NVIDIA’s Tegra239 SoC Reportedly Featured in Nintendo Switch 2; First Glimpse of the Chip Emerges

Seems like Nintendo’s latest Switch 2 has indeed kept NVIDIA’s magic touch, much like its predecessor, now that we’ve caught a glimpse of the chip online for the very first time.

So, it’s confirmed that Nintendo Switch 2 is powered by NVIDIA’s Tegra239 chip. This chip utilizes an ARM-based architecture and delivers pretty decent performance levels. When the Nintendo Switch 2 launched, we got wind of its impressive capabilities, like the 4K 60 FPS output when docked, but the specifics about the chip running the show remained under wraps. What we do know is that Nintendo struck a deal with NVIDIA to harness its custom Tegra SoCs, pointing strongly towards the new Tegra239 chip. Recently, this speculation was laid to rest as @Kurnalsalts posted an image online showing what seems to be NVIDIA’s Tegra239 chip, marked “T239,” offering a peek into the tech behind the magic.

Unfortunately, the post was just a teaser and didn’t spill any additional beans, so we’re leaning on past intel to paint the picture of its specifications. The chip reportedly sports eight Arm Cortex-A78C cores, a hybrid GPU packing both Ada Lovelace and Ampere elements, and a nice 1536 CUDA cores count. The CPU’s speed is projected to fluctuate between 1.1 GHz and 1.5 GHz, presumably reflecting the differences in performance between docked and portable modes. Moreover, the chip rocks a 128-bit memory interface, and it’s all about that LPDDR5 tech.

The insights regarding the Tegra239 are rather thin on the ground, so we can’t dive too deep into specifics. However, what’s notable is that the SoC backs DLSS upscaling technology, which plays a big part in boosting the console’s performance. For those curious about the specs’ nitty-gritty, feel free to check out an in-depth discussion on them in our earlier rundown. With this Tegra239 chip, NVIDIA is clearly not holding back on its custom ASIC goals, maintaining a strong partnership alongside ARM, ensuring their exclusive dynamic with Nintendo Switch endures.

A question looming over the scene is when NVIDIA will decide to roll out its chip for the AI PC market—a buzz that’s been around since last year. It’s been suggested that an alliance with MediaTek might birth an ARM-centric SoC, potentially named the N1X and N1 series, although there’s been radio silence on that front for now.