Analyst Report: Dow Inc
The Nintendo Switch 2 webcam compatibility mystery is solved and updates are on the way
If you plug the world’s best-reviewed webcams into the Nintendo Switch 2 today, they won’t work, while many comparatively ancient webcams do. Why? That’s been a mystery for the nearly three weeks since the handheld launched. Now, two companies say they’ve figured it out and are pledging to update the firmware on their cameras.
Here’s a possibly oversimplified answer: today’s more-powerful webcams advertise many different modes that they support to any device you connect via USB — but that’s a problem because the Nintendo Switch 2 appears to be choosing modes it can’t properly play.
In the case of Elgato, which will update its non-working Facecam MK.2 and Facecam Neo, the solve was adding an additional low-resolution 480p mode, with Elgato general manager Julian Fest speculating that the Switch can only reliably support “very low resolution” cameras in order to put multiple facecams on screen.
But low resolution by itself isn’t the answer — as you’d probably expect, given that Nintendo’s own official Switch 2 camera is a 1080p camera which genuinely broadcasts a 1080p mode (we checked), and given it’s far from the only 1080p or higher camera that works with Nintendo’s new Switch.
Accessory company Ugreen tells The Verge that the technical details of making a camera work with the console are far more nuanced than resolution, or framerate, or whether you have the enhanced bandwidth of USB 3 or the far slower USB 2.
Nor is it enough for the camera to support a single compatible UVC (USB Video Class) mode. Instead, Ugreen spokesperson Gabrielle Wang explains by email, the camera needs to avoid advertising modes or protocols that the Switch might not recognize, or that it might attempt to use but fail, after you plug it into the console.
Ugreen says three different conditions all simultaneously need to be met for a camera to work with the Switch 2:
- “The camera must not use the HID protocol.”
- “The camera must be configured for Isochronous transfer mode.” (As opposed to Bulk, which can be more resource intensive.)
- “The USB endpoint descriptors must not include unsupported low frame rate settings (below 30 fps).” More on that one in a sec.
Unfortunately, you’re not likely to find any of those “specs” on a camera’s box or in its marketing materials, but but they are things you can check with a connected PC and a tool like USBView — and in so doing, we can see the camera incompatibility situation is more nuanced than a single factor.
Elgato’s Facecam MK.2, for instance, already advertises isochronous modes to connected devices as far as I can tell, and it doesn’t advertise an HID interface. In fact, it appears to already offer a 480p mode as well.
But Elgato’s camera may have broken Ugreen’s third theoretical rule — it tells connected devices like the Switch 2 that it’s capable of running as low as 5 fps at a variety of different resolutions, according to the USB Device Descriptors I’ve viewed. Ugreen says that the Switch 2 may prioritize lower settings, “but if the camera hardware cannot actually output at such low frame rates, it will cause a failure.”
It wouldn’t be surprising if Ugreen had an easier time figuring this out: though none of Elgato’s webcams worked with the Switch 2 at launch, Ugreen had the benefit of discovering that some of its models did, while others did not.
Ugreen says its CM826 / 55512, CM797 / 45644, and CM825 / 75330 cameras will have updates by the end of June, while the CM678 / 15728, CM778 / 35626, CM717 / 25442, CM825 / 55721, and CM831 / 65381 already work.
But I wonder if this should solely be the responsibility of camera companies — PCs, for example, don’t generally have this same trouble picking from a webcam’s list of supported video modes. Perhaps Nintendo will address the webcam compatibility situation, globally, with an update of its own.
Nintendo didn’t have a comment for our story.
Andrew Liszewski and Andru Marino contributed to this story.
Alijah Arenas on crash – ‘Fighting time’ to escape burning truck
LOS ANGELES — Southern California basketball recruit Alijah Arenas has provided the first details of the car crash that left him in an induced coma in April.
Initially disoriented after crashing his Tesla Cybertruck into a tree, Arenas said he felt panic as smoke filled the front cabin and the doors wouldn’t open.
“I was fighting time,” Arenas said during a news conference Tuesday.
