Key Takeaways
- Use the Fast Settings menu for simple entry to generally adjusted choices like display brightness and quantity.
- Allow darkish mode to make the interface simpler on the eyes.
- Customise Sleep Mode settings to optimize battery life and forestall computerized activation throughout media playback.
Should you simply bought your first Switch this vacation season, otherwise you’re a seasoned veteran, there’s a very good likelihood you wish to get probably the most from Nintendo’s console. This information will take you thru all of the console’s most notable settings, explaining what they do and the best way to allow them. Exterior a number of exceptions, all of the choices talked about beneath are accessible from the System Settings menu, which you will discover on the console’s residence display.

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1 Get acquainted with Fast Settings
Maintain down the Swap’s Dwelling button
Though not technically a setting itself, the Fast Settings menu affords a handy technique to entry the choices customers are prone to tweak most frequently, all with out digging into the Swap’s System Settings.
You possibly can open the Fast Settings by holding down the Swap’s Dwelling button for a number of brief seconds. From right here, you’ll be able to activate or off the console’s auto-brightness and airplane mode options, in addition to alter display brightness and quantity and put your Swap to sleep. It’s additionally a useful technique to verify the time and your system’s remaining battery life with out leaving a sport.
With regards to battery life, you may make it simpler to estimate how a lot playtime you have got left by seeing your Swap’s remaining battery energy represented as a share. To take action, maintain the ZL and ZR buttons on the similar time when you have the Fast Settings menu open. Alternatively, you may make the proportion seem completely by opening the System Settings menu and enabling Console Battery (%) below the System part.
Press the ZL and ZR buttons collectively when the Fast Settings menu is open to see your Swap’s remaining battery represented as a share.
2 Save your eyes with darkish mode
Go Fundamental Black
Like many different fashionable units and apps, the Nintendo Swap affords a darkish mode setting that darkens interface components to make them simpler on the eyes. Sadly, it’s not a real darkish mode that takes benefit of the properties of OLED screens to cut back battery drain, however if you happen to discover the Swap’s default theme has a retina-searing high quality to it, what’s accessible is an efficient different. To allow darkish mode:
- Open the System Settings menu
- Scroll all the way down to the Themes part
- Choose Fundamental Black
3 Get extra pure colours on OLED Swap
Vivid vs Customary
The OLED Switch boasts among the best shows to ever grace a gaming handheld. It affords glorious movement readability and distinction. Out of the field, nevertheless, the OLED display can look over-saturated. Fortunately, if you happen to’re not a fan of that look, the console affords two totally different colour modes. Right here’s the best way to swap between them:
- Open the System Settings menu
- Scroll all the way down to the System part
- Faucet Console-Display screen Colours
- Choose Vivid or Customary, relying in your choice

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4 Pair Bluetooth headphones with Swap
Or pair a speaker
It took Nintendo far too lengthy to add Bluetooth audio support, and there are some limitations value noting. As an example, it’s solely doable to make use of two controllers when you have a Bluetooth audio system related to your Swap, and Bluetooth microphone enter is off the desk. To pair a Bluetooth system together with your Swap:
- Open the System Settings menu
- Scroll all the way down to Bluetooth Audio part
- Choose Pair System
- Allow Bluetooth pairing mode on the system you wish to join
5 Shield your listening to
Or your child’s listening to
Dixit Dhinakaran / Unsplash
With regards to audio, if you wish to shield your listening to or that of a younger one, the Swap affords a useful setting that, when enabled, will mechanically restrict the utmost output quantity of any headphones related to the Swap. To allow the safety, open the System Settings menu, scroll all the way down to the System part and Allow Decrease Max Headphone Quantity.
In the identical part of the System Settings menu, additionally, you will discover an choice to immediate the Swap to mechanically mute itself once you disconnect a pair of headphones. This setting – Mute When Headphones Are Disconnected – ought to be on by default, but when it’s not, you’ll be able to allow it right here. It’s helpful every time you end up in a public area and wish to keep away from disrupting these round you.
6 Get probably the most from Sleep Mode
Prolong your battery life
Pocket-lint
As with most transportable units, the Swap contains a Sleep Mode that’s important to getting probably the most out of its battery. In actual fact, there’s a complete part of the System Settings menu devoted to customizing how the mode works. Of be aware, you’ll be able to alter the period of time earlier than your console goes to sleep, whether or not it’s related to a TV otherwise you’re enjoying in transportable mode.
There’s additionally an choice to disable Sleep Mode from activating mechanically when enjoying media content material. I’d suggest leaving the Keep Web Connection in Sleep Mode setting enabled, as this lets you begin an eShop obtain out of your laptop or cell system, as a substitute of instantly from the Swap the place Nintendo’s digital market may be painfully gradual.
7 Enable your Swap to show in your TV
Works wirelessly
Should you steadily sport in your TV, the Swap can flip it on or toggle to the proper enter for you. What’s extra, this characteristic works wirelessly, so all it’s good to do is press the Dwelling button in your Pleasure-Con or Professional controller. This characteristic is enabled by default, so if you happen to’d like to show it off, you are able to do so by disabling the Match TV Energy State possibility discovered below the TV Settings part of the System Settings.
In case your favourite sport doesn’t help controller remapping, you’ll be able to nonetheless reconfigure the button structure of your Pleasure-Cons or Professional controller to raised fit your wants. Head over to the Controllers and Sensors part of the System Settings menu and choose Change Button Mapping. Along with remapping any particular person enter in your Nintendo controller, you’ll be able to swap the left and proper analog sticks with each other. Simply be aware that no matter modifications you make will have an effect on all of your video games.
8 Management who sees your playtime
Who can see your sport exercise?
Should you’re curious in regards to the period of time you’ve spent enjoying a selected sport, you don’t want to attend till Nintendo’s annual Switch Year in Review to seek out out. Your playtime is recorded in your participant profile, which you’ll entry by choosing your profile image within the prime proper of the house display. To regulate who can see your sport exercise:
- Open the System Settings menu
- Scroll all the way down to the Customers part
- Choose your profile
- Faucet Play Exercise Settings
- Choose Show play exercise to:, adopted by All Customers, Mates, Finest Mates, or No One to restrict who can see your historical past
- Or faucet Delete Play Exercise to erase your historical past
9 Make issues greater
Zoom in
For visually-impaired customers, Nintendo affords a zoom characteristic that may enlarge small textual content and interface components. You possibly can allow it from the System part of the System Settings menu. As soon as turned on, double faucet the Dwelling button to activate the performance, and press X to zoom in on a part of the display or Y to zoom out. You too can lock within the zoom stage by urgent the Dwelling button as soon as.
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