Pete's Picks

Nintendo Switch Ethernet

Objective:

Nintendo Switch connected via Wired Ethernet

Pete's Pick:

$60 Nintendo OLED Switch Dock with LAN Port - ($70)

Dock with a built-in Gigabit Ethernet port, works with any Switch except the Switch Lite. Classy AF and available in white or black direct from Nintendo.

Cheap pick:

Pluggable USB3-E1000, StarTech USB31000S or TRENDnet TU3-ETG

These USB 3.0 Gigabit Ethernet Adaptors all contain the same chipset chipset (AX88179) as the Nintendo Switch Wired Internet LAN Adapter by HORI. Identical performance for $10-$15 less.

Niche (Switch Lite):

Nintendo Switch Dual USB Playstand by HORI

Dock enables simultaneous charging, USB Ethernet connectivity and use of a wired controller for Switch Lite owners. Does not support HDMI/TV output.

Discussion:

Nintendo officially supports three Ethernet devices on Switch:

  1. $59 Nintendo Switch OLED Dock with LAN Port (Integrated AX88179)
  2. $29 Nintendo Switch Wired Internet LAN Adapter by HORI (USB 3.0 AX88179)
  3. Discontinued Nintendo Wii LAN Adapter (RVL-015) (USB 2.0 AX88772)

The first two support 10/100/1000M (Gigabit Ethernet). The older adapter only supports 10/100 (Fast Ethernet) but is also supported by the Wii and Wii-U. Nearly any 3rd party adaptors with ASIX AX88179 or ASIX AX88772 chispets will work.

These USB devices are also support by laptops, desktops and some tablets, but if you're running Windows or MacOS (or even Linux) you deserve [better USB Ethernet devices] than these.

Biases:

Many 3rd Party USB-C accessories not licensed by Nintendo have historically had issues (insufficient power, port damage, etc) with the Switch.

As a result I only let Official Nintendo products plug into my Switch.

Footnotes