New 'Covert' Switch Dock Puts The Nintendo Version To Shame

Do you know what's not fun? Traveling with the Nintendo Switch dock. The Switch is a home-portable hybrid that fills both roles beautifully. The Switch's dock, however, is not built to do the same. It's large yet flimsy. The AC adapter is enormous. It's clear Nintendo would rather you leave the dock at home. Fortunately, another solution is on the way.

The Genki Covert Dock (via Nintendo Life) crams everything you need from the Nintendo Switch dock into something that's even smaller than the console's AC adapter. There's a USB-C 3.1 slot for connecting the Switch. There's a USB-A 3.0 port for any accessories you might want to use (a Pro Controller, for example). And then there's an HDMI port, which connects to your TV and blasts your Switch gameplay onto the big screen. All of that comes in a package that's small enough to fit into your pocket, which means the days of toting that unwieldy dock around are over.

Theoretically.

We know what you're probably thinking: the Nintendo Switch has not been known to play nice with some third-party docks. Some work fine, and some render the Switch completely unusable. Genki is adamant that this won't be an issue, as the company actually did research on what was causing units to brick and designed the Covert Dock to address those issues. And it appears it basically comes down to using higher-quality parts and ensuring the Switch isn't being charged at a voltage that's way too high. If Genki has truly cracked the code, this is some great news, as other accessory makers can follow suit. If not? We can look forward to more bricked Switches.

So with that, we're going to remain slightly skeptical about the Covert Dock; at least until we see in action and know it works as intended. If the Covert Dock does live up to the task, though, you might be able to toss that other Nintendo Switch dock in the garbage. This one is going to travel way better. 

You can check out Genki's Covert Dock crowdfunding page over on Kickstarter. The dock-only $49 early bird tier is now sold out, but you can get one with global adapters (or without) for $59.