Nintendo Switch 2 alleged motherboard leaks, patent confirms DLSS upscaling-like tech

Highly anticipated: The pace of leaks surrounding Nintendo’s next-generation handheld computer has accelerated in recent weeks. Some expected the Switch 2 to be officially announced soon, and the new material reignited years of speculation about the device’s performance and capabilities. While the leakers agree on some details, any information that doesn’t come directly from Nintendo should be taken with a grain of salt.

New photos of suspected Switch 2 PCB Appeared New Year’s Eve on Reddit. Around the same time, the U.S. Patent Office publish A document from the company describes a machine learning-based upgrade feature similar to that found on Nvidia RTX graphics cards and the PlayStation 5 Pro.

While the motherboard images don’t conclusively reveal the hardware specs, they match previous leaks and rumors of the upcoming handheld device. At the same time, the patent confirms that Nintendo has at least explored implementing AI-assisted upgrades on the Nvidia chips that power the so-called Switch 2 console.

The document, submitted in 2023 and published in late 2024, does not explicitly mention DLSS – Nvidia’s upgrade technology has improved significantly over the past few years, and with it, PC gaming performance has improved. However, it does describe a similar technique utilizing Nvidia’s tensor cores.

This feature will use neural networks to resample images from 900 x 540 pixels to 1080p, from 1080p to 4K, or a combination of resolutions in between. Nvidia’s technology has show It has achieved impressive results on PCs for years, but remains untested on portable devices with limited power budgets.

Interestingly, Nintendo’s patent also suggests that the upgrade could reduce the required installation size of the game. In theory, a game with assets designed for 4K resolution could use a 1080p upscaling to reduce its file size from 60 GB to 20 GB. Assuming the Switch 2 uses a proprietary game card like its predecessor, the technology could help larger games avoid massive download requirements.

Nintendo has Currently confirmed There are only two details about its upcoming hardware: the device won’t be released until April 1, and it will be backwards compatible with Switch games. However, the leaker shared more details about the sources within the manufacturing supply chain.

The device may come with 12 GB LPDDR5X RAM, an 8-inch LCD screen, and magnetic accessories for Joy-Con controllers. Additionally, recent Switch 2 design mockups are believed to be related to similar final product.

While the device is expected to use a chip based on Nvidia’s Ampere architecture, precise performance metrics remain elusive. New PCB photos may raise more questions than they answer. Early information indicates that the chip will be based on Samsung’s 8nm node, but it is also possible to use a 6nm or 5nm SoC (which can provide improved performance and battery life).