Despite how satisfying peeling off the plastic film from a shiny new gadget can be, Nintendo was pretty clear that that’s exactly what you should not do with the Switch 2. The company even warned users about it before many even got their hands on the console.
To absolutely no one’s surprise, a YouTuber has already posted a video of themselves peeling the film off. Instead of calling it a day after that, they went several steps further by testing just how much of a beating the upcoming console can take.
The Switch 2’s protective film won’t peel off easily
JerryRigEverything, a tech YouTuber with over 9 million subscribers, posted a video titled “They told me not to…” three days ago. The title itself was a not-so-subtle hint about what was coming next. Right at the beginning of the video, he dove straight into peeling off the Switch 2’s protective layer, fully aware that it might not survive.
He mentioned that the protective film is extremely difficult to remove and “definitely won’t be falling off on its own.” If you watch the video, you’ll see him struggling to remove the protective layer — it’s essentially the opposite of a satisfying peel.
If you aren’t sure why this is a big deal in the first place, Nintendo issued a warning before the Switch 2 officially launched in the US that the protective film attached to the Switch 2’s glass panel shouldn’t be removed.
We did remove the plastic screen protector from earlier, and the only way to truly tell if the Nintendo Switch 2 screen is going to scatter into bits if we shatter it is if we shatter it!
JerryRigEverything
It isn’t a peel-off screen protector but a permanent “anti-scattering adhesive film” that the gaming giant deliberately applied to the Switch to prevent shards of glass from flying everywhere if the Switch 2’s screen breaks.
So naturally, the YouTuber’s next step was obvious: he tried to break it to “truly tell if the Switch 2’s screen is going to scatter into bits.”
It took 50 hits to finally break the Switch 2’s screen
After disassembling the Joy-Cons and the Switch 2 console itself and examining both’s internals (and putting them back), he used heavy channel lock pliers and went in on the screen.
Another 14 very solid hits, and the Switch 2 is shockingly still alive. 15 more and still nothing! This is wild. If watching this doesn't give you confidence in the Switch 2's durability, nothing will.
JerryRigEverything
The Joy-Cons popped off after 13 hits, and the YouTuber mentioned that he began to feel like the Switch 2’s screen was made of shatter-proof plastic instead of glass. After fourteen more “very solid” hits, and then fifteen more, there was still absolutely no harm to the screen.
It took fifty hits from the YouTuber’s “ridiculously large pliers” for the Switch 2’s screen to finally give in.
He added a slo-mo of the exact moment when the Switch 2’s screen shattered into “needle-like shards of glass,” and it proved Nintendo’s point that the protective film is, well, actually, protective.
Though most of the glass remained glued to the LCD, the YouTuber explained that there were still “plenty of free shards of pulverized glass that could embed themselves into little kids’ fingers and eyeballs.”
Surprisingly, even though all that beating led to a black screen of death and a completely shattered display, the Switch 2 turned right back on after a quick reset.
The Switch 2’s battery life isn’t winning most over
After going through reviews posted on sites and community forums like Reddit, one thing’s become clear: despite Switch 2 users being pretty satisfied with the overall experience, they aren’t exactly thrilled with the console’s battery life.
For instance, one Redditor mentioned that the Switch 2 only lasted 2 hours and 20 minutes when they played Zelda: Breath of the Wild (the Switch 2 edition) and kept the brightness at maximum, which isn’t exactly ideal for long gaming sessions. But the Switch 2’s durability might just make up for this shortcoming, especially if you’re the type to toss your console in a backpack or accidentally knock it off the couch.
