We’re Just Getting Close to Turning a Nintendo Switch Into a Work Tablet
The Nintendo Switch is a great device for gaming, but (other than Hulu streaming) it can’t do anything else. Fortunately, this may not last long if you want to jailbreak your $ 300 tablet.
The fail0verflow hacker collective this weekend released a video showcasing a modified Nintendo Switch running Linux . A one-minute demo demonstrates a desktop, a working browser, and touchscreen support. This is how it looks in action:
In a separate tweet, the hackers explain that the exploit they are using cannot be fixed with a software update. This means that any Switch hardware already released in the world can be jailbroken to work with Linux. You also don’t need a modchip (an additional electronic device that is often used to change game consoles) to hack the Switch.
Unfortunately fail0verflow hasn’t really revealed how the hack works, and until they do (or some other hacker figure it out), you’re stuck using the Switch as Nintendo intended. Once this information is revealed, you can turn it into a regular tablet and use it for everything from checking Twitter to games that are not officially supported by Nintendo (you can probably download stolen games as well, but this is no longer the case for you and your conscience).
A potential downside is that you can break your switch. Nintendo will likely not honor its warranty once the device is jailbroken, so this should be considered while you wait for fail0verflow to release official instructions on how to turn the Switch into a Linux tablet.