Arenas, whose father Gilbert played in the NBA, was involved in the single-car crash last April when he said the Cybertruck’s keypad and steering wheel wouldn’t respond. Arenas said he awoke to find the passenger side of the dashboard engulfed in flames and tried to use his digital key to escape, only to find the Tesla app had locked him out.
“I tried to open the door and the door wasn’t opening,” he said.
Arenas moved to the back seat and tried to break out the window, but wasn’t able to. He doused himself with a water bottle to cool his body down and spent nearly 10 minutes in the burning car before finally busting out the driver’s side window and falling into a few inches of water from a broken fire hydrant as bystanders helped pull him to safety.
Arenas spent six days in the hospital following the accident but did not suffer major injuries.
Rob Kardashian in Rare Photo With Kim Kardashian
It’s not easy to keep up with Rob Kardashian.
While the younger brother of Kourtney Kardashian, 46, Kim Kardashian, 44, and Khloe Kardashian, 40, may stay out of the spotlight more than his sisters do, the Keeping Up With the Kardashians alum does still make an appearance every so often—this time, in Kim’s latest Instagram post.
“Happy Birthday to my ace,” Kim wrote in a June 25 Instagram post celebrating the birthday of longtime pal LaLa Anthony alongside two selfies of the trio, Rob smiling in each one. “Truly the bestest best friend a girl could ask for! I love you so much!!!! Today’s your day!”
Fans flocked to the comments to express their joy over the rare peek at Rob’s life—which now includes the role of dad to Dream Kardashian, 8, whose mom is his ex Blac Chyna. As one user shared, “Sorry but Rob stole the show in this photo.”
“Love seeing rob,” one comment read, while another said, “Rob still handsome.”
Ultimately, as another user put it, “Everyone just hyped Rob is in the photo.”
England Under-21s: Liverpool’s Harvey Elliott proves he will be one of Europe’s hottest properties this summer
Elliott made 18 league appearances under Arne Slot last season, but his only two starts came against Chelsea and Brighton, when Liverpool had already won the league.
That was in stark contrast to the previous season, with 11 starts in 34 league games for the Reds in Jurgen Klopp’s final campaign.
Elliott has made 147 appearances, scoring 15 goals, in his six years at Liverpool since joining from Fulham as a teenager, with a season on loan at Blackburn in 2020-21.
England Under-21 boss Carsley has only seen Elliott’s desire to succeed this summer.
“I’ve not seen a lot of the frustration,” he added. “What I have seen is someone who’s determined to play and to get the minutes. He wants to play every game and all of the minutes.
“He’s definitely built into the tournament. Not getting as much game time towards the end of the season, we’ve had to manage his minutes in terms of the amount he’s played and the intensity he plays at because he’s so explosive with the way he moves and his end product.
“We’re very lucky to have him.”
Brighton have been linked with a move for Elliott, as have former club Fulham, and while Wolves have been mentioned they have already signed Spaniard Fer Lopez and any fee is likely to be too high for the Molineux outfit.
Former Liverpool defender Stephen Warnock, part of BBC 5 Live’s commentary team in Slovakia, believes Elliott has done well to ignore talk about his future and impress at the Euros.
“There’s a lot of speculation about ‘will he be at Liverpool next year?’,” said Warnock, who made 67 appearances after coming through the youth ranks at Anfield.
“That’s not easy. There will be phone calls with his agent about who’s talking, where are we looking at going and what are the potential avenues, am I going to stay at Liverpool? It’s very much a rollercoaster as the tournament goes on.
“Because of the amount of games he has played for Liverpool, and the impact he had coming in, I think we all thought he would catapult and play for a long time in the first team.
“But he has a World Cup winner in Alexis Mac Allister in front of him, [Ryan] Gravenberch had an unbelievable season and [Dominik] Szoboszlai was brought in for big money.
“He has responded well in this tournament. Mo Salah talks about moments in games and Harvey Elliott is one of those players for the moment. When the moment presents itself he is calm and composed.”
NATO chief clarifies Trump comments: 'I didn't call him daddy'
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte sought to clarify an eyebrow-raising comment he made during a bilateral news conference with President Trump on Wednesday: He doesn’t consider the U.S. leader “daddy” and was making a reference in jest.
