Belkin's first Switch 2 carry case has one travel feature I didn't know I needed
Got your hands on a Nintendo Switch 2 on launch day and plan on mainlining Mario Kart World for the foreseeable? Battery life could be a bigger problem than Blue Shells – but not if you carry your console in Belkin's new charging case. It has a built-in power bank that can keep the hybrid handheld juiced while it's stowed, so you're always fully fuelled the next time you come to play.
It looks like your typical carry case from the outside, but unzip if and you'll spot the 10,000mAh power bank with enough capacity to charge a Switch 2 one and a half times. It's got a built-in LCD screen to show how much power it has remaining before you'll need to pop it out of the case to top up, and the included cable is malleable enough to plug into your Switch 2's USB-C port while the case is closed. A second USB-C port means the power bank can also charge your phone or other tech.
Elsewhere the hard-shell carry case has a separate mesh pouch for storing cables, a hidden holder for an AirTag or other tracker, and a stitched-in game holder with (almost) more room for cards than there are launch titles.
Original Switch and Switch OLED owners don't have to miss out, either; Belkin bundles a set of foam inserts in the box, which will keep the older, smaller consoles secure. The charging case is yours for $70/50, direct from Belkin and via Amazon.
This might be Belkin's first foray into gaming, but starting with cases makes a lot of sense; a whopping 85% of Switch 1 owners bought a case to keep their console safe while travelling, and I'd be shocked if that number didn't climb higher for the larger, pricier Switch 2.
Multi-format accessories for other consoles and mobile gamers aren't expected any time soon, with Belkin focused firmly on the Switch 2 for now. The range also includes a more basic travel case at launch, along with a tempered glass screen protector.
The former won't charge your console, but it still has a separate section for cables, a hidden AirTag holder, and a pouch for stashing a handful of game cards. The carry handle also unclips to become a wrist strap. There are no inserts for the OG switch, though – this is strictly for the new handheld only. It's going on sale today for $30/£20.
The tempered glass screen protector has an anti-reflective coating that Belkin says improves outdoor visibility. You're meant to place it over the Switch 2's pre-installed screen film, which Nintendo has urged console owners not to remove.
Belkin knows fitting screen protectors can be a faff, so includes an alignment tool in the box that should prevent unsightly air bubbles. It's made from 60% post-consumer recycled glass, and will set you back $25/£20.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Stuff.tv
13 hours ago
- Stuff.tv
I've found these amazing Prime Day deals a month early!
In case you hadn't heard, Amazon Prime Day is back! It's a day (well, more like 2-3 days now) where Prime members get exclusive access to a boatload of special deals. Amazon has confirmed it's coming back for 2025 this July – and naturally we'll be covering all the deals. We don't quite know the exact dates just yet, but expect things to kick-off mid-July based on previous years. Deals will be available on items including electronics, video games, movies, toys, clothing, sporting goods and outdoor gear for patios, gardens and the like. All items will qualify for one-day delivery. Amazon promises there will be 'hundreds of thousands' of products on offer. But while the savings event might not start for another month, there are still some Prime Day deals already live. Surprisingly, there are quite a few Apple devices already discounted. I've spotted loads more, and here are the best in both the US and UK. Apple iPad 10th-generation: $299/£310 This Touch ID iPad is designed as the new entry-level model (despite the 9th generation still being sold) and it runs on the A14 Bionic chipset from the iPhone 12 Pro series. There's a 10.9-inch Liquid Retina display with a 2360×1640 resolution, 500 nits of brightness, and Apple's True Tone technology. Right now, you can score the cheapest Apple tablet for even less. It's down to $299 on Amazon US – a decent saving of $50. Over on Amazon UK, it's a less impressive £19 off – down to £310 from the usual price of £329. Apple MacBook Air M4 (13-inch): $849/£899 Apple's MacBook Air has been refreshed with M4, and as a laptop, it's the complete package. In fact, I'd go as far as calling it on of the best laptops you can buy. In our review, we said 'the MacBook Air is still the everyday laptop to beat.' It scored a full five stars! Right now, you can score the M4 MacBook Air for £899 on Amazon UK – a £100 saving from the regular price of £999. Over on Amazon US, you get an even better $150 off – bringing the price down to $849 from $999. Now these might not sound like the largest savings, but they're insanely good for a laptop that barely launched 2 months ago. The M4 chip brings a 10-core CPU, an up to 10-core GPU, and support for up to 32GB of unified memory. A new 12MP Center Stage camera makes video calls look better, while the laptop now supports up to two external 6K displays. As for ports, you're getting MagSafe charging, two Thunderbolt ports, and a 3.5mm headphone jack. Apple Watch Series 10: $299/£299 The Apple Watch Series 10 is Apple's latest and most current model. You get 30% more display than the Series 6, while the wide-angle OLED display gives you better (and