Pros & Cons
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- Sturdy.
- Stays closed more reliably than the original kickstand.
- Switch can still be docked with it installed.
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- MicroSD slot doesn't reliably holds cards in place.
We love almost everything about the Nintendo Switch...aside from its plastic kickstand on the back. It's a flimsy plastic strip that easily flips open when you use the system as a handheld, exposing the microSD card slot. It's also too thin and fragile to reliably act as the kickstand it's supposed to be. Nyko has a solution, and it's only $4.99. The Kick Stand for Nintendo Switch is a replacement metal kickstand for the system. It's thicker, sturdier, and more reliable than Nintendo's, and it doesn't affect your ability to slip the Switch into its dock to charge or use with your TV. It's one of the more affordable, convenient upgrades you can get for your Switch, and is well worth your money and our Editors' Choice award.
Design
The Kick Stand ( at Amazon) is a 2.4-by-0.8-inch (HW) metal tab designed to replace the included kickstand on the Switch. Nyko describes it as "metal," but it's non-magnetic and appears to be a rigid aluminum. Like the plastic kickstand, Nyko's version has a curved lip on the bottom and a wide, U-shaped, screwed-in latch for connecting to the Switch. Unlike the plastic kickstand, it has a rectangular recess with metal tabs for holding an extra microSD card. The protrusion is just over a millimeter thick, and it doesn't get in the way when docking.
To install the Kick Stand, just pull off the original one and pop it into the slot. It will click in securely. After that, it works just like the original kickstand, only with less wiggle.
As a kickstand, it's is far superior to the plastic one the Switch comes with. While it's still narrow and far from the center, the rigid metal prevents it from flexing like the plastic one. It also fastens to the Switch much more securely; once it's installed, it takes slightly more force to pull it off than the plastic one. More importantly, it locks against the Switch much more tightly. You can still easily open the Kick Stand with your thumbnail, but it's much harder to idly pop it open if your fingers drum on the back of the Switch when you're playing.
Storage
The extra microSD card slot is less useful. First, the slot itself isn't very secure. Some microSD cards we tested with it slid loosely into the recess, but weren't held in place by the tabs. Others required an uncomfortable amount of pressure to lodge the card under the tabs. Manufacturing variation among microSD cards isn't a problem for card readers and slots, but when you're just dealing with a tiny metal tab and tolerances of a fraction of a millimeter, it just isn't that useful.
The slot also feels pointless, because of how the Switch handles memory. The system mounts the installed microSD card when it starts, and after that, it functions as system storage. It isn't designed to be hot-swapped, which means if you simply pop out the card the Switch will give you an error message and shut down. You need to manually turn it off by holding the power button until the power menu comes up (just putting it into sleep mode won't work; you'll get the same error).
Considering microSD cards are so inexpensive (a 64GB card that triples the Switch's total storage can be had for around $30), the space for an extra card is very unnecessary. It feels like Nyko originally wanted to put a game card slot (which is useful for anyone who buys physical games, and can be hot-swapped without turning off the Switch), but realized that the cards are too thick for the Kick Stand to let the Switch dock while holding one. The recess for the microSD card slot doesn't get in the way, but it almost would have been preferable for the Kick Stand to just be a metal version of the plastic kickstand without any storage at all, to keep the smooth surface of the back of the Switch.
A Must-Have Upgrade
The Nyko Kick Stand for Nintendo Switch solves one of the few design problems we have with the Switch. It holds the system up better, stays closed more reliably, and simply feels nicer than the filmsy plastic kickstand the system comes with. The microSD card storage feels completely unnecessary, but that's the only complaint we have for this otherwise must-buy upgrade. If you've ever been annoyed by the Switch's built-in kickstand, spend $5 and pop this one in. It's a simple, elegant, and affordable solution, and for that it earns our Editors' Choice.
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