Nintendo is Limiting Switch 2’s USB-C Port: Most Third-Party Accessories May Be Incompatible Due to Proprietary Protocols

Alright, let’s dive into the wacky world of the Nintendo Switch 2. First off, yeah, this thing’s definitely packing some punch — like, imagine a screen that’s not just bigger but also sharper, with all those pixels dancing around at 120 Hz. Makes you wonder why they didn’t do this sooner. Oh, and those Joy-Con controllers? They’ve had a growth spurt and stick on magnetically now. The graphics? Pretty sharp, too. It’s like jumping from a kiddie pool to an Olympic-sized one.

But hold on a second. Here’s something weird — they’ve clipped the wings on the USB-C port. Like, why? They decided to play gatekeeper, shutting out all those docks and hubs from the cool kids’ table unless you’re part of their exclusive club. Two accessory makers whispered to The Verge that Nintendo’s got this whole secret squirrel encryption thing going on. There was even some chatter about power needs being a pain in the neck for companies like Jsaux, but nah, it’s mostly Nintendo tweaking the USB-C handshake and all that jazz.

Anyway — um, yeah, back to it. Sean Hollister, the detective at The Verge, dug deeper. Seems when you plug something into the USB-C port of a laptop or whatever, there’s this usual chit-chat of instructions that goes on. First, it talks power — making sure it’s just right with the PD protocol — before switching things up to video and other party tricks like Ethernet. But with the Switch 2, Nintendo’s dock and the console exchange a whole bunch of secret notes before they agree on anything. Kinda like passing notes in class, but over 30 times before anything happens. Talk about cryptic!

Oh, and guess who’s kinda sneaked past Nintendo’s velvet rope? The Antank S3 Max. Weird name, right? It’s on Amazon, masquerading as the SiWiQU TV Dock Station. Somehow it’s cracked the code, whispering sweet tech nothings just like Nintendo’s teams do. Costs about $36 and says it needs the official gear to play nice. But, you know, the compatibility check is always lurking in the corner, ready to throw a wrench.

In the end, while the Antank S3 Max is having its moment in the spotlight right now, nobody really knows how long it’ll stay cool with the Switch 2. Nintendo might just slam the door with a firmware update — just saying. The folks behind Antank say they can roll with the punches, though. Their rep basically dropped a, “Yeah, it might change, but we like to think we’re on top of things. Fingers crossed!”

Well, if you’re not exhausted yet from all the twists and turns, go follow Tom’s Hardware on Google News — because why not? Keep up with all this chaos in real-time. Let’s see where all this goes.