The Nintendo Switch Is 10 Times More Powerful Than an Average iPad

The power advantage could be important for Nintendo as it looks to compete with the growing popularity of mobile gaming on smartphones and tablets.

[SojournUK]

Just shows how underpowered iPads are.

[Erik7357]

And how powerful Switch is for a portable

[MrSega]

More powerful than Vita less than x360.

[EddieNX]

Xbox 360 and Vita 0.5 GB RAM

Switch 4.0GB RAM it's better in every conceivable way, by far. I know you're probz just trolling but yh....

[mikeslemonade]

^As if Ram is the main determining factor of power, just saying..

Apple products are always one of the weaker devices and the ipad is old.

[Skillz1215]

its a console

[chrisoadamson]

switch is a home computer .. that happens to be portable . stated many many many times by Nintendo . the switch is not powerful for a new console that is weaker than 3 yes old hardware . I.e. xbox and ps4

[nveenio]

What's the "average iPad"? Why not compare it with the latest, most powerful iPad? I bet it's not 10x more powerful than that. And then what happens when the next iPad comes out? Or when the iPad is faster? Are we shocked that new tech is better than old tech?

[Utalkin2me]

Well it is a mis-leading title. Plus the Ipad does 100 times more

[MyDietEqualsGames]

Yes. The Ipad has way more productivity than the Nintendo Switch. As a gaming device, the Switch wipes it's semiconductor-ass with the Ipad, though.

[MVGeneral]

Yeah it's a misleading article. What iPad are they talking about? Because it isn't 10x more powerful than the latest iPad. Maybe the 1st one ever released?
A lot of smoke and mirrors reporting going on with the Nintendo switch.

[Utalkin2me]

@MVGeneral

Thats my point. People only read titles and claim this blah blah. When in fact it makes themselves look stupid. The newest Ipad is stronger then the switch in every aspect.

[cartoonx1]

coz they not comparing it with the current ipads, but ancient ipads. an ipad pro is much faster thn switch.

[XStation4pio_Pro]

the latest iPad is 800 GFLOPS which puts gpu ever so slightly less than Switch in dock mode and more than when in portable mode...but with faster memory than the switch. and a much more powerful cpu. this article states "average iPad" not "latest iPad"

[joab777]

This makes the entire premise kina absurd!

[babadivad]

The switch is actually: 393 - 471 GFLOPS when docked in FP32. and 157 - 196 FP32 undocked.

[MVGeneral]

Yeah it's a misleading article. Like everything nintendo is doing these days.
"Best selling console" (Nintendo console)
"Sold out everywhere, high demand" (only 2 million will be released all of March .

[joab777]

It says average Ipad. What about the newest Ipad?

[babadivad]

As I mentioned earlier in this thread, the newest iPad destroys the Nintendo Switch pretty handily.

[babadivad]

Which iPad? Certainly not the newest iPad. I hate Apple and would never by one of their products but there's no way that the switch is x10 more powerful than the most recent iPad.

In actuality, they are probably close to equal in power. Off top, the iPad has a FAAAAR more powerful CPU. That part is not even up for debate.

As for the GPU of A9x, it's actually faster than the X1 in the Switch[according to benchmarks ran by Anandtech].

The iPad GPU gets a score of 80 fps in the GFXBench 3.0 Manhattan (Offscreen). While the X1 SoC[the chip powering the switch] is getting a score of 65.6. This loss would be compounded by Nintendo's decision to downlock their version of the chip.

As far as the ram, the iPad Pro has 4GB of RAM, just like the switch.

So, in what world is the Switch x10 more powerful than the iPad?? MAAAYBE the very first gen iPad, maybe.

From everything we know about the 2 chips in question, it's slower than the iPad in almost every way. This article is complete nonsense.

I can't believe I'm defending Apple of all people.

If we are being honest, your new Galaxy S8 is gonna probably have a more powerful SoC than the Switch. Especially the Exynos version.

[NotoriousWhiz]

With the cost of the latest ipad, you could buy 2 switches.

