Nintendo Switch vs XBOX Series S

Compare: Nintendo Switch vs XBOX Series S

The first point that differentiates the Nintendo Switch and the XBOX One S is the audience for which these consoles are intended. Indeed, where Microsoft is clearly targeting pure gamers who do not have a huge budget and want to play the best titles of the moment, while for its part Nintendo is rather looking for a family audience with very innovative and colorful games.

As a result, the Nintendo Switch is not often considered a primary console, except for children. Gamers often prefer an XBOX / Playstation combo and the Nintendo Switch in addition.

Nintendo Switch Screen

The Xbox Series S View

Overview

Nintendo SwitchXBOX Series S
Nintendo Switch ScreenThe Xbox Series S View
BrandNintendoXbox
Release date17/03/201710/11/2020
ColorsBlack, Red, BlueWhite

Nintendo Switch

The Xbox Series S controller

When it comes to power and speed, the XBOX Series S and Nintendo Switch don’t play in the same court. Indeed, the XBOX Series S is made to run Microsoft’s next-gen games.

These games in 4K resolution with breathtaking effects often with ray-tracing require a lot of power to provide a suitable gaming experience for players. In addition, gamers now want to play with almost perfect image fluidity, they intend to have a minimum of 60 FPS constantly in the image, and even more. The XBOX Series S can therefore go up to 120 FPS.

The Nintendo Switch on the other hand only has a resolution of 1080px and 30 FPS at most. There is therefore less power to deploy for the console, but also you will have understood much less details in the image. The games are mostly beautiful, there is nothing wrong with that, but will never achieve the purity or fluidity of a 4K 60 or 120 FPS resolution picture. 

In fact, with its 8-core 3.6GHz processor, the XBOX Series S is 3.6 times faster than a Nintendo Switch.  

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Nintendo Switch the possibility of playing on the go and on TV

If there is one point where the Nintendo Switch dominates the XBOX Series S, it is of course the hybrid side. Indeed, where the XBOX Series S will require you to stay in front of your television to indulge your passion, the Nintendo Switch stands out by offering you the possibility of starting your game on television and continuing it in portable mode.

Thus, the best Nintendo Switch games can accompany you in transport during your trips to work or school. An innovative system very appreciable and appreciated by the players. With this hybrid side, the Nintendo Switch competes with the mobile games market.

Nintendo Switch innovative games

Another point to take advantage of the Nintendo Switch is that it offers innovative games. Where Microsoft is content to do very classic, Nintendo as usual makes a point of honour to offer a new experience to its audience. Thus, the Nintendo Labo for example allows you to build an object with cardboard and to use it to play by connecting a joy-con on this object.

The all new Mario Kart Live Home Circuit offers you a new way to play Mario Kart using your interior as a circuit thanks to a cardboard arch system. You will therefore be playing the famous augmented reality kart game, it is a very fun experience that we highly recommend. 

Clearly, if you are looking for a new way to play, this is the Switch for you. But if you’re looking for a classic experience with 3/4 of the best AAA games on one stand, the XBOX Series S is a much better choice. 

Performance

Nintendo SwitchXBOX Series S
ProcessorOcta-core (4xARM Cortex-A57 – 4xARM Cortex-A53) – 1020 MHz8 cores at 3.6GHz (3.4GHz w/ SMT) Custom Zen 2 processor
Ram4 GB10 GB
Graphic architectureNvidia TegraRDNA 2 GPU

The Nintendo Switch has a huge and often innovative catalogue of games whether in physical or digital format. However, the console does not offer any backward compatibility with the old generations, it will be necessary to wait for the arrival of the games of the old consoles in the Nintendo Shop to take advantage of these old titles. You can also wait for a hypothetical remaster.

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The XBOX Series S, for its part, offers the selection of XBOX Series X games of course, but also those of the XBOX, XBOX 360 and XBOX One. You will therefore have available the entire catalogues (or almost) of 4 generations of consoles, it is absolutely huge.

Display

Nintendo SwitchXBOX Series S
HdrNoYes
Maximum definition supportedFull HDHDR 8K
TouchYesNo

Storage

Nintendo SwitchXBOX Series S
Expandable memoryYesYes
Internal memory32 GB512 GB
Type of memory extensionSSDSSD
SupportCartridgeCartridge

With a storage space of 512 GB in SSD the XBOX Series S outrageously dominates the Nintendo Switch and its 32 GB. Even if it must be admitted that it was mandatory for the Microsoft console to integrate a large hard drive because of the full digital, the 32 GB of Nintendo Switch is usually not enough even if you only buy games in physical formats.

Yes, with the updates and other corrective patches of the games, the memory of the console quickly reaches saturation point. It is therefore almost mandatory to buy a large capacity MicroSD card to overcome the storage problems of the Switch.  On this point again, the XBOX Series S wins the game.  

Smart Features

Nintendo SwitchXBOX Series S
Battery4310 mAh
Wi-Fi standardWi-Fi 6 (ac)Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac) Dual Band
BluetoothYesNo
Number of USB ports53
Number of HDMI port21
RJ45Yes

Various

Nintendo SwitchXBOX Series S
ColorBlack, Red, BlueWhite
AppearancePlasticPlastic
ControllerJoy-ConJoy

Another point of difference between the two consoles is in the format of the games. Where on Nintendo Switch you can get cartridges in boxes, the XBOX Series S it to offer its attractive price of $ 352 overlooks this possibility. Microsoft’s entry-level console only offers dematerialized. It is therefore not made for collectors or those who do not have too much confidence in digital formats. In addition, it prevents any possibility of buying second-hand games, which is a shame. But, unlike the Nintendo e-shop which does not often offer price reductions, Microsoft’s dematerialized games are often promoted. 

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In addition, Microsoft and its XBOX offer the XBOX Game Pass Cloud gaming program. Against a subscription of $ 12 / month for a console or 15 USD / month to play on all compatible media, players will have access in a few clicks to dozens and dozens of video games. This service, which promises to be very complete and very stable, could make a difference and make aficionados of the cartridge / CD format change their minds. 

So all you have to do is ask yourself if a box is essential for you or if you only want to play your games without necessarily having the physical medium. 

Nintendo Switch View

The Xbox Series S View

Conclusion!

To conclude, the Nintendo Switch will be a perfect console if you like to relax in front of your favorite Nintendo games in front of the television and/or on a laptop. You will find your favorite licenses in Full HD and you can enjoy them anywhere. It is a perfect console for the family or as an add-on console for hardcore gamers who like certain Nintendo licenses. 

Nintendo Switch is also THE best choice if you can’t afford game cartridges. The XBOX Series S only accepts dematerialized games. 

On the other hand, if you are looking for a powerful console to play the latest AAA games from most third-party vendors without breaking the bank, then the XBOX Series S is THE right choice. The console offers an impressive catalogue of games with the possibility of playing XBOX Series X games, but also those of other generations of XBOX (first of the name, 360 and One). The graphics will be improved for the occasion. 

 

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