My Switch died. I know it's not the battery, and I suspect it's not the USB-C port, so it's probably one of the tiny, fiddly ICs that need replacement. I called around to some repair shops, and they'll charge about $150 USD to fix it. I figured I'd try fixing it myself, but I've never done microsoldering before, and I don't actually know where to begin diagnosing which component needs replacing. I'm on the fence about whether to pony up the cash to have it fixed, or to just give it up and put the money towards a Steam Deck instead.
What do?
>What do?
Buy PS5 or build pc
You could just buy a switch for 150, definitely don't pay for it to be repaired. If you don't think you can repair it yourself sell it as broken on ebay and buy a used one on ebay or craigslist.
I feel like I could probably fix it, if I actually knew what was wrong with it. I borrowed a multimeter, which I've never used before, and as far as I can tell, there don't seem to be any shorts at the caps where the most commonly failed charging IC are. But, like I said, I've never used a multimeter before, so I don't actually know what I'm doing as far as diagnosing the issue.
I doubt anyone could provide much help online without actually seeing it. And I don’t think anyone you meet in person will help you diagnose it for free, unless they’re a friend
Resistance measurements are pointless if the batttery is still connected, and I don't know if it can damage the multimeter or certain caps, as it and Ohms mode work by injecting a small amount of current between the probes, so be careful about that.
150 USD, second hands with 1 year warranty are cheaper, how the frick do those repair places sell that moronic shit to people?
Some places have too much stuff on the backlog, so they charge a premium price. Some people take up the higher prices due to their save data if they don't have NSO or if they have Pokemon/AC/Splatoon saves I'd guess. I also assume it can be a nuisance to troubleshoot a Switch sometimes and other jobs take less time to deal with.
>children's toy that can't even emulate most platforms or use an internet browser vs literally fricking anything else. Jesus dude, even a phone with parsec wins this contest.
>video game console which is dedicated to play video games
>this confuses and angers the PCBlack person
>or use an internet browser
Techlet has no idea what he's talking about again. Quelle surprise.
Call Nintendo and have them fix it for free, moron.
They won't fix it for free, they'll charge $100 for it, have a long turnaround time, and likely won't try to fix it because it's hacked. Or, if they do agree to fix it, there's a good chance I won't get mine back, they'll ship a different, working unit instead.
Just send your Switch to Ni-
>it's hacked
Nevermind then.
>hacked
You're right. They always fixed my shit for free though. Fixed my launch Wii after six years.
>no soldering experience
>no tools at hand
>don't even know how to diagnose electronic devices
Just cough up the $150 and let others fix your switch you cheapskate before you destroy your switch.
This board is for the discussion of video games, not tangentially related topics.
>What do?
Send your Switch directly to Nintendo and have them repair your Switch. Odds are the repairs are for free.
I already checked the serial number with Nintendo's support, and they'll charge $100 for the repair.
Is there no independent repair shops in your area?
There are, and they'll charge even more. Like I said, they'll charge $150. There's a chip called M9T236 that apparently commonly fails and is responsible for charging, and the chip itself is only like $10. I'm not actually sure that chip is the problem, though.
>I'm not actually sure that chip is the problem, though.
does your tendie switch hold a charge? if not yes that's the problem moron.
Not only will it not hold a charge, it won't turn on even when plugged in. I had a USB-C tester on hand already, and it draws 4.8V 0.0 amps when plugged into the wall. I disconnected the battery, and the system pulls 5V 0.29 amps when plugged into the wall with no battery. I've tried replacing the battery, since that was the cheapest and easiest solution, but the numbers are identical, so at least I know it's not the battery that failed. The problem is, three different chips are potentially causing the issue. There's M9, BQ, and P13. As far as I've been able to tell, there's no shorts on any of the capacitors around those three chips, which is apparently the usual indicator that one of those has failed.
replace all three anyways
Oh! Nasty bastards... I'm gonna be honest here, if you are willing to learn how to fix by yourself, you need to go ask for help literally anywhere else online but Ganker
I don't know why you didn't mention in OP that Nintendo offered a cheaper option, as that's more reasonable. Anyway, go to iFixit. You might find more reliable advice from people who've done repairs in the answer forum. Might take some time, though.
The chip itself is like $5-$10 on AliExpress, the question is if you are confident you can solder it onto the board without shorting the frick out of the pins. What you're paying $100+ for is that soldering experience.
I recently had the chip borked myself. $120 for repair in eastern europe, so not cheap, but I got them to replace the joycon rails and replace the broken inner button/led panel on one of the joycons (And I think they also replaced or at least cleaned up sticks since I got a lot less drift after I got it back), so wasn't that bad of a deal overall...
Get a Steam Deck or wait for switch 2. Hopefully you weren't a fool and only bought digital when physical wasn't available. That said if you're going steam deck then sell all your switch games
>90% of the thread is just "buy another" or "buy something else"
I think OP asked for a option valid for people who still have testosterone in their bodies, guys!
You're right. He should go to church and serve Christ with his time instead
The most you should do is troubleshooting, but don't make the Switch your first attempt at micro-soldering. Consider grabbing a used one as others say if you can't find a cheaper, reliable place to fix it.
Have you opened it up and had a look at it?
>Wat do
Nintendo repair this shit for free
Only if it's inside warranty. He also put $ so I'm gonna guess there's a bunch of consumer rights missing.