Hardware Hacker Attempts to Run NVMe SSD on Switch 2; Adapter Fails to Activate but Future microSD Express Emulation Possible

Sure, I’ll give it a shot:

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So, here’s the thing. I’ve been fiddling with this Nintendo Switch 2 storage issue, and honestly, it’s been a circus of tech-y chaos. MicroSD Express cards are, like, basically a money pit right now. Because of this, a bunch of tech-savvy DIY folks decided to dive into some mad scientist alternatives to soup up the Switch 2’s storage. You ever heard of Better Gaming on YouTube? Yeah, they went down the rabbit hole with this open-source MicroSD Express adapter that’s basically built for the Switch 2. The idea was to hook it up with one of those chunky M.2 NVMe 2230 SSDs. Spoiler alert: it was kind of a flop at first.

The adapter they’re working with — aptly called SDEX2M2 — is like a bridge from the PCIe world to the NVMe side of town by using the MicroSD Express specs. It’s all about that SD Express 7.1 jazz, rocking a PCIe Gen 3×1 vibe, supposedly making NVMe work on it. Sounds neat in theory, right? Anyway, back to reality.

So, Better Gaming clones the SDEX2M2 blueprints, did some PCB witchcraft with a third party. Once the boards arrived, there was soldering and muttering over components like a M.2 connector and some resistor thingy called R1. Maybe it’s important? Who knows, really.

Eventually, after a handful of attempts — let’s say four black sheep PCB victims — success struck. The rig looked solid, even slotted into the Switch 2 without fuss, and the device went all “hello there!” detecting the adapter. Cue the dramatic turn: enter error code “2016-0641,” when the Switch 2 suddenly decided it couldn’t find its microSD card. Just when you think it’s smooth sailing…

Turns out, passive adapters play the role of the strong, silent type, lacking the chatty nature Switch 2 needs to boss around one of those NVMe thingamajigs. See, MicroSD Express cards have their own mini-brain (controller) and the Switch 2 likes having long conversations with such controllers. NVMe SSDs have brains too, but they’re on a different communication planet, far from the SD Express 7.1 universe.

Now the devs on the SDEX2M2 project — bless their persistent hearts — seem to have noticed this hiccup and are tinkering with a workaround using this FPGA thing. If they can make one act like a MicroSD Express controller, gamers might have a way out of the current storage squeeze.

Let’s be honest, these MicroSD Express cards are real wallet vampires at the moment — about 20 to 25 cents per gig, which balloons the cost past $50 for a meager 256GB. On the other hand, you could scoop up a 1TB NVMe SSD, like the Corsair MP600 Mini, for roughly $89.99-ish. Value math, folks.

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