Update: Nintendo has confirmed that VRR will only be functional in handheld mode; not in docked play. They also apologised for their error. This is definitely disappointing news for many gamers, but Nintendo could eventually add VRR support to TV mode in a future update if they choose to do so.
Nintendo Switch 2 supports VRR in handheld mode only. The incorrect information was initially published on the Nintendo Switch 2 website, and we apologise for the error.
Original Story (April 18th, 2025, at 10:27 am):
Nintendo previously announced that VRR (variable refresh rates) would be coming to the Switch 2. And while it still seems that’s true for the handheld screen, it may not be true for TV mode. Oliver Mackenzie from Digital Foundry has discovered that every regional Nintendo website has removed mention of VRR when it comes to TV play, leading some fans to suggest Nintendo lied about it.
Original:
Take in all the detail with screen resolutions up to 4K when you connect the Nintendo Switch 2 system to a compatible TV using the dedicated dock. The system also supports HDR, VRR, and frame rates up to 120 fps on compatible TVs.
Removed:
Take in all the detail with screen resolutions up to 4K when you connect the Nintendo Switch 2 system to a compatible TV using the dedicated dock. The system also supports HDR and frame rates up to 120 fps on compatible TVs.
What Does This Mean?
Nintendo can’t catch a break when it comes to negative Switch 2 news. The price is too high, the game prices are astronomical, the Japanese pricing is “racist,” Mario Kart World’s Direct was “meh,” the USA tariffs might increase the price further…
However, in this case, I believe it’s possible a non-technical person wrote the description for Nintendo’s website, and only later did a technical person catch the mistake. It’s quite possible Switch 2 does not, and never did, support VRR on TV mode. Should Nintendo have known this? Absolutely, but we can’t prove it was a “lie” or a “mistake.”
It’s definitely disappointing, because VRR is something the PS5 and Xbox consoles support. It means that if you want the best performance in terms of stable frame rate, you might need to play in handheld mode in certain situations.
What is VRR Anyway?
VRR adjusts a TV or monitor’s refresh rate to match the game console’s refresh rate, so they remain perfectly in sync. You’d need a compatible TV (or monitor), and game console (or PC) to make use of it. Here’s Sony’s promotional video for the PS5’s VRR feature (below).
What do you think? Did Nintendo lie? Let me know in the comments below.
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