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Nintendo Switch doesn't come with Joy-Con charging grip

C

Conkerkid11

Member
Instead it comes with a non-chargeable version that's cheaper. If you want the charging version, you have to buy it separately for $30.

The previous thread regarding this was locked because people didn't believe OP and thought Nintendo hadn't yet revealed enough to confirm or deny the claim.

Specs of the grip that comes with the console.
YvhACsO.png
Click to expand...

https://www.nintendo.co.jp/hardware/switch/specs/index.html#5

Specs of the $30 one.
AF9XTmM.png
Click to expand...

https://www.nintendo.co.jp/hardware/switch/accessories/index.html

Edit: A lot of people are already trying to contradict me without sources. This is straight from the horse's mouth. The grip that comes with the $300 console is just a piece of plastic that makes the joy-con controllers somewhat similar to a normal controller. It's basically the equivalent of the steering wheel accessory.

The issue here is that by default, the only way to charge the joy-con controllers is by connecting them to the Switch while it's docked or while it's undocked and plugged into an outlet through USB. The problem here is this means that by default, you can only charge one set of joy-cons at a time, and you can't use them on a TV while they're charging like most modern controllers. So... By default, you need to drop $30 on this or $70 on a pro-controller in order to play Nintendo Switch games with a standard controller on your TV while charging the controller.
 
W

WhiteRabbitEXE

Member
Yay, more cost cutting and passing the buck to the consumer. They really couldn't have just given folks the better one?

Still not as bad as deliberately shipping the Wii U with undersized GamePad batteries though.
 
A

ASIS

Member
This is a complete non issue if the battery life of the joy cons are good enough.

If not.. oh boy.
 
X

xxracerxx

Don't worry, I'll vouch for them.
Also, the charging grip will not have a battery in it like some are speculating in another thread. Unless of course a battery is 9g these days.
 
B

BigPete

Member
Again, the difference is that the pack in grip has a USB port for charging, which the stand alone grip has a battery pack.
 
C

Conkerkid11

Member
Chindogg said:
The grip in the box has a USB cable to charge the Joy-Cons.

This has been stated in several threads already.
Click to expand...
I'm not suggesting the controllers can't be charged. I'm pointing out that they can't be charged together. Considering they're used together in most games, it's inconvenient to charge them separately.

Also, what do they connect to? I don't see any ports on either joy-con controller that could serve as charging ports.

BigPete said:
Again, the difference is that the pack in grip has a USB port for charging, which the stand alone grip has a battery pack.
Click to expand...
How do you charge the battery pack if it has no ports?
 
X

xxracerxx

Don't worry, I'll vouch for them.
Chindogg said:
The grip in the box has a USB cable to charge the Joy-Cons.

This has been stated in several threads already.
Click to expand...

Not sure where they are plugging that thing into then.

WhiteRabbitEXE said:
Wait, then what is the difference?
Click to expand...

One has a USB-C, the other does not.

BigPete said:
Again, the difference is that the pack in grip has a USB port for charging, which the stand alone grip has a battery pack.
Click to expand...

Then why no USB-C spec on the pack in? Or why is the weight difference only 9g if the Charging unit has a battery?
 
U

Uhyve

Member
Chindogg said:
The grip in the box has a USB cable to charge the Joy-Cons.

This has been stated in several threads already.
Click to expand...
Didn't they say during the conference that the Switch came with a USB type-c cable to charge the unit while playing in handheld mode? Don't think it was for the packaged Joy-con grip.
 
D

Deleted member 752119

Unconfirmed Member
jchap said:
Charges on the console. Why would you want the charging one unless you had 2 more?
Click to expand...

1. If they happen to die/be dead when you want to play on the TV. With charger grip you can plug in and play.

2. To not have to hassle with move them back and forth between the grip and the docked console for people playing only/mostly on the tv.


For those still confused, the grip that comes in the bundle is just a plastic shell--no USB-c port or charging contacts. The only ways to charge the Joy Cons out of the box is to have them attached to the tablet and have the tablet either docked or plugged into a USB outlet with a USB-C cable while in portable mode (presumably you could game not plugged in with dead joycons, it would just drain battery and not charge the Joy Cons much probably).

If you want to charge another way, or play on TV while charging, you need the $30 charging grip that's sold separately.
 
C

Chindogg

Member
Conkerkid11 said:
I'm not suggesting the controllers can't be charged. I'm pointing out that they can't be charged together. Considering they're used together in most games, it's inconvenient to charge them separately.

Also, what do they connect to? I don't see any ports on either joy-con controller that could serve as charging ports.
Click to expand...

