One of the strongest selling points of Nintendo Switch is its portability. We can use this console anywhere and continue our progress from the last time. The build quality of Nintendo Switch is not bad, but I still do not feel confident of putting it inside my bag when I need to go somewhere. I have put screen protector, yet I am still worried about the joy-con thumb sticks and the connection between the main unit and the 2 joy-cons on the sides. So I decided to get a travel case.

There are plenty of options of Nintendo Switch case in the market. The official models licensed by Nintendo generally have higher quality but more expensive. The cheaper non-branded models can easily be obtained from Amazon or eBay. From my past experience experimenting with laptop or device cases, a lot of these cheaper alternatives usually come with a catch or two. I have experienced getting good product with strange smell that does not go away even after thorough clean and days of airing.

I wanted a travel case that is not too think, yet provide reasonable protection for the console. At least should protect from light pressure inside my bag during normal activities. There are a lot of cases have the design of popular games, I opt to avoid them as I like my case to have discreet look and does not scream for attention.

The official case from Nintendo was the first to catch my attention. It looks good, not too think and the design is neutral. One downside is that the case ifself is not a hard case, so it provides rather minimum protection. I am not looking for an absolute protection from anything, but I doubt my device would even survive a fall from a table in this case. Secondly, the official case does not come with carrying handle so I do not have the option to carry just the case, it has to be inside a bag. Not necessarily a deal-breaker if there is no other alternative offering better product, yet I found this travel case from RDS that fits my criteria better.

Nintendo Switch Game Traveler Deluxe Travel Case from RDS Industries provides hard-case protection made from Ballistic Nylon and PU Leather. Not the hardest possible material, but will definitely provide better degree or protection compared to the official case. It comes with 4 nice-looking game cases: 2 cases for game cartridges and 2 cases for micro SD cards. Each game cartridge case can hold 4 cartridges and each micro SD case can hold 2 memory cards. The size of a micro SD case perfectly fits the size of a cartridge, so it fits into any section of the multi-game case. Smart design decision. The interior has molded form to protect joy-con curves and recessed compartments for the game cases. Padded flap inside the case provides dual function: to protect the screen when the case is closed, and to serve as angled stand to use the console in tabletop mode. It is worth to note that this case from RDS is a Nintendo-licensed product (not to be confused with official case).

Overall design looks nice in black colour without any game art. There is a red Nintendo Switch logo in the center. The zip line has subtle white and red line and the zipper is made of silicone material. I had a bit of confusion with the product dimension when I first read about it in some online stores. It was described as 2.5″ thick (6.3 cm), too thick for my liking. Luckily I happened to see this in a physical store and realised that it is actually slimmer than the official description. After seeing the actual product, this case’s dimensions are 26 cm x 16 cm x 4.5 cm. It is also quite lightweight, 330 gr with the game cases inside.

Even though this is a good case to bring our Nintendo Switch console during travels, it is a bit tricky to open this case while we are actually in unstable situation during commute (for example when standing in public transport). The game case inside the case fits in recessed compartments, but nothing will hold them there. So if we open this case and take out the console without proper care, the game case could jump off. I get my games mostly in digital format (with few exceptions), so I don’t experience this problem often.

Happy with this purchase and hope to use this case for a long time.