[babadivad]

@NotoriousWhiz

So we're moving the goal post now?? The article said it's x10 faster than the iPad. When it's actually slower than the iPad. And about on par with the iPad of 2-3 years ago. Price is irrelevant to this conversation.

And you can also get devices with the X1 SoC in it running un-hobbled and cheaper than the Nintendo Switch. So what's the point in mentioning price? Unless you are arguing the Switch should be cheaper than it is, of which I can agree.

[MVGeneral]

Nintendo fans will grasp at anything to justify their purchase and defend their cult leaders, nintendo.

[NotoriousWhiz]

Who said anything about moving the goal posts? I'm just pointing out facts.

[Einhander1971]

Just shows how much the grunt the awesome little switch has. Just playing fast Rmx proves that .

[The_Hooligan]

I'm sure it does but can it do it all like this

https://m.youtube.com/watch...

Lol I love this show. I know it's an iPhone and not iPad but still funny. :)

[bluefox755]

"Average Ipad" meaning they're not comparing it to the newer ipad pro, that has around 500 gflops and double the Switch's memory bandwidth, they're comparing it to older ipads that are at least a few years old..

[EddieNX]

How much is an Ipad pro?

The Switch is powerful for a tablet , digital foundry will back me up on this, but of course, you Nintendo haters love to compare Switch to Huge, traditional home consoles lol

[bluefox755]

Not the point. The point is the article is at best misleading, and blatantly false at worst.

Also, I don't hate Nintendo. I grew up with it. I still have my SNES and N64. Just because I think their new console sucks, doesn't mean I hate the company. I'm disappointed, sure, but I want them to succeed. That fanboy mentality you have doesn't help anyone, certainly not Nintendo. And people are comparing it to home consoles because NINTENDO themselves said Switch is a home console FIRST AND FOREMOST.

[EddieNX]

HOME CONSOLE FIRST AND FOREMOST.

Okay, remove the joycon and what your left with is a Small Tablet with all of the chips inside. This is a hardware based fact, its NOT a home console. Its a hybrid, at best.

[ABizzel1]

An iPad Pro starts at $599, with hardware performance that is nearly identical to the Switch on paper.

The price difference comes from Switch being a dedicated gaming device foremost, and the iPad being a multimedia device.

*The iPad has a much larger 9.7" screen, with better color display, and over 2x the resolution of the Switch.
*12MP camera w. HDR for photos
*A MUCH better battery (10 hours of streaming, +5 hours of 3D gaming)

That being said it's an iPad and Apple is notorious for overcharging their fans for hardware.

[Amongunz]

Youre right. These dummies apparently do not know what average means so its the articles fault and it is deemed "misleading". I thought it was pretty clear at first glance. Then again. Im not ps4 fanboy.

[babadivad]

Shield TV has this same chip as the Switch, except it's running at a faster speed[I.E. not down-clocked like the Switch]. It's currently $199. And you can likely find it for far cheaper than that. The price isn't the point of the article. It said the Switch is x10 faster than the iPad. And that's patently untrue.

The Switch is slower than the most recent iPads in every way[CPU, GPU, and RAM]. Not only that, you would likely have to go back to first and second generation iPads before you would start to approach the claimed x10 faster mark in this article. And even still, I don't think it could get there.

[Utalkin2me]

@ABizzel1

Wow, way to smack him around with facts. He never provides any facts, just his little opnion.

[ABizzel1]

@bluefox755

Completely agree.

This entire article is full of deception. Unless there's full on evidence that the "average iPad" is an iPad 1, 2, 3 or original mini, then this article is absolutely false (aka The Switch is 10x more powerful than iPads that are more than 5 years old). Anything from the Air / Mini 2 line-up the Switch is only a few times more powerful best case scenario, and the Air line launched in 2013 (4 years ago).

Switch is 3x - 4x more powerful than the original iPad Air (2013) and iPad Mini 4 (2015, aka a smaller rebrand of the original Air).

Switch is 2x more powerful than an iPad Air 2 (2014)

Switch is equal in power to an iPad Pro (2015).

