Does this sound familiar?
- The battery won't charge, or it charges very slowly
- You have to hold or prop the cable just right
- It plays in handheld mode, but the TV shows nothing when docked
- The console is sitting crooked on the dock or slides around in it
- It stopped working after using a third-party dock or charger
How docking works
There's no HDMI port on the Switch itself. When you set a Switch in its dock, the video goes out through that same USB-C port on the bottom, and the dock converts it to HDMI for your TV. So a single small port handles both charging and video, and it gets plugged and unplugged all the time. Kids often slide the console in at an angle, and the connector in the dock will bend the port a little more each time.
So "no picture on the TV" can mean the Switch's port, the dock's connector, the dock's power, your HDMI cable or the TV input. We test each of these so that you're not replacing something that's fine.
Repairing the port
The USB-C port is soldered to the board, with a lot of tiny contacts packed closely together. We remove the damaged one, clean up the board, and solder on a new port, then test charging and TV output before you get it back. If there's damage to the charging chip nearby, we'll tell you what that means first.
Keep your port healthy
Set the Switch straight down into the dock instead of sliding it in at an angle. Use the official charger or a reliable brand. Don't play with a cable bending the port, and be especially careful in the car, where a charger can get yanked out sideways on a sudden stop.
Fast, friendly great service. Pleasant to work with, knowledgeable and efficient.
Questions we get a lot
How do I tell whether the console or the dock is the problem?
Plug the official charger directly into the Switch. If it charges, the console port is probably okay, and the dock may be at fault. For the dock, unplug everything from it for a minute, then reconnect the power first and HDMI second. If you have a friend with a Switch, try it on their dock.
Why doesn't my Switch Lite work on a dock?
The Switch Lite doesn't output to a TV. That's how it was designed, so it isn't broken.
Can third-party docks really damage a Switch?
There have been a lot of reports of that, particularly with cheap docks and chargers. The damage can reach a charging chip on the board and not only the port. If it stopped charging after a new dock, please tell us.
The Switch won't turn on at all. Now what?
Plug it into the official charger and leave it for a few hours, as a fully drained battery can take a while to respond. Then hold the power button for about 15 seconds. If that doesn't work, bring it in.