According to DigitalFoundry :
Broadly speaking, the Switch 2 is leagues ahead of the Steam Deck when docked, with much better image quality thanks to DLSS, and a much more consistent frame rate in quality mode. In performance mode, during which the Switch 2 targets 40fps, there's a lot more inconsistency, but it still manages to outclass the Steam Deck for the most part.
Handheld mode is a different story. Performance mode isn't available for the Switch 2 in handheld, so we're looking at a target of 30fps, but interestingly, Nintendo's new console showcases slightly more instability than the Steam Deck during both the Kabuki run and The Beast In Me (albeit at a higher resolution). That said, the Switch 2 is much, much more efficient, drawing around 8.9w compared to the Steam Deck's 24.5w. Essentially, the Switch 2 is able to almost match the Steam Deck's performance using just 36% of the latter's power.
In fact, when lowering the power draw in the Steam Deck to match that of the Switch 2, the Steam Deck effectively runs in slow motion, with frame rate dropping to around 9-13fps. Of course, this won't mean a whole lot in real world use cases, but it's interesting to see the stark difference between the two.
Finally, it's worth mentioning that when replicating the Switch 2's performance on PC, a lot of the settings, including crowd density, contact shadows, volumetric cloud, and more are actually quite similar to that of the PS5 in performance mode. Not bad at all for Nintendo's new hardware!
Broadly speaking, the Switch 2 is leagues ahead of the Steam Deck when docked, with much better image quality thanks to DLSS, and a much more consistent frame rate in quality mode. In performance mode, during which the Switch 2 targets 40fps, there's a lot more inconsistency, but it still manages to outclass the Steam Deck for the most part.
Handheld mode is a different story. Performance mode isn't available for the Switch 2 in handheld, so we're looking at a target of 30fps, but interestingly, Nintendo's new console showcases slightly more instability than the Steam Deck during both the Kabuki run and The Beast In Me (albeit at a higher resolution). That said, the Switch 2 is much, much more efficient, drawing around 8.9w compared to the Steam Deck's 24.5w. Essentially, the Switch 2 is able to almost match the Steam Deck's performance using just 36% of the latter's power.
In fact, when lowering the power draw in the Steam Deck to match that of the Switch 2, the Steam Deck effectively runs in slow motion, with frame rate dropping to around 9-13fps. Of course, this won't mean a whole lot in real world use cases, but it's interesting to see the stark difference between the two.
Finally, it's worth mentioning that when replicating the Switch 2's performance on PC, a lot of the settings, including crowd density, contact shadows, volumetric cloud, and more are actually quite similar to that of the PS5 in performance mode. Not bad at all for Nintendo's new hardware!
