Nintendo Switch should not be used near an aquarium

Despite the convenience of not having to deal with cables, wireless connections, especially those based on Bluetooth, are still far from being close to ideal. Connections get lost or forgotten, requiring users to pair things up again. Many times, they're minor annoyances, but not when such a connection is essential to enjoying a game. Such, however, is the unfavorable circumstances that Nintendo Switch owners find themselves in as they experience connectivity issues between the Switch and the Joy-Con controllers. And, according to Nintendo, that's largely your fault for placing the Switch near almost anything you can find in a modern living room.

There have been an increasing number of reports complaining about the rather fragile connection between the Joy-Con and the Switch. And no, we're not talking about when the Joy-Cons are actually attached to the Switch. The problem arise when the Switch is used in "Console Mode", sitting in its dock far away from the Joy-Con and its holder.

The two communicate with Bluetooth, which most will swear to be as unpredictable as weather. Of course, it has improved greatly but there are also still many ways a Bluetooth connection can be cut short. That said, Nintendo's list of potential suspects is all too encompassing.

For one, it suggests NOT placing the Switch:

• Behind a TV

• Near an aquarium

• Placed in or under a metal object

• Pressed against a large amount of wires and cords

• Within three to four feet of another wireless device, such as a wireless speaker or a wireless access point

But wait, there's more! Nintendo also suggests that both the Switch and the Joy-Con be used three to four feet away from

• Laptops, tablets, etc.

• Wireless headsets

• Wireless printers

• Microwaves

• Wireless speakers

• Cordless phones

• USB 3.0-compatible devices such as hard drives, thumb drives, LAN adapters, etc.

Aside from the aquarium and the microwave, Nintendo has effectively described every piece of gadgetry you'd find in a modern living room. It's actually amazing Nintendo didn't include smartphones in that list. With the advice to place the Switch "out in the open", perhaps Nintendo is subtly telling owners to use it more outside, in which case you'd be attaching the Joy-Con anyway.

If this were the only complaint about the Nintendo Switch, we could probably brush it off as a fluke and growing pains. Together with the case of the non-transferable game save data, inconvenient placement of the USB-C charging port, and foul-tasting cartridges, you might begin to think that Nintendo might have rushed this one out to market. Which would be odd considering how long it has been cooking in the first place.

SOURCE: Nintendo