brighter) viewing angles. There are new colours on offer, headlined by Jet Black – just like the iPhone 7 series. The body is thinner than ever at 9.7mm, around 10% thinner than Series 9. Powering the Apple Watch Series 10 is a new chipset – the S10 processor. Sleep Apnea tracking is the flagship new health feature. Ahead of Prime Day, you can grab it for even less. In fact, it's the lowest I've seen the watch – including on Black Friday. Over on Amazon US, you'll find the smartwatch $50 off – down from $399 to $299. It's identically discounted in the UK as well – down from £399 to £299. This applies to the 42mm size without cellular connectivity. Apple AirTag 4-Pack: $75/£92 Head in hands moments don't come much bigger than realising you've lost your keys, but Apple came to save the day. AirTags are Apple's answer to 'Where did I put my [insert easily lost item here]?' Powered by the same technology that makes Apple Maps less of a nightmare, AirTags use Ultra Wideband tech. You get Precision Finding, which means your iPhone can lead you to your lost item with the accuracy of a homing pigeon. Right now, you can bag £27 off a four-pack of Apple's AirTag trackers – bringing the price from £119 to £92. Or, you can save $25 on the AirTag four-pack from Amazon US at $75. While buying in the multipack is the best value for money, even if you might not lose as many things as me. Apple AirPods Pro 2: $199/£189 After a new set of wireless earbuds? Apple's top-tier AirPods are an excellent choice. We awarded them a perfect five stars in our Apple AirPods Pro (2nd Gen) review. We praised AirPods Pro 2 for noise cancellation, versatility, and convenient feature set – all of which saw improvements in the second-generation. Right now, you can bag the AirPods Pro (2nd Gen) for $199 at Amazon US – that's an excellent saving of $50 from the regular ticket of $249. Or on Amazon UK, you can score them for an even better £189, which is a decent £40 saving. Beats Studio Pro: $250/£199 This cheaper pair of Apple over-ear headphones were launched in 2023 – two years after the AirPods Max. What's more, they're basically the same as AirPods Max inside – even capable of wired lossless audio, which AirPods Max aren't. They offer USB-C charging, 40 hours of battery, and personalised spatial audio support with head-tracking. Plus, you get improved noise cancellation (with transparency) thanks to a new custom chip and completely redesigned hardware. Right now, they're down to $250 on Amazon US – $100 off the regular price. Over on Amazon UK, they're a much better £199 – £151 off the regular price of £350. This isn't the cheapest I've soon them, so I expect they'll go down more as we approach Prime Day. Marshall Tufton Bluetooth Speaker: $315 Marshall is extremely popular for Bluetooth speakers, and the Tufton is no exception. Right now, the speaker is discounted by $135 on Amazon US – down to $315 from the regular price of $450. It comes in a moody Black and Brass colourway, which Marshall claims looks particularly fetching next to 'modern industrial interiors' and against natural textures. The brass accents are a nice change from the standard finishes on speakers. It's designed for in and outdoor use and comes with Bluetooth 5.0 and 20-plus hours of rechargeable battery life. There's even a rear-facing driver for extra oomph. Fitbit Inspire 3: $80/£69 For those seeking a dedicated fitness tracker, Fitbits still remain one of the most popular options. The Fitbit Inspire 3 is known for its simplicity, reliability, and robust suite of fitness tracking features, including sleep analysis and continuous heart rate monitoring. It's perfect for individuals looking to enhance their fitness journey without breaking the bank. And right now, it's cheaper than ever. On Amazon US, you'll find it discounted to $80 – $20 off the regular price. Meanwhile in the UK, it's down to £69 from £85 in an almost equal saving of £16. Ninja Double Stack XL: $220/£229 If you often need to prepare food quickly, then an air fryer is a must. The Ninja Double Stack XL appeals a great deal for this, letting you cook in two drawers at once. While that's nothing new, the real draw (pun fully intended) comes in the fact that the fryers are stacked – so it takes up much less room on your counter. In fact, it still manages a huge 9.5L capacity for plenty of food. The version on sale ahead of Prime Day has copper handles as opposed to the usual silver, so looks pretty smart. It's now £229, which is a great saving of £40 from the usual price of £269. Over on Amazon US, it's discounted by a slightly lower amount of $30 to $220. Reolink Argus 4 Pro: $150/£150 If you're looking for a smart security camera with all the bells and whistles (and no subscription price), Reolink's Argus 4 Pro is a top pick. It's armed with dual 4mm lenses that deliver a sprawling 180-degree view in 4K UHD. Reolink's dual-lens setup eliminates blind spots and distortion issues that have plagued other cameras. With Reolink's ColourX technology, the Argus 4 Pro captures full-colour images even in low light. Right now, it's discounted on Amazon UK – down to £150 from the regular price of £180. Plus, you can take an extra 5% off with promo code: G7FE4L72. Over on Amazon US, it's down to $150 from the regular price of $200. Some of these deals are likely to improve (go lower) as we get closer to Prime Day. But for others, this is the best price I've seen – including previous sales like Black Friday. This page will be updated as we get closer to Prime Day.
