👍 At long last, we now know categorically whether the Switch 2's dock supports variable refresh rate
🧪 Thanks to testing by The Verge involving a Steam Deck, and a female-to-male USB-C extension cable, we now know that the dock supports 4K 120Hz output with variable refresh rate
🤔 The same also was true when they tested a Lenovo Legion Go S running SteamOS and an Asus ROG Ally X running Bazzite
🤷♂️ Currently, VRR is only supported in handheld mode for Switch 2
The conundrum of whether the Nintendo Switch 2's dock supports VRR, or variable refresh rate, might have been solved once and for all.
According to some new testing from The Verge, the console's dock supports VRR when used with a Steam Deck and a female-to-male USB-C extension cable. Once plugged in, 4K variable refresh rate has been tested as working at up to 120fps natively.
It isn't just the Steam Deck that The Verge tested, either. Other handhelds, such as the Lenovo Legion Go S with SteamOS running and an Asus ROG Ally X running Bazzite can output 4K resolution at 120Hz refresh rate with both HDR and variable refresh rate support when using the Switch 2’s dock.
The issue is that we're still not sure whether the Switch 2 itself supports variable refresh rate when docked, even if we know it does when the console is in handheld mode using a form of Nvidia's G-Sync.
When Switch 2 was first announced, Nintendo had listed variable refresh rate support in docked mode on the console's spec sheet, although it was mysteriously removed from product pages in the USA and Canada.
Nintendo then came out and cleared up that Switch 2 doesn't support VRR when in TV mode, only in handheld mode.
The fact that the Switch 2 supports VRR, or variable refresh rate, at least in handheld mode, means that games will be able to run smoothly without any of the dreaded tearing or juddering at different refresh rates, such as 40fps – a popular frame rate for Steam Deck users.
However, it’s still frustrating for those who want to use Switch 2 primarily in docked mode as a TV-based console, where it's capable of outputting at 4K resolution and more graphical fidelity.
The fact the Switch 2 dock is capable of VRR suggests that firmware update could enable the feature in the future. It took a few years before Sony brought VRR to PS5, but it was later added in a system update.
Reece Bithrey is a journalist with bylines for Trusted Reviews, Digital Foundry, PC Gamer, TechRadar and more. He also has his own blog, UNTITLED, and graduated from the University of Leeds with a degree in International History and Politics in 2023.