Permit me to share with you what is a First World problem that I “battle” with once a week. As it happens, my eyes get depressed when I connect my Nintendo Switch OLED to one of the best TVs. It is not a nice sight when I try to play The Legend of Zelda’s Tears of the Kingdom on my 77-inch LG G3 OLED TV.
65-inch and larger 4K TVs are incompatible with the Big N’s portable hybrid. This is mostly because a lot of its games operate in Docked mode at a resolution of less than 1080p (1980 x 1080). The bulk of Switch games lack good anti-aliasing, which results in a jagged, rough image, which irritates my corneas even more. Fortunately, I have discovered a fix that greatly pleases my compulsive eyegazers.
Amazon is currently offering the Asus ZenScreen OLED 13.3-inch 1080p Portable USB Monitor for $299. That is a good $50 off the $349 suggested retail price of this excellent display. This 13.3-inch OLED display is just amazing. Since I purchased it on Black Friday of last year, Asus’ elegant portable display has been residing on my coffee table, and I find it difficult to imagine enjoying the greatest Nintendo Switch games without it now.
Never mind—my Switch OLED has an incredibly sharp 7-inch screen—but I detest the Joy-Cons on it, so I seldom ever hold my handheld when playing. Rather, I use the excellent Nintendo Switch Pro Controller, one of the best Nintendo Switch controllers, to play games like Metroid Dread or Super Mario RPG while relaxing on my sofa. I also attach the device’s robust kickstand.
The problem with this setup is that when I am sitting a few feet away from that gorgeous small OLED panel, I have to squint my eyes to see what is happening on screen. I wanted extra screen real estate, and the Asus ZenScreen has provided me with exactly that.
Its included power cord and mini HDMI cable make it simple to connect; all you have to do is slide your Switch into the dock and insert the cable into the HDMI port. The official Nintendo Dock, in my opinion, is odd because it obscures the screen of the portable device. For this reason, I would choose a $28 add-on that would increase my appreciation for my Nintendo Switch OLED.
As of this writing, the SiWiQU Nintendo Switch TV Dock Station is really available for £22 on Amazon UK; unfortunately, the price has not dropped in the United States. Nevertheless, this tastefully understated third-party dock is well worth the money even at full price because it makes attaching the Asus ZenScreen to your Nintendo Switch a snap. Let us return to the Asus ZenScreen. Since late last year, utilizing this OLED monitor with my Switch OLED has been such a pleasure.
I have just been getting greater enjoyment out of some of my favorite games ever since I linked it up to Nintendo’s wildly popular handheld console. I think Super Mario Bros. Wonder is the best 2D platformer the famous plumber has ever made, and since I am playing on an incredible 13.3-inch OLED screen, I no longer have to squint to see Elephant Mario smash Goombas like marshmallows served by Bowser. I am enjoying this modern classic even more because of the ZenScreen.
My Steam Deck OLED most definitely supports HDR, even though it is unfortunate that the original Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch Lite, and Nintendo Switch OLED do not. Additionally, I have had some amazing experiences using this monitor with what I believe to be the greatest portable game system ever created because the Asus ZenScreen supports HDR10.foremost. Elden Ring, the unrivaled open-world masterwork from FromSoftware, looks amazing on the ZenScreen and plays smoothly on the Deck with the appropriate settings adjusted.
I hope the much anticipated Nintendo Switch 2 has an HDR screen so I can connect it to my Asus ZenScreen and take full advantage of its OLED display. The venerable Kyoto-based company has confirmed that the device will be part of the Switch family and will be announced before March 25, even if it ends up going by a different name. I can only play the Nintendo Switch 2 on my fantastic OLED monitor since it already appears that the device will have an LCD screen.
I am going to continue enjoying my favorite Steam games and Nintendo titles on the Asus ZenScreen for the time being.