Stuff.tv
a day ago
- Stuff.tv
This is the one thing you must not do with your new Nintendo Switch 2
There will be a lot of Nintendo Switch 2 consoles leaving their boxes today after certainly weeks and probably months of cardboard imprisonment. But there's one thing that Nintendo has had to tell new owners that they should not do as part of the small print. The Switch 2 screen has a layer of film over it – and you must not take it off. In the manual, Nintendo tells users not to take off the layer of film – it's there for protection in case the display is fully smashed (hopefully by accident). It prevents shards of glass from spreading. 'The screen is covered with a film layer designed to prevent fragments scattering in the event of damage. Do not peel it off' is the warning that Nintendo provides. That warning is contained in very small print in what appears to be a guide to warnings and some usage tips such as how to use the Joy-cons and integrated kickstand. There's only 2.5 pages of instructions per language in the guide so hopefully it will be more obvious that you don't need to remove the film when it comes to actually unboxing the console. Otherwise we can see a lot of people removing the film thinking it's the kind of packaging protector you get on new smartphones. Although, the film should stay, additional screen protection is already available from several vendors and this would then go on top of the film finish. The Switch 2's screen is considerably larger than the original Switch's 6.2in display at 7.9in, but the console's thickness hasn't changed generation-on-generation. When full details of the console were revealed in early April, I was disappointed at the lack of an OLED display as it felt like a downgrade from the 7in Switch OLED. I said at the time that 'most of us are very used to OLED displays now on our phones, TVs and high-end laptops and while Mini LED is now a big segment of the large-screen market, OLED is the new mainstream for mobile displays (it already had over 50% of the market in 2024). LCD is yesterday's news.' But not everyone felt that way, reasoning that the resulting extra battery life would be worth the retention of LCD over OLED. The 120Hz Switch 2 display certainly looks nice and bright too and with HDR on board things should be very positive on the screen front despite my early reservations. Although the Switch 2's display is predictably Full HD in resolution, you can also experience games in up to 4K resolution at 60Hz if you plug it into your TV.
Stuff.tv
a day ago
- Stuff.tv
In pictures: Nintendo Switch 2 midnight store launches across the globe
Back in the 1990s and 2000s, stores often opened at midnight for new tech releases – some of the most famous include Microsoft's Windows 95 and the initial iPhone in 2007. But the excitement has somewhat died down as we've moved further into the e-commerce age and further away from being dependent on stores. However, major console releases remain rare and there's still excitement around new launches. But we haven't had a physical console buzz for quite a while. After all, the Xbox Series X and S as well as the PlayStation 5 debuted in late 2020 after six months of the pandemic. So in-person events were not exactly the order of the day. All of that pent-up enthusiasm has definitely come out for the Switch 2 launch and here we bring you some images, tweets and videos from the in-store launch events across the globe. In Japan, the initial consoles were all pre-ordered, so there were no in-store sales on launch day. You can see what the displays look like in store though. Switch 2 launch day in Japan! Bic Camera even has a demo station for Mario Kart World! The console isn't being sold in stores though, so I hope you won a lottery. — Tokyo Game Life (@TokyoGameLife) June 5, 2025 Here are a couple of scenes from the Nintendo Store in San Francisco: Got some video of the massive line for the Nintendo Switch 2 at the Nintendo San Francisco store 🔥 — OJ – PlayerEssence (@PlayerEssence) June 5, 2025 at the Nintendo store SF again right before release night and people are playing on the switch 2 — Mewty (@Mewtyyy) June 4, 2025 Play Nintendo getting ready for a new generation. Switch 2 boxes are on the move at Nintendo Store SF. — Peer Schneider (@PeerIGN) June 5, 2025 And at the Nintendo store in New York: Play In the US, Best