Unboxing Your Brand-New Switch 2? Don’t Remove This Piece of Plastic

Don’t be so excited for that new Nintendo Switch 2 landing on your doorstep June 5 that you tear into that big red box like a rabid kid on Christmas morning. Nintendo’s new handheld has one caveat that you should look out for on launch, namely the screen protector. If you’re used to taking the thin plastic film off your new devices’ screens, Nintendo suggests you ignore your first impulse and leave that layer right where it is.

Nintendo published its instruction manual for the Switch 2 on Sunday. Those who merely scanned over the document may not have spotted a small note under the “Careful Usage” section about the display. “The screen is covered with a film layer designed to prevent fragments scattering in the event of damage. Do not peel it off,” reads the manual.

This layer likely won’t prevent scratching or chipping. It simply keeps the screen from busting apart and scattering glass shards everywhere. This is likely similar to the same preinstalled plastic layer found on the Nintendo Switch OLED. It’s attached with a kind of adhesive, so removing it with any haste can damage or mar the glass screen underneath. You may be able to remove it with ginger hands so you can install your own screen protector, but your better option is to apply a separate layer of screen protection on top of what’s already there.

Nintendo sells its own Switch 2 carrying case and screen protector bundle, but if you want to save money on launch day, you can find other protectors from brands like Hori, NEXT, and PowerA. You can also look at companies like Dbrand which sells a 2-pack Prism 2.0 screen protector for $35 alongside the new Switch 2 Killswitch case. We won’t have to wait long to find a laundry list of screen protectors on Amazon or elsewhere, so there will be no lack of choice. Considering how the Switch OLED tended to pick up blemishes, we suggest you treat your new handheld with care until you can find a protector.

The Switch 2’s use of magnetically attached Joy-Con 2 controllers has some concerned about wear and tear, especially from the exposed pins on the handheld’s main unit once both controllers are removed. Nintendo says not to swing or dangle the console from each controller. The Mario maker also mentions you shouldn’t “affix stickers to the part of the Joy-Con 2 where the SL/SR buttons are located.” The company also advises that small metal objects can stick to the magnetic areas of the console and that not removing them could result in damage over time as it weakens the magnetic connection.

Don’t treat your Switch 2 as your new frisbee or dog toy, and you should be alright. We’ll see how well the handheld lasts over time after release. Despite the legacy of Joy-Con stick drift on the original Switch, the Switch 2 still won’t use drift-resistant Hall effect joysticks. Instead, Nintendo is likely relying on a cover surrounding each stick to keep out dust and preserve the stick mechanism for longer. Gulikit—the company that first launched Hall effect Joy-Con stick replacements for the original Switch—previously told Gizmodo it’s working on new modules for the Switch 2.