The world of gaming handhelds is going through a bit of a renaissance these past few years, and it's in big part thanks to the immense popularity of the Nintendo Switch starting way back in 2017. Of course, a lot of PC-based gaming handhelds have been introduced in recent years with tons of advantages over NIntendo's handheld, particularly in terms of performance, display, and storage.

But with the recent introduction of the Switch 2, Nintendo has balanced the scales across the board, and in some ways, it's actually got the upper hand on a lot of its competitors. While there are still arguments to be made in either direction, here are a few things I believe these gaming handhelds could stand to learn from Nintendo's upcoming console.

5 A bigger focus on portability

They're all so heavy

One problem I've always had with a lot of the PC gaming handhelds we've seen in recent years is that there's not much of a focus on the actual portability of the device, despite them obviously being marketed as portable devices. Bigger screens, larger grips, and other additions have often resulted in devices that are much larger than the Nintendo Switch, and a bit harder to carry around as a result.

The Steam Deck is one of the more egregious cases of this thanks to the added touchpads on either side, making it something of a behemoth, though since then we've seen companies go as far as introducing 10-inch or 11-inch gaming handhelds, which is, in my view, ridiculous.

Nintendo followed this trend somewhat with the Switch 2 by increasing the screen to 7.9 inches, but even with that in mind, the Switch 2 is noticeably lighter than the Steam Deck, and it's also not as tall, wide, or thick. In fact, it's just as thick as the original Switch, and while that may pose some issues for comfort if you have larger hands, it does improve portability while still providing a comfortable experience for most users. It would be nice to see that kind of portability in more PC gaming handhelds.

4 A more optimized UI

Windows is still not great for these screens

One of the big problems with PC gaming handhelds is and has always been the fact that they run Windows 11, which is an operating system that isn't very well optimized for small screens, touch, and controller inputs. Microsoft has been slowly making some improvements, but this still isn't a fantastic experience, and while OEMs try to make up for these shortcomings, it's not enough.

The Nintendo Switch 2, much like its predecessor, has a UI that is fully designed around being used with a controller or the touchscreen on the console, and it works perfectly that way. Everything is laid out clearly and easily accessible, and launching games is a completely seamless experience.

This is something the Steam Deck also does extremely well, and it's great to see handhelds like the Lenovo Legion Go S starting to go that route, too. I think that's the way forward for most of these handhelds.

3 microSD Express support

Faster storage without the hassle

It's not often that we see Nintendo pushing for the adoption of a very new standard, but the Switch 2 is the first major piece of hardware to support microSD Express cards, a new storage medium that offers much higher transfer speeds than traditional microSD cards while keeping the same form factor. Of course, this technology is significantly more expensive than standard microSD cards — and even SSDs — right now, but it's only because it's in the very early stages of adoption, and that will change over time.

Most PC gaming handhelds have replaceable SSDs, but if you want more storage for your handheld, that means you're still limited to the single SSD slot on your machine, even if you opt for a large 2TB SSD. Not to mention you'll have to go through the hassle of setting up the operating system all over again.

MicroSD Express cards offer high speeds but they're easily swappable so you can always have dozens of terabytes of storage available at the ready if you want to, and you can swap between your games at will without having to delete data or go through tedious SSD replacements. I'm sure we'll see more and more handhelds support microSD Express soon, but Nintendo deserves credit for pushing forward with that transition.

2 Detachable controllers

The versatility is immense

The Nintendo Switch's success may have inspired a lot of the PC gaming handhelds we see today, but depsite that, there's something about the Switch that often gets overlooked with most of its competitors, and that's the versatility of the detachable controllers (along with the included dock). Lenovo's Legion Go is one of the few devices to really understand this and go for a similar approach, and I think it works in its favor.

Other PC gaming handhelds really need to look into this approach, as it lends their devices a lot more versatility, especially with how heavy some of them can be. Being able to play games on these handhelds without having to hold the full weight of the device would be a very welcome change, and it would be especially useful if you want to play on a bigger screen. Right now, if you want to do that, not only do you have to buy the adapter to output to a larger display, but you also need to buy a controller or other peripherals to play.

The convenience of the Switch 2's form factor out of the box should not be understated, and companies should try to mimic it.

1 Mouse mode

It makes too much sense

As an add-on to the convenience and versatility of detachable controllers, the ability to use the controllers as a mouse is another ingenious idea that the Switch 2 is implementing in a unique and very cool way — though in this case, NIntendo is the one borrowing the idea from Lenovo, who also did something similar with the Legion Go.

Nintendo's implementation is a but more interesting in that both controllers act as mice, and that can enable additional gameplay experiences, but admittedly, something like this would be hard to implement on a PC platform that's designed around having a single mouse. Still, having just one mouse makes a ton of sense for same games. Not only does this make first-person games a lot more intuitive, but it also helps with management simulators like SimCity, The Sims, or Civilization VII, where clicking specific elements is a key part of the game and the additional precision makes a big difference.

Whether the implementation is closer to Lenovo's or Nintendo's, the important bit is that some kind of mouse mode is implemented to provide additional ways to control games.

Nintendo is doing a lot of things right

It's easy to criticize Nintendo for the way it monetizes many of its games and products, but realistically, as a product, the Nintendo Switch 2 is looking fantastic, and the hardware concepts and features it offers are things other gaming handheld manufacturers can learn from. I suspect we'll see many of these ideas come to more PC gaming handhelds in the future, and frankly, that's a win for everyone.