.00hrs
  • iPad Air - 4.04hrs
  • New 3DS - 4.04hrs
  • iPod Touch 3 - 4.13hrs
  • DS Lite - 4.51hrs
  • PSP - 4.56hrs
  • GBA Micro - 4.57hrs
  • Vita - 5.01hrs
  • Switch - 5.12hrs
  • iPad Mini 2 - 5.39hrs
  • DS - 6.51hrs
  • New 3DS XL Mugen Battery - 15.02hrs
  • GBA - 29.32hrs
  • Gameboy - 31.12hrs
  • Gameboy Colour - 35.45hrs

While I had hoped that it would outlast the Vita, I hadn't expected the Switch to do so well against the iPads as these are more expensive bits of kit. Overall the Switch did very well. The classic Gameboys are worth a mention though, as they don't have a backlight and suddenly they last for days rather than hours.

Of course this test is only of the Nintendo Switch in handheld mode and you can play it holstered in the Dock and on your TV. This in itself is a hand addition for families (much like the 3DS charging station) as it should mean that the console is charged when you need it.

One thing worth noting is that the included Joy-Con grip doesn't let you charge and play when the two controllers are in standard joy-pad mode. Purchasing the premium version of this that includes USB charging port would be a good move for most families.

Disclosure: Nintendo provided the console for preview.

 

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