Is It Safe to Use a Phone Charger to Charge the Nintendo Switch? The Nintendo Switch was designed to make use of a USB-C charging connector that you would likely make use of to charge your phone, headphones, and even your laptop. This is great because it means you would be able to replace your charger if you misplaced the original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) charger.
But, Nintendo recommends that its customers make use of only the official USB-C charger that ships with the switch or a charger that has been licensed for the console. And this is because although they may look identical, not every charger is built the same. Your experience with a third-party alternative might vary.
Charging a Nintendo Switch
Let’s say you make use of a charger that does not produce high power output, for example, it might take you days to fully recharge your switch – or it might not charge the console at all if you are playing games while it is plugged in. This is usually the case when it comes to ordinary smartphone chargers.
On the flip side, The consequences of making use of a third-party charger might turn out to be severe. Making use of a charger that fast charges does not properly regulate its energy output might in turn damage your device or cause the battery to overheat.
In most situations, you get to make use of your phone or tablet charger in other to recharge the Nintendo Switch due to how the USB Power Delivery specification is built. Tons of Switch owners report doing this. The deal here is that Nintendo did not entirely pay attention to that power delivery protocol so it might be possible to overcharge the console if you are not making use of the Nintendo-branded charger.
Nintendo Switch Charger Specs
The Nintendo Switch comes in different varieties which include the Regular Switch, the Switch OLED, and the Switch Lite. The first two consoles which is the switch and switch OLED carry the same charging specifications, but the Switch Lite needs lesser power to run it.
Nintendo happens to ship the switch consoles with a 39-watt USB-C power delivery (PD) AC adapter that is built to deliver 15 volts/2.6 amps and 5 volts/1.5 amps. With these specs, you might find that the switch charger would also work well for recharging your tablet, smartphone, and possibly your laptop if you are making use of an Ultrabook.
If you check out the specs for your smartphone, tablet or laptop charger, you might find out they carry a much higher wattage than the switch’s 39W AC adapter; a lot of them come in 45W, 65W, and even 100W and 240W varieties. That does not exactly means that you cannot use these chargers with the switch, however, due to the technology introduced with the USB-C.
To Put it simply, USB-C PD chargers are inherently a lot smarter in the sense that they can adjust to meet the demands of gadgets, which includes ones that are not built to Utilize their full charging potential. The charger might in turn go up to 65W, for example, but the switch would not offer you that full load and it would instead get you the power level required to safely and quickly recharge.
Is It Safe to Use a Phone Charger to Charge the Nintendo Switch?
The good news here is that you can make use of the USB-C chargers that are available on the market to recharge your Nintendo Switch. According to Satechi, on its support website, he explains that it is safe to use the company’s 108W travel charger, noting that the 90W port on the charger would automatically offer the 15V/2.6 amps that the console is making use of. Things can turn out to be complicated if you are looking for charging profiles.
To put it simply, a charging profile means the information that the charger uses to optimize charging the device it is plugged into. Some third-party chargers, particularly ones that are very cheap may not have the right charging profile to properly charge your Nintendo. This could lead to a situation where the power output is not being managed very well and that, in turn, could potentially lead to a battery that degrades a lot faster or possibly even damage the console.
FAQ
Can I Use a Regular USB-C charger for Nintendo Switch?
The PDP Gaming USB Type c charging cable is officially licensed by Nintendo and can be used to charge your Nintendo Switch or the Nintendo Switch Lite, the Pro Controller, or even your mobile phone. The Nintendo Switch Dock and Pro controller are excluded.
Is it Safe to use a USB charger on a Switch?
It is safe for you to charge the Nintendo Switch using a third-party USB charger or Power bank. At the moment, there have been no confirmed reports of quality chargers damaging a Switch console. But there have been issues with third-party docks.
Can you Charge a Switch with a Fast Phone Charger?
The fast charging methods of the switch and Samsung chargers are not compatible, so the charger would fall back to slow charging in other to prevent any damage.
What else can I Use to Charge my Nintendo Switch?
A Nintendo USB AC adapter can be used instead of a Nintendo Switch Dock and AC adapter.
