Sometimes, playing games on the Nintendo Switch can be a bit boring because of how small the screen is. You might prefer switching to larger screen like your laptop or monitor to get the most satisfaction out of your gaming experience.
If this is the case, I’m going to show you the fastest and straightforward way to connect your Nintendo Switch to your laptop using and HDMI cable with the help of a capture card.
If you are not a fan of the capture card, I will show you an alternative way to connect both of your devices without using a capture card.
Any laptop model such as HP, Dell, MSI, Lenovo can achieve this especially if you are familiar with how to switch to HDMI on laptop.
Let’s begin.
Last update on 2023-03-17 / As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
What Is A Nintendo Switch?
A Nintendo Switch is a portable gaming hybrid console that can be played when connected to a home TV through an HDMI cable or played within the console itself as a handheld device.
With over 89 million sold, the Nintendo Switch is currently the company’s second-best gaming home console placing the Nintendo Wii slightly above it.
Although the Nintendo Switch isn’t as powerful as other gaming consoles like the Xbox or PlayStation, it is still enticing to many individuals who want to experience gaming differently.
Overall, the Nintendo Switch is an excellent choice for handheld gaming, and the company did a fantastic job in its delivery.
Game Capture Card Relationship With Nintendo Switch
Last update on 2023-03-22 / As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
A game capture card is officially designed for gaming consoles like the Xbox and PlayStation that can stream using a laptop.
In this scenario, the relationship for a gaming capture card with a Nintendo Switch is to create a possible way to stream the content on a Nintendo Switch directly to a laptop.
A Nintendo Switch cannot work with a laptop on its own, especially for the purpose you are trying to achieve. It has to work directly with a gaming capture card through an HDMI cable to connect to a given laptop excellently.
Although gaming capture cards are not exactly designed for this purpose, gaming individuals have found this to work exceedingly well when they need to record or stream their gameplay to a laptop.
Nintendo Switch Relationship With HDMI For Laptop Connection
Last update on 2023-03-22 / As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
An HDMI can transmit or receive video and audio data which is helpful when you fully connect a Nintendo Switch to your laptop.
An HDMI can either be a port or the cable itself. The port comes with several computing and gaming devices so that it can be able to transmit or receive audio or video data.
The HDMI cable is an actual cable that will be used to bridge your Nintendo Switch and your laptop.
The HDMI will be connected from your Nintendo Switch console or docking station directly to your laptop with the gaming capture card installed.
Without an HDMI cable, connecting your Nintendo Switch to your laptop is impossible, especially when you need it for streaming or recording your gameplays.
Can Nintendo Switch Connect To Laptop With HDMI?
Yes. A Nintendo Switch can connect to a laptop with the help of a gaming capture card through an HDMI cable.
Like I mentioned earlier, you won’t be able to connect your laptop to your Nintendo Switch without the help of an HDMI cable.
An HDMI cable is a crucial requirement to establish a connection between your laptop and Nintendo Switch.
Although you will not be able to connect without an HDMI cable, you should also know that if it is just the Nintendo controllers that you are trying to connect with your laptop, it is possible to use Bluetooth.
The Nintendo Switch controllers have Bluetooth that can pair with any laptop, considering that the laptop also supports Bluetooth.
But, if you want to connect the entire Nintendo Switch console to your laptop for streaming or recording, it won’t be possible without an HDMI cable.
So, my answer once again is yes. You can connect your Nintendo Switch to your laptop with an HDMI cable.
Requirements
To connect your Nintendo Switch to your laptop, there are requirements, and these requirements need to be met before you can start the connection process.
I’m sorry, but if you cannot meet the requirements, you won’t be able to connect your laptop to your Nintendo device.
These are the requirements:
- Gaming Capture Card
- HDMI Cable
- Gaming Laptop
- Nintendo Switch
- Nintendo Dock
- Capturing and Recording Software
1. Gaming Capture Card
Last update on 2023-03-22 / As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
A gaming capture card is heavily required, and in fact, this is the secret ingredient for the entire recipe, if that makes sense.
For the sake of what you are trying to achieve, I recommend the AVERYN gaming capture card, which will work with any laptop and is compatible with Nintendo Switch.
It comes with an ultra-high-speed USB 3.0, so you can have a real-time streaming experience without lagging.
