Shacknews Best Hardware of 2021 - Nintendo Switch OLED

The Nintendo Switch OLED is a bit strange in that it launched in a year that was incredibly light on major hardware releases. This is mainly due to the ongoing chip shortage, plus the fact that we got a slew of new consoles and GPUs last year. Regardless of that, the Switch OLED is still an incredible device and one that we’re glad to have gotten our hands on this year.

Funny enough, many were disappointed by the initial announcement of the Nintendo Switch OLED, primarily due to lingering rumors surrounding a supposed 4K Switch Pro. However, in true Nintendo fan fashion, people still flocked to the OLED once pre-orders went available. Though initially skeptical ourselves, we saw the light (literally and figuratively) once we got our hands on the console.

The Switch OLED packs a gorgeous screen that gives new life to games that have existed on the platform for years. Colors are vibrant and images are much more pronounced than they ever were on the Switch. The tablet screen is now 7 inches, a .8-inch increase from the base Switch screen. The Switch OLED also has a significantly smaller bezel than its predecessor.

Additional Nintendo Switch OLED improvements include an improved dock, fit with an ethernet port. The console also has an improved battery life and come on, who can hate on those clean white Joy-Cons?

The Nintendo Switch OLED may not feature any crazy technical upgrades like improved graphics or new parts, but it’s an excellent system upgrade particularly for those that like to use their Switch in handheld mode. In a year that didn’t offer too many heavy-hitters, the Nintendo Switch OLED is our Best Hardware of 2021.

Watch the Shacknews Awards 2021 YouTube playlist or read our Year of the Games: 2021 article for all of the awards in one place. We will be announcing our Shacknews GOTY 2021 on December 31.

Donovan Erskine

News Editor

Donovan is a journalist from Maryland. His oldest gaming memory is playing Pajama Sam on his mom's desktop during weekends. Pokémon Emerald, Halo 2, and the original Star Wars Battlefront 2 were some of the most influential titles in awakening his love for video games. After interning for Shacknews throughout college, Donovan graduated from Bowie State University in 2020 with a major in broadcast journalism and joined the team full-time. He is a huge film fanatic and will talk with you about movies and games all day. You can follow him on twitter @Donimals_