Buy stores had late-night store openings. The retailer said beforehand: 'In addition to fulfilling pre-orders, most stores will have limited inventory of systems, games and accessories for in-store purchase. Customers will also have the chance to receive a Nintendo commemorative coin.' Here's a couple of images from Best Buy midnight openings at undisclosed locations (since Twitter/X no longer gives the location info on tweets). SWITCH 2 MIDNIGHT PICKUP – shout out to Best Buy for bringing back some gaming spirit. A lot of people have special memories tied to midnight launches and it's been a long time since any store has let us have a moment like this 🙏🏽 — AznSensation 🍥 (@AznSensation27) June 5, 2025 As you can see here, there was a lot of people deciding to rock up and see if they could get a console on the night as the line here 'wraps around the building'. I'm in the Pre-order line for Switch 2 on the left side of the store, walk-ins are on the right side and the line wraps around the building. Switch 2 hype is insane. — SuperMetalDave64 (@SMetaldave64) June 5, 2025 However, this level of on-the-day demand wasn't reflected everywhere: My local Best Buy on Switch 2 launch day…..the preorder line is longer than the in store purchase line 💀 — cloudie 2!!! (@fluffysmolcloud) June 5, 2025 One poster also said they chanced upon one of the 21 consoles available on the day at one Walmart store after leaving the gym. GameStop was similar with pickups starting at 12am EST or 9pm PST last night on 4 June and extra stock available. Gamestop midnight release of the Nintendo Switch 2! Honestly for a smaller store, this joint was packed! — Xavier Brown (@TheXavierBrown) June 5, 2025 So Midnight Launch for the Switch 2 is in the books. We even got chips, candy & Red Bulls! We even got a IRL Super Mario! Shout out @gamestop to your 171 Shenstone Blvd, Garner, NC 27529 Store! — Black Yoshi (@SuperG619) June 5, 2025 It wasn't all great news though, with one Redditor claiming that a GameStop store's stapler ruined the Switch 2's display. Apparently one GameStop store used a stapler to attach receipts to Switch 2 boxes and the staple ruined the screen…another person commented their unit and others were affected at the same store — Wario64 (@Wario64) June 5, 2025 The Nintendo Store in Tel-Aviv, Israel, also looked very busy too. Chilling with Mario during the Nintendo Switch 2 launch event at Nintendo Tel-Aviv store 🇮🇱 2,000 people expected tonight!! Here we goooooo!! — 🏴☠️ ʋօȶʟɨռ 𝕏 🎗️ (@Votlin) June 4, 2025 And here are some scenes from Saudi Arabia, too. Switch 2 midnight launch at our stores in Saudi Arabia. Well done team @Geekay_games Thank you @Nintendo for your support — Kishan Deepak Palija (@kishanpalija) June 5, 2025 Pre-orders ready for collection in Sweden: Went to a video game store that was hosting a midnight release for the Switch 2. Had no plans on buying one. Just went there for the experience. It was nice talking to other gamers standing in line. Ended up buying a few indie games tho. Also got a cool Mario Kart World poster. — DJJC (@DJJC58384703) June 4, 2025 In the UK, Currys also did an old-school midnight opening but it was only in London's Oxford Street and only for people who had pre-ordered the console. It was reported that Currys had 30,000 pre-orders, its 'biggest gaming pre-order ever'. However, Smyths Toys decided to open all its UK stores which had 'limited stock of Switch 2 to purchase'. In addition a handful of Smyth stores in Belfast, Glasgow, Hull, Romford and Stockport were also open from 11pm for the following event: 'Take part in an exciting Mario Kart World gameplay demo. Plus the first 100 attendees will receive a FREE goodie bag packed with awesome Nintendo merch — while stocks last! No registration needed — play and celebrate the next level of Nintendo gaming with us!' The pre-order merch on offer in various countries seemed to include coins as you can see from this tweet from the US: The Nintendo Switch 2 preorder coin from Best Buy and the San Francisco Nintendo store grand opening coin are very similar. 🤔 — Cozyberru (@cozyberru) June 5, 2025 And finally, if you're too late to get one you might well see one of these: Nintendo has apparently sent "Out of Stock" Switch 2 signage to stores in preparation for the console to be… out of stock — Nintendeal (@Nintendeal) June 2, 2025