Although you should be aware that this gaming capture card doesn’t support 4K if that is what you are looking for. Although, you will be able to stream and record with this device in 1930 x 1080 at 60Hz which in my opinion, I think it is perfect anyone.
This AVERYN gaming capture card doesn’t require any third-party driver for it to work. It’s simply a plug and play kind of setup that makes your gaming experience seamless.
This means that you don’t need to manually install any driver at all and that all the drivers needed is already installed in the gaming capture card itself.
2. HDMI Cable
Last update on 2023-03-22 / As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
An HDMI cable is the second thing needed for your Nintendo Switch to work with your laptop. It will serve as a bridge transferring all the video and audio data from your Switch to your laptop.
Without the use of an HDMI cable, it won’t be possible to make any data transfer which basically means there won’t be any connection between your devices.
You will have to get a solid HDMI cable that supports the port of your Nintendo Switch and your laptop.
The HDMI can either be long or short depending on how you want to distant your devices from each other. A shorter HDMI cable will keep your Nintendo Switch closer to your laptop while a longer cable will do the opposite.
Basically, it all falls to your preference.
3. Gaming Laptop
Last update on 2023-03-23 / As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
For the sake of what we want to achieve, which is to connect Nintendo Switch to your laptop, you will need a decent gaming laptop.
The reason for this is because we are going to be using a capturing software on your laptop which requires a laptop that has decent amount of power in terms of graphics.
After connecting your laptop to your Nintendo Switch, a sustainable amount of graphics from your laptop will be required by the capturing software.
The reason for this is because the aim of what you want to achieve is to be able to record or stream your Nintendo gameplay to your laptop without any form of lag.
A powerful laptop will be able to handle a higher amount of resource and keep your streaming and recording session smooth and without lag.
On the other hand, if your laptop is having little to no graphics card, you might experience a lag while recording or streaming and this is even worse if your laptop is very old.
So, you must make sure your laptop is powerful enough to handle the capturing software to keep your experience smooth and lag free. I will provide the requirement needed when you get to the capturing software section.
4. Nintendo Switch
Last update on 2023-03-23 / As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
This is a no-brainer. You should have your Nintendo Switch ready if you need to make this happen.
Without it, you won’t be able to establish a connection with your laptop which will basically not help us accomplish the main goal.
You need to make sure the Nintendo Switch is in a very good condition and not severely damaged. Make sure that the ports are clean and working perfectly fine.
You can inspect the ports for dust and rust if you think you may have trouble with it. Simply use a tiny brush to brush off any dirt from it or you can blow directly on it to get rid of any dirt,
5. Nintendo Dock
Last update on 2023-03-22 / As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
A Nintendo dock is very much required to make this work and you also need to have this ready. ‘The Nintendo dock will provide the HDMI port that will work with the HDMI cable to connect with your laptop.
So, here’s how it’s going to work:
Your Nintendo Switch will be placed on its dock and then then one end of the HDMI cable will be connected to the docking station while the other of the of the HDMI cable will be connected to your laptop.
All Nintendo Switches comes along with a dock but if you don’t have or have already misplaced or damaged yours, you would need to get one.
One of the advantages of a docking station is that you have you have the option to stream or record your game in 4k. Although you also need to have in mind that before you can stream or record in 4k, your docking station needs to support 4k.
As you can see, the Nintendo dock is very important for everything to work perfectly, and you really need to get one.
6. Capturing and Recording Software
The capturing software that will be installed on your laptop is OBS which stands for (Open Broadcast software).
OBS is an open-source software that can help you stream and record your gameplays from your Nintendo Switch directly to your laptop.
This simple software is powerful and gives you a top of premium features and the best part is that it is free. All you just must do is to download the software from the official website and install it on your laptop.
The reason I recommend OBS is because it is the most popular software tool all gamers use for MAC and PC because of how stable the software is.
How To Connect Nintendo Switch To Any Laptop With HDMI
Before we begin, you must make sure you have gotten all the necessary requirements ready. If you have gotten them ready, then great. But if you haven’t gotten them ready, I’ll suggest you go back to read the requirements again.
Connecting your Nintendo Switch to your laptop is actually very easy but if you are not exactly familiar getting around Windows PC, you might have a little bit of struggles.
