Play the Switch in 4K?!? HECK YEAH! PhotoFast 4K Gamer + Tested!

Is it possible to get 4K video out of a Nintendo Switch or Switch OLED? We find out in this episode as we unbox and test out if you can really play the Nintendo Switch in 4k as the PhotoFast Gamer 4K + is tested in this episode.

Check out our archived stream where we did some more testing at https://youtu.be/6Eiq62tsfH0

The Nintendo Switch is really an amazing little device. It provides console-quality gaming hooked up to a TV or on-the-go handheld mode. One of the Switch's drawbacks is that it only outputs 1080p in docked mode. It looks really good, but it sure isn't 4K. The team at PhotoFast is looking to improve that situation with their new dongle, the Gamer 4K +. We tested it to see if we really could play the Nintendo Switch in 4K.

Simple in its design, out of the box, it includes the dongle itself, an HDMI extension cable since the dongle will not fit inside the dock, a USB cable for power, and an instruction manual. The dongle is pretty simple in its design, it only has a single LED-backlit button on one side. Press it wants to enable 4K, again to bypass 4K and just have 1080p pass-through.

I know many people will compare this to the mClassic from Marseille, but it's significantly different. First and foremost, the mClassic is a great device, but it is designed to enhance and not upscale. The Gamer 4K Plus line multiplies from 1080p to 4K.

I will admit that I was very skeptical about this actually outputting 4K, I've seen plenty of Nintendo Switch docks that promised that but in the end, all that they are doing is passing through 4K content if it's a 4K input. For example, if you connect a Samsung phone to a Nintendo Switch dock it's going to pass through 4K because the phone is outputting 4K via the USB-C port. Would this deliver?

Upon connecting it to my television, I hit the input button to see what the resolution it was seeing was. Hot damn, 3840x2160, 4K! Okay, I'm intrigued. Hooking up to my 4K capture card, OBS also saw a 4K input. I was really curious now!

The first game I tested is possibly the most beautiful game on the Switch, and one of my least-favorite games ever, and that was The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. While I do not care for the gameplay, it is an absolutely stunningly beautiful game. Things like draw distance won't be increased with the Gamer 4K +, but you'll notice more detail in the graphics, and character sprites, the colors will just be richer, and the overall picture looks better.

One of the cool things about the Gamer 4K + is it doesn't just work with the Nintendo Switch, it works with any 1080p device. With that knowledge, I had to hook it up and connect it to my RetroTink 5X! With my RGB-modded Super Famicom Jr connected through Insurrection Industry SCART cables, I had to see how one of my favorite games of all time looked, Super Mario World. The colors absolutely popped off the screen, It was really quite amazing how sharp and bright everything looked. It was especially interesting to see how good this looked since it was a 240p game originally, being upscaled to 1080p, and then upscaled again to 4K. I'm working on a review of the 4K capture card that I used here, and while not shown here I did record footage of Super Metroid that you will see later. My goodness that game looks amazing in 4K, I can't wait for you to see the footage!

My final test was with my HDMI-modded NES 101 Top Loader and my Famicom Disk System. I love this combination so much! I put Doki Doki Panic in, and man the waterfall was so trippy I couldn't show it here for risk that it might trigger someone who has seizure issues. Beyond that, however, the experience was identical to my Super Famicom Jr. Bright beautiful colors, wonderful sound, and overall a fantastic improvement to my video quality.

Why it RoX:
- Easily upscales 1080p content to 4K
- Plug and play compatibility
- 1080p bypass option
- Compatible with devices such as the RetroTink

What could be improved:
- Does not fit inside the Nintendo Switch dock
- It actually gets quite warm

Should you buy one?
If you can't tell, I am over the moon for this device, PhotoFast has really done something I didn't think was possible. Does not having 4K really hurt the Switch that badly? Not really, but having it is better than that. You do need to make sure that you're using quality HDMI 2.0 or higher cables, so that is definitely something you'll need to have in your setup. But the Gamer 4K Plus really does make a difference, it does work as advertised which blows me away. It will be available to order from the Amazon appealing link after November 18th, 2022, and is something that I would recommend that you consider for your gaming setup.

#Nintendo #4kSwitch #PhotoFast