This article was originally written for TheNintendoVillage.com, a website I founded and ran from 2018 to 2021.

The first true hardware revision of the Nintendo Switch arrived last week and there are a number of changes from the original. There’s a D-pad in place of the directional buttons, the screen is a little smaller, and the battery life has been improved.

However, some things haven’t changed. YouTube channel Spawnwave has taken the Switch Lite apart and inspected the smaller system’s innards. In doing so, they learned that the more portable version of the Switch still uses the same sticks as the OG console.

Although they feature a different part number, so far as Spawnwave can tell, they’re made from the exact same parts and materials as the dockable console. That could be concerning for some players, given the widespread reports of ‘Joy-Con drift’ - the controllers registering an input without one actually being carried out.

In another minor blow, one thing Nintendo has changed is the ability to dock the non-hybrid hybrid system. Those of us who thought this may have been purely down to the size of the thing being unable to actually fit in a Switch dock - and thus held out hope of a third party solution further down the road - will be disappointed to find that’s not the case.

It turns out Nintendo have removed a crucial semiconductor required to interpret video, meaning there’s no chance of the system ever being hacked in order to allow docking further down the line.

You can check out the full tear down in the video below.

Did any of you guys pick up a Switch Lite? Let us know what you think of it down in the comments below.

Source: YouTube