Switch 2 Resellers Drive Thriving Market in Japan Despite Crackdown
Welcome to Tech In Depth, our daily newsletter with reporting and analysis about the business of tech from Bloomberg's journalists around the world. Today, Mayumi Negishi reports on the backlash against scalpers who are finding ways to obtain and sell the new Switch 2 game console outside the authorized retail outlets.
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Open source Switch 2 adapter brings M.2 NVMe SSD to Nintendo's latest console — MicroSD Express and NVMe share a similar pinout that could even theoretically support an eGPU
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. A gaming peripheral developer and console modder has shared details of their SDEX2M2 Adapter project. Despite the cryptic name, the project goal is a rather simple one – to create a reliable adapter for using the Nintendo Switch 2's MicroSD Express card port to attach an M.2 NVMe SSD. The SDEX2M2 project is open source, and though it is still a work-in-progress, interested parties can visit the NVNTLabs GitHub page and check out extensive details of the components and schematics used. Nintendo typically likes to lock down its consoles rather strictly, so seeing this kind of project at an advanced stage, so early after the launch of its Switch 2, might cheer console hackers and modders. This storage mod 'is possible because the Nintendo Switch 2's MicroSD Express slot supports the SD Express 7.1 standard, which exposes a true PCIe Gen3 x1 interface and utilizes the NVMe protocol for communication,' explains developer NVNTLabs on the SDEX2M2 GitHub project page. And, because the hardware adapter simply maps the appropriate pins from the Switch MicroSD Express slot to a standard M.2 2230 NVMe SSD, 'no protocol translation is required as the Switch 2 host controller handles everything.' For performance, users should expect data transfers up to approximately the limits of the PCIe Gen3 x1 interface, which is roughly 1 GB/s. That's on a par with freshly launched cards from the likes of PNY. However, instead of spending $56 on a PNY microSD Express UHS-I U3 V30 A1 microSDXC Flash Memory Card with a measly 256GB capacity, you can get double the capacity with a Sabrent for the same price. We also see 1TB M.2 2230 NVMe SSDs, like the Patriot Viper Gaming VP4000 Mini 1TB M.2 2230 PCIe Gen4 x4 SSD for just $66. You will need to make/buy this new SDEX2M2 device first, though. As a work-in-progress, there are still a few aspects of the SDEX2M2 design to iron out. Probably the biggest factor to be wary of is damaging your Switch 2 due to the use of an M.2 SSD that is too power hungry. NVNTLabs warns that any fellow modders who want to pick up and roll ahead with the design as it stands should 'only use low-voltage, low-power M.2 2230 NVMe drives.' Also, despite physical similarities, users are asked not to insert this adapter into legacy MicroSD card slot-equipped devices like the original Nintendo Switch. For now, this project shines the light on a possible way to attach cheaper storage for your Switch 2. However, PCIe isn't just for storage, in modern PCs this high-speed interface is used for lots of other things like network and expansion cards, sound and capture cards, AI accelerators, and – of course – graphics cards. The Nintendo Switch 2's official specs confirmed the presence of an Nvidia Ampere architecture GPU similar to a mobile GeForce RTX 2050. Would it be possible to use the exposed PCIe Gen3 x1 interface to plug in some kind of eGPU? There are indeed plenty of M.2 SSD slot to OCuLink adapters, but the available PCIe Gen3 x1 with 1 GB/s (8 Gbps) seems rather restrictive. Typically, we see eGPUs attach to devices using USB4 at up to 40 Gbps, or OCuLink at up to 64 Gbps, which can impact GPU performance, and also provide some context to how weedy PCIe Gen3 x1 is. Moreover, there would probably have to be some more modding required for the Switch 2 to use the eGPU rather than the onboard GPU for video out. We can't say it is impossible, but it would be an impressive feat to get such a setup working. Follow Tom's Hardware on Google News to get our up-to-date news, analysis, and reviews in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button.