A 2017 brand new Nintendo "console" or "platform" is as powerful as a tablet that released almost 2 years ago. This comparison shows several things, however, it does not show the Switch being "powerful" in any light. The Switch is right on par with top of the line tablets, it just has a lower API, dedicated developers, and proven games and franchises to truly show off it's gaming performance whereas these tablets don't.

1. It also shows Apple is charging a huge premium to it's consumers for their hardware, and likely making over $100 profit per iPad sold, excluding R&D. Although ever so slightly in their defense there is a lot of secondary tech in the iPad that makes the price high.

2. The Switch would theoretically be more powerful than any iPad, but the underclocks hold back the hardwares full potential for thermal, throttling, and battery needs which was the right decision for the X1, but the X2 would have been the solution to all the above and fully justified the $299 starting price.

3. The benefits of having amazing talent and low level API for developing games, because even though the Switch and the iPad Pro are equals in power Switch games show a lot graphically because they have dedicated and experienced developers making games for the hardware.

The power is there for tablet gaming, developers just don't have the tools and talent to take complete advantage of it.

[Amongunz]

Who reads your comments? Sheesh

[babadivad]

It's Slower than the iPad Pro.

[ABizzel1]

@Amongunz

Those who are informed, intelligent, and have an attention span and intellect greater than a 4th grader XD

[Utalkin2me]

Very well said. Glad there is some intelligent life here.

[conanlifts]

Its a hideously worded statement. They should have at least stated what they consider the "average" ipad to be. As it stands the comparison is useless and open to speculation.

Regarding your comment about disliking their new console. It depends how you view it. For a portable it is amazing. I don't really use it docked though and its probably not the Best choice for a home console. Having the ability to dock it to play mk8 in multiplayer will be good though.

[Amongunz]

Well.. to me. Average means you sum up a range of numbers and divide that range by the amount of numbers. Pretty straightforward

[DashMad]

yeah maybe stronger on paper but Ipad does have IOS overhead and stupid file size limitation on their apps which can only have maximum of 4GB because of that it can't run modern game or last gen game that have over 4GB.

[OpenGL]

Average iPad? What do they mean? The Nintendo Switch is definitely not 10x more powerful than an iPad running an A8X, A9X, or A10. It's likely weaker than the A9X, which is the most powerful chip currently produced by Apple. The A9X used in the iPad Pro has 2x the memory bandwidth of the Nintendo Switch at 51GB/s.

[LucasRuinedChildhood]

Nintendo fanboys make their own reality. lol.

[LastCenturyRob]

What? The reality of awesome games?

[Derceto]

*gasp* Incredible. What a marvel of technology. >.>

[Nu]

*flashes light* "sir please get out before I call the cops"

[its_JEFF]

The power of the device is not what pulls the mobile gamers, it's the convenience. "Mobile gamers" don't look at themselves as "gamers" they have a device that just so happens to have the ability to play games as well. They like that it's an all-in-one, the difficult thing it to convince them to want to carry another device with them that is only a dedicated games machine.

I honestly think most mobile gamers look at a dedicated games machine as just a "toy" and don't realize that their smart phone is just like that toy, but not. It's that stigma of playing with a toy that they don't want. I honestly don't blame them for thinking that. Nintendo has done a pretty good job at designing the Switch to look more "adult" or at least inline with what modern tablets look like... where they fall short, and I'm hoping this is where 3rd party manufacturers come in, is these carrying cases for the Switch. I'm sorry, but those things look like they're for kids. I personally would not carry a Switch around with me in the Zelda carrying case. Now if there was a nice contemporary leather case for it, like they have for iPads... count me in.

[Athos]

There are plenty of cases out there for Switch that dont have the kiddie imprints on them. Mine for instance is leather with a Switch logo, thats all. As far as mobile gamers looking at mobile platforms like toys? Yeah, I disagree with that probably along with the millions upon millions of gamers that have bought 3ds, 2ds, Vita, PSP and more. A while lot of people carry around that dedicated device.

Sorry, for me a real gamer games at home and on the road.

