Despite the relatively beefy specs of the Nintendo Switch 2, the battery life will still be comparable to the original launch Nintendo Switch while undocked. The exact battery life will depend on several factors, like brightness settings, the game being played, and several other hardware settings, but with a slightly larger battery than the original Switch, players can expect a life expectancy roughly in-line with that of the launch version of the original console. With the Switch 2 being much stronger, that could be a good sign for handheld players.

The official specs from Nintendo for the Switch 2 indicate the battery performance will be aligned with the launch version of the Switch 1, with the battery estimated to last 2 to 6.5 hours. And in an interview during Nintendo's "Ask the Developer" series, Switch 2 producer Kouichi Kawamoto stated that the battery itself is slightly bigger to accommodate the increase in hardware power, saying the company made efforts "such as increasing the battery capacity to 1.2 times that of Switch."

Added Switch 2 senior director Takuhiro Dohta:

"Because Switch has been accepted by many players and played over a long period of time, in the same way, we wanted Switch 2 to be a dedicated game system with performance that can stand the test of time. We carefully considered the balance between processing capability and system memory capacity, and we believe we’ve managed to create a system that players won’t feel is outdated later down the line."

Nintendo Switch 2's Battery Life Explained

It Should Be Very Similar To The Original Console's

The Nintendo Switch got a mid-generation battery life upgrade back in 2019, putting the battery life anywhere between 4.5 to 9 hours undocked, depending on the game being played and the hardware settings. That was an increase from the initial release of the Switch, which saw a battery life of 2.5 to 6.5 hours undocked.

A handheld device like the Switch 2 lasting anywhere between 2.5 and 6.5 hours is impressive, but with a lot of confirmed games for the console on the way, battery life is sure to vary, depending on what game is being played and other hardware settings, also similar to the original Switch. Bigger games, like Tears of the Kingdom, saw the battery last around 3 hours for most players on the original Switch, so we can expect to see similar battery life with bigger games on the Switch 2.

Our Take: A Bigger Battery Will Help

The Switch 2 Needs More Power For A Bigger Console

The Switch 2 getting a bigger battery, roughly 1.2 times the size of the original, will definitely help with the increase in power from the Switch to the Switch 2. The Switch 2 will be 4K compatible when the machine is docked, and even the handheld mode will offer both Quality and Performance Modes for some games like Metroid Prime 4: Beyond. It remains to be seen how different graphics modes will affect the battery, but the Performance Mode is probably easier on the console's battery.

While it remains to be seen how well the battery will perform, the Nintendo Switch 2 offering a comparable experience to the launch Switch should at least satisfy most fans, despite some probable desire for even longer battery life.

Source: Nintendo (1), (2)