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Nintendo Switch 2's 3.5 million opening weekend sales smashes brand's console record — beats Switch 1's opening month by almost a million in four days
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Nintendo has announced that the company's new Nintendo Switch 2 has soundly beaten its console sales record, selling 3.5 million units worldwide in just four days since its release on June 5, the company announced on Wednesday. By way of comparison, that's 760,000 more units than the original Switch sold in its first month, March 2017. "This is the highest global sales level for any Nintendo hardware within the first four days," the company announced. It means the company is more than one-fifth of the way towards its stated goal of selling 15 million units by the end of its next financial year, March 2026. Despite a few horror stories, the launch generally seems to have gone smoothly. GameStop customers at a store in New York were horrified to find the staples used to attach receipts to the front of the console's box had actually punctured the screen, with all of the affected customers given replacements. Across the pond, UK customers at a multitude of retailers noted their units arrived unsealed, with the tape used to secure the box closed appearing to have been broken, possibly due to a flaw in the tape which was too weak for purpose. At the cost of some battery life, the Switch 2 boasts several improvements over its predecessor, with new Joy-Con 2 controllers featuring optical sensors that mean you can use the controllers like a mouse for aiming and scrolling. The screen is a larger 7.9-inch offering with 1080p and a 120Hz refresh rate. Under the hood, official Nintendo Switch 2 specs reveal eight ARM Cortex A78C cores featuring the ARMv8 64-bit instruction set, and a custom Nvidia Ampere GPU. The console also features 12GB of LPDDR5X memory and 256GB of internal storage, upgradeable to up to 2TB thanks to its microSD Express card slot. Turns out that slot also paves the way for a novel DIY hack, support for M2 NVMe SSDs, at least theoretically speaking. Despite the early success, if you were wondering where to buy the Nintendo Switch 2, it remains in stock at a couple of retailers, notably GameStop and Best Buy, as well as plenty of retailers in the UK. Follow Tom's Hardware on Google News to get our up-to-date news, analysis, and reviews in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button.
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Corporate Insiders Use Rally to Dump Shares at Fastest Pace Since US Election
(Bloomberg) -- The US stock market is back on track and within spitting distance of February's all-time highs. Yet corporate executives are dumping shares at the fastest clip since November. Shuttered NY College Has Alumni Fighting Over Its Future Trump's Military Parade Has Washington Bracing for Tanks and Weaponry NYC Renters Brace for Price Hikes After Broker-Fee Ban NY Long Island Rail Service Resumes After Grand Central Fire Do World's Fairs Still Matter? A gauge of insider sentiment, which tracks the numbers of buyers versus sellers, shows that 200 insiders bought shares this month through June 11, while 778 sold shares, according to data compiled by the Washington Service. That puts the buy to sell ratio at around 0.26, the lowest since November when Trump's reelection triggered a months-long rally. The absence of demand from C-Suite executives — the people who arguably know their companies best — may show a lack of conviction that the risk-on momentum that's pushed stocks up 21% in a little over two months has more room to go. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 indexes are trading back near record highs after positive signals on trade and solid earnings drove a rebound from the upheaval President Donald Trump's tariff announcement on April 2 caused. 'The message from executives is loud and clear: many believe their companies are overvalued, making now an opportune time to sell,' said Irene Tunkel, chief US equity strategist at BCA Research. 'Many insiders recognize that risks to their companies' market values are increasingly tilted to the downside.' Still, the number of sellers historically exceeds that of buyers as executives often view their stock as a source of cash that they may need for reasons that have nothing to do with markets. To Nationwide's Mark Hackett, insider buying is a stronger indicator than insider selling as sales can by driven by estate planning, large purchases and options exercises, among other factors. 'At the margin, a falloff in buying is a clear indication of market uncertainty, but also reflects elevated valuation,' Hackett said. The S&P 500 is trading at 22 times projected profits in the next 12 months, some 18% above its long-term average, data compiled by Bloomberg show. And while the euphoria around a return to form now faces a test in Trump reviving threats over unilateral tariffs, the high volume of insider selling is something investors may have to keep an eye on. 'This is not necessarily a major warning flag for the market, but it does tell investors that people who really know their businesses well realize that they're shares are getting expensive,' said Miller Tabak's Matt Maley. 'It's something that should caution investors about being aggressive now that the stock market has become quite expensive again.' American Mid: Hampton Inn's Good-Enough Formula for World Domination New Grads Join Worst Entry-Level Job Market in Years The Spying Scandal Rocking the World of HR Software US Tariffs Threaten to Derail Vietnam's Historic Industrial Boom The SEC Pinned Its Hack on a Few Hapless Day Traders. The Full Story Is Far More Troubling ©2025 Bloomberg L.P. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