But if you follow my instructions correctly, you will not have any issue.
Let’s begin.
How To Connect Nintendo Switch To Laptop With HDMI:
1. Connect your power cable to your Nintendo dock.
2. Take the first end of the HDMI cable and connect it to your Nintendo dock.
3. Place your Nintendo Switch on the dock after detaching the controllers.
4. Take the second end of the HDMI cable and connect it to the capture card.
5. Connect the capture card to any USB port on your laptop.
6. Download OBS capturing software.
7. Install OBS on your laptop.
8. Launch OBS studios.
9. Click on the plus icon in the source section and select video capture device.
10. Type in Switch as the name and select OK.
11. Under device, change it to USB Video.
12. Scroll down to the audio output mode and check the box beside use custom audio device.
13. Scroll down again to the audio device section and change the option to Digital Audio Interface (USB Digital Audio).
14. Turn on your Nintendo Switch while it’s on the dock.
15. Within few seconds, your laptop will start capturing data from your Nintendo Switch.
16. Pick up your controllers and start playing.
Congratulations, you have successfully connected your Nintendo Switch to your laptop with an HDMI cable and you can begin playing games with your Nintendo controllers.’
If you would like to make it full screen, all you must do is to right click on the gameplay screen with your mouse and then select the Fullscreen Projector (preview)
Can Nintendo Switch Connect To Laptop Without Capture Card?
Yes, a Nintendo Switch can connect to a laptop without a capture card. Although it will be much more stressful, but it is possible.
You only need three additional things to make this work:
- An Xbox.
- TV.
- 2 HDMI cable.
- Fast internet.
You should be aware that this process will be a lot more stressful than using a capture card. But if you really think this is how you would like to connect your Nintendo Switch to your laptop then by all means go ahead.
You should also understand that the most import thing will be your internet speed which needs to be very fast.
If you are confident that you have a good internet connection, then you should take advantage of the instructions I provided below.
How To Connect A Switch To My Laptop Using HDMI Without Capture Card?
This is more possible than most people might think because only few people use the method, I’m about to show you. All you need is an Xbox, TV, 2 HDMI cable and a fast internet access.
Follow the instructions below carefully.
How To Connect Nintendo Switch To Laptop Without Capture Card:
1. Connect your power cord and HDMI cable to your Nintendo dock.
2. Place your Nintendo Switch on the dock
3. Connect the second end of the HDMI cable to an Xbox HDMI IN port.
4. Connect another HDMI cable to your Xbox HDMI out port.
5. Take the second end of the HDMI cable and connect it to the back of your tv.
6. Connect your Xbox and laptop to the same wifi network.
7. On your laptop search and open Xbox Console Companion.
8. Once it opens, click on connection icon among the tab by your left-hand side.
9. Click on stream.
10. Select continue.
11. Click on one guide.
12. Choose setup your cable or satellite box.
13. Turn on your Nintendo Switch while it’s on the dock.
14. Withing few seconds, your laptop will start capturing you’re your tv through your Xbox.
15. You can start using your Nintendo controllers to start playing.
If you would like to make it a full screen, turn off the Nintendo Switch while it’s on the dock and then remove it. Turn it back on and place it on the dock and you would immediately get a full screen.
In a situation whereby you are struggling with your Nintendo controllers which is not connecting to your laptop, I have provided a simple solution below that will help fix this issue.
How To Connect Nintendo Switch Controllers To Laptop
If your having issues connecting your Nintendo Switch controllers to your laptop or for some reason the controllers aren’t working, you should follow my instructions correctly to help you fix this.
Here’s how:
1. Press the windows key + I to open settings.
2. Click on devices.
3. Turn on your laptop Bluetooth.
4. Click on add Bluetooth or other device.
5. Click on Bluetooth.
6. Turn on the Bluetooth on your Nintendo Switch controllers.
7. Select your device among the discovered devices.
8. Click on ok.
9. Download BetterJoy from Github.
10. Extract the files using 7zip.
11. Navigate through the folders and look for ViGEmBUS_Setup.
12. Run it as administrator and install the drivers.
13. In the primary folder, look for BetterJoyForCemu.
14. Run it as administrator when you find it.
15. In a few seconds, your laptop will detect your Nintendo Switch controllers.
