A clever YouTuber has fixed the JoyCon Drift problem permanently with a pretty simple but ingenious solution. However, you still need to figure out how to open up your JoyCon first and remove some components in order to fix the JoyCon drift for good. No worries though, we outline exactly what you need to do!
Now, before we get into this fix, it should be noted that opening up your JoyCon voids its warranty!
So, with that warning out of the way, we can now go into the details on how to fix the drift on your Nintendo JoyCon.
While you can always send your JoyCons to Nintendo, and they will replace them for free, they cannot guarantee you will receive the same ones back. What does that even mean, you may ask? Well, let’s say you have the pretty rare Zelda Edition or Animal Crossing JoyCons, Nintendo cannot ensure you will receive those exact ones back in the same color or edition. Yep, they could send back boring old grey JoyCons instead. In both cases, those special edition JoyCons sell for around $100 on eBay, so you might only have this solution as a fix to your JoyCon drift.
How to Fix JoyCon Drift
Many methods have been suggested by different YouTubers and testers willing to experiment on their drifting JoyCons, but they all run into the same issue, none of them are permanent fixes... until now. Enter the YouTuber, VK's Channel. Skip to 5:55 to see the fix and the results.
VK has a permanent fix for your drifting JoyCon, and it's simply to place a 1mm square piece of paper underneath the joystick’s housing. By doing this you apply enough pressure to the underside of the drifting JoyCon, and it seemingly appears to fix the problem. It's kind of funny that a random YouTuber fixed it with a literal piece of paper, while a multi-million dollar tech/gaming company couldn't, or maybe didn't want to for 4 years!
- Looking to get your hands on the OLED Nintendo Switch?
VK makes the bolder claim that his paper fix technique has been effective for the last month! He says in his YouTube video his JoyCon has no drift since he has used the simple mechanical fix. Once again, by simply inserting a small piece of paper the thickness of a business card underneath the Joystick, the problem of JoyCon drift was finally defeated!
What Tools do you need to open up your JoyCon?
- Tri-Wing screwdriver
- Phillips Double Zero Screwdriver
If you look at the bottom side of your JoyCon, you will see tiny little screws. You will need to purchase a Tri-Wring screwdriver to be able to open up your JoyCon. Once inside, you will need to use a Phillips Double Zero Screwdriver to remove the battery housing before you can place the slip of paper in the correct location, and doing so will solve the JoyCond drift problem. We highly suggest you first watch a tutorial before you start opening up your JoyCon to fix the drift problem. Learn how to open it up properly and see what it looks like inside via a YouTube JoyCon Teardown tutorial. Please do this before you start experimenting on your own! Keep in mind that you do not need to take apart the entire JoyCon to fix the drift problem and just watch both videos linked in this article before you try to repair it blind.
- Would you believe me If I told you that a Zelda game sold for a million bucks?
With a little effort and some patience, you can fix the Nintendo JoyCon drift that has been plaguing you since Nintendo released these cheap hunks of plastic in March 2017!
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