“The daddy thing, I didn’t call him ‘daddy,'” Rutte told reporters later in the day. “What I said is that sometimes, in Europe, I hear sometimes countries saying, ‘Hey, Mark, will the U.S. stay with us?’ and I said that sounds a little bit like a small child asking his daddy, ‘Hey, are you still staying with the family?’ So in that sense, I used ‘daddy’ — not that I was calling President Trump daddy.”
Rutte drew attention — and jokes from Trump — after he invoked the word “daddy” while describing the president’s response to Israel and Iran’s military conflict.
“Sometimes daddy needs to use strong language,” Rutte said with a laugh, referring to Trump using the f-word to rebuke the Middle Eastern countries on Tuesday.
Trump laughed off the remark during a later news conference.
“He did it very affectionately though, ‘Daddy, you’re my daddy”,” Trump said, as Secretary of State Marco Rubio chuckled behind him.
Get Philips Hue smart lights before their July 1st price hike
Signify has announced price increases for its Philips Hue smart lighting and accessories starting on July 1st due to US tariffs. As for how much the products will go up in price, that hasn’t been confirmed, but the Hue Wall Washer that was recently launched is 10 percent more expensive than its price in the EU, which may offer an indication of what to expect. If you’ve been meaning to try Philips Hue smart bulbs, or add to your existing collection, this may be your last chance to snag products before the prices go up.
Luka Modric agrees to sign for AC Milan after Club World Cup
Luka Modric has verbally agreed to sign for AC Milan, the Serie A club’s sporting director, Igli Tare has said.
“I spoke to him in person and saw a guy who is really eager to be competitive. His arrival is crucial for a group that needs players like him, leadership,” Tare told Gazzetta dello Sport.
“The first question Luka asked me was: ‘Will we be a team built to win the championship? He has won six Champions Leagues and wants to be a star player from the start.
“He is important for what he will convey in terms of mentality, leadership and professionalism. The fact that he is an AC Milan fan makes this story even more exciting, and it would be great for him to have a stellar season as at the end of the season is the World Cup,” he added.
Personal terms have been agreed between Modric and Milan, sources have told ESPN. The two parties shook hands in early June, just before the Club World Cup began, and Modric will sign as soon once the tournament in the United States is over.
Modric will sign a one-year contract, sources have told ESPN, with an option to extend for another year, at a net salary of around €3.5 million ($4m) per season, with bonuses.
Modric, who will turn 40 in September, is fully fit and wants to reach the World Cup in the U.S next summer with regular playing time behind him as he leaves Real Madrid after a glittering 13 years where he won 28 major trophies.
Milan have also agreed personal terms with Bayer Leverkusen midfielder Granit Xhaka, sources have told ESPN, although an agreement over a transfer fee is yet to be made.
Fox News Hires Brett Cooper, Conservative Gen Z Influencer
Girl, watch your mouth. It all started when the Girl, Wash Your Face author posted about her house cleaner and it got increasingly dirty.
In a clip of the since-deleted post resurfaced by Angie Treasure, Hollis referenced an April 2021 livestream where she spoke about a woman who “cleans the toilets,” noting that “someone commented and said, ‘You’re privileged AF’ and I was like, ‘You’re right. I’m super freaking privileged, but also I worked my ass off to have the money to have someone come twice a week and clean my toilets’ and I told her that. And then she said, ‘Well, you’re unrelatable.'”
Hollis’ response was to explain she had no interest in being relatable pointing out that icons and historical figures like Harriet Tubman, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Marie Curie and Oprah Winfrey were “all unrelatable AF.”
Exceptwhile selling millions of copies of her books is great, a revered abolitionist she is not.
Days later, Hollis issued an Instagram apology, explaining, “I know I’ve caused tremendous pain in mentioning prominent women—including several women of color—whose struggles and achievements I can’t possibly understand.” Moreover, she continued, “I disregarded the people whose hard work doesn’t afford them financial security, often due to inherently racist and biased systems.”
Added the Girl, Stop Apologizing author, “The important thing for me to do now, something I should have already done, is honestly, be quiet and listen.”