[its_JEFF]

I had no idea that they made leather ones, that would be one that I would rock. I can see your point about the Millions of people who have 3ds/2ds/Vitas/PSP not looking at them as toys... but just cause they bought it doesn't mean they don't consider them toys, right? My cousin buys 3ds & 2ds for this 2 daughters, calls them toys.

But that's not the point, I'm not talking about those 10's of millions of people who carry around a dedicated gaming device with them... I'm talking about the hundreds and hundreds of millions who have smart phones who are just mobile gamers. That is the market that Nintendo has been aiming for since Wii. They got a taste of just a fraction of that, potential, success with the Wii and they've been chasing it since.

I don't even know what a "real gamer" is actually. Just cause you person A owns more game consoles than person B, doesn't make A more of a gamer, not to me. Just cause person A plays a lot more games than person B, doesn't make A more of a gamer. Maybe person B has less time, doesn't mean he enjoys games any less than person A. A gamer is a gamer, to me, no matter what platform they play on. If you enjoy games, you're a gamer. That's like a fan of movies calling another one not a true "movie buff" cause they never watch Citizen Kane or disliked it, nah... dude likes movies, just not the same ones you do.

[admiralvic]

"I'm hoping this is where 3rd party manufacturers come in, is these carrying cases for the Switch... Now if there was a nice contemporary leather case for it, like they have for iPads... count me in."

https://www.sfbags.com/coll... ?

[its_JEFF]

and I'm in... that's pretty nice.

[_LarZen_]

This is just a nonsense article. There is no data shown and no examples. I've played new games on iPad and they look better then what I've seen on my Switch. Zelda included.

And while the Switch runs at 720p in handheld. The iPad runs at 2048 ×
1536. While the Pro is at a whooping 2732 × 2048. If Nintendo made Zelda: Breath of the Wild for iPad it would look and probably run much better.

[Athos]

BoTW is a launch title. Go back and look at launch titles for other platforms and I guarantee you a lot are hard to look at. If you want graphics, Fast RMX is a better example.

[_LarZen_]

That's true. I've tried Fast RMX and there are better looking games in the genera on iPad.

[truechainz]

Serious question, are the any games that are expansive on an open world scale on ipad? It's been a while since I even really played an ios game and I was curious how far they've come. What are the new games you are referring to that look better than Zelda?

[Scatpants]

They probably mean a gen1 ipad.

[DarkZane]

"The power advantage could be important for Nintendo as it looks to compete with the growing popularity of mobile gaming on smartphones and tablets. "

Sorry, but the Wii casual audience would still rather by a phone or a tablet today rather than a console, which is why the Switch will not even come close to Wii numbers.

It also says average ipad, so the not average ones are not only better, but Apple release a product almost every year, which means this year's ipad and iphone will have more power.

[Athos]

"Sorry, but the Wii casual audience would still rather by a phone or a tablet today rather than a console, which is why the Switch will not even come close to Wii numbers."

Maybe you could use that insight for predicting the Dow tomorrow. Then again I am sure you're filthy rich being able to see the future and all.

[kevnb]

whats is the "average ipad"?

[Psytrix]

Is this supposed to be an achievement? Quick - someone give Reggie a pat on the back - their Nvidia shield is stronger than an iPad.

[_-EDMIX-_]

I need to see that Switch article, talking about "Nintendo Switch is 1000 times more powerful then average nokia phone"

[flappo]

Except Apple upgrade their iPads every year with a new cpu/gpu combo that usually doubles performance whereas the switch like most consoles is stuck at one configuration for it's entire shelf life.

[seraphym88]

So your gunna spend a thousand bucks a year? Have fun.

[flappo]

You can get an iPad for the same price as a base switch

And unlike a switch you don't need to spend lots of additional money on additional gimmicky control pads...

[Elimin8]

somehow that statement doesn't sound right. An 'average' iPad? I'd just say its 'x' times more powerful than the iPad really.

[seraphym88]

newst iPads cost 2-3 times what switch costs, with barely more power and no dedicated controls. Want to play on your tv? Fork over another 300-400$ for stand, connectors and controller. Switch is 300$, news to iPad over 900$. This whole comment section is one big troll lmao.