Yes they can. The grip that you slide both Joy-Cons into has a USB plug that charges them. The Charge Grip you're talking about has a built in battery so it can wirelessly charge the Joy-Cons are you're playing.
 
R

rpmurphy

Member
Spectromixer said:
Does it come with an ac adapter or just the dock?
Click to expand...
Specs says to dock the JoyCons to the console or the JoyCon charging grip to charge them. The console comes with the dock and an AC adapter, so the JoyCons are charged in addition to the console when plugged in.

ASIS said:
This is a complete non issue if the battery life of the joy cons are good enough.

If not.. oh boy.
Click to expand...
Specs say roughly 20 hour battery life on JoyCons, roughly 3.5 hours to charge.
 
C

Conkerkid11

Member
Uhyve said:
Didn't they say during the conference that the Switch came with a USB type-c cable to charge the unit while playing in handheld mode? Don't think it was for the packaged Joy-con grip.
Click to expand...
We're not talking about the tablet.

We're talking about the joy-con controllers and the grip the console comes with.
 
Trojita

Trojita

Rapid Response Threadmaker
I still don't understand what is going on.

How can Nintendo's big system reveal that they've been delaying for awhile be this confusing?
 
X

xxracerxx

Don't worry, I'll vouch for them.
Chindogg said:
Yes they can. The grip that you slide both Joy-Cons into has a USB plug that charges them. The Charge Grip you're talking about has a built in battery so it can wirelessly charge the Joy-Cons are you're playing.
Click to expand...

Nope. Click on the damn links he provided. No where does it show a USB-C on the grip that is included (DO NOT link to the Treehouse video, that appears to be the Charging Grip).

Also, it doesn't appear the Charging Grip has a battery like you think.
 
J

jaina

Member
ASIS said:
This is a complete non issue if the battery life of the joy cons are good enough.

If not.. oh boy.
Click to expand...

20 hours officially. 3.5 hours to recharge fully. and in worst case plug a charging cable into included grip for direct power. so non issue.
 
A

ASIS

Member
rpmurphy said:
Specs say roughly 20 hour battery life on JoyCons, roughly 3.5 hours to charge.
Click to expand...

What? That's incredible!

How the hell did they pack so much stuff into these tiny controllers and still deliver a good battery life?

No, really, this is amazing.
 
B

broncobuster

Banned
Trying to make sense of this.

Basically, I have to reattach the joycons to the tablet to charge them? Or does the included grip at least have a USB pass through (no battery) that means I can essentially treat it as I do a normal gamepad?
 
C

Conkerkid11

Member
Chindogg said:
Yes they can. The grip that you slide both Joy-Cons into has a USB plug that charges them. The Charge Grip you're talking about has a built in battery so it can wirelessly charge the Joy-Cons are you're playing.
Click to expand...
Did you just completely ignore the OP?

It was basically two pictures.

Uhyve said:
Right, I'm saying that the included cable isn't necessarily intended for the included grip.
Click to expand...
Oh, sorry for the misunderstanding.

CrashPrime said:
Can't you just pop the Joy-Con's on the tablet to charge them? Why is THIS of all problems a sticking issue for people?
Click to expand...
But suppose you want to play it as a console...
 
D

Deleted member 752119

Unconfirmed Member
Chindogg said:
Yes they can. The grip that you slide both Joy-Cons into has a USB plug that charges them. The Charge Grip you're talking about has a built in battery so it can wirelessly charge the Joy-Cons are you're playing.
Click to expand...

That is false. The pack in is just a plastic shell. The $30 does not have a battery (specs show it barely weighs more than the comfort grip), just a usb-c port and charger contacts on the rails.

This has been shown through spec sheets from the Nintendo of Japan site in multiple threads. Get informed or stop posting.
 
B

Brawl96

Member
I don't understand. With just the included components. How do I charge my Joy Cons? Only when attached to the console itself?
 
J

Jarmel

Banned
Wait, what's the difference between the charging grip and the regular grip if you can just connect the USB cable directly to the Joycons?
 
E

Effect

Member
rpmurphy said:
Specs says to dock the JoyCons to the console or the JoyCon charging grip to charge them. The console comes with the dock and an AC adapter, so the JoyCons are charged in addition to the console when plugged in.


Specs say roughly 20 hour battery life on JoyCons, roughly 3.5 hours to charge.
Click to expand...

I assumed this was the case and it makes sense. Done playing slide the JoyCons on to the switch. When you're ready to play slide them off and into the grip. This seems fairly simple. The charge on the JoyCons are suppose to last several hours. 20 hours I think it was said on a full charge.

Or buy a charging grip for $30 I think and not do that. Or buy a pro controller and leave the JoyCons always connected to the Switch. Other systems have additional charging methods you can buy extra. There is no different.
 
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