Nintendo Direct just wrapped up, giving us more insight about the new Nintendo Switch 2. The Nintendo Switch is set to release on June 5, just a few months away, with preorders going live April 9. It will have a bigger screen and a magnetic attachment for the Joys-Cons. There are also many new games coming out too. Speaking of games, if you can’t seem to wait until June to make some Nintendo purchase, you can score games from as low as $20 from Woot as a part of the Spring Video Game Sale. But act fast, these deals expire on April 5. 

Score 50% off the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Mutants Unleashed switch game, bringing the price down to just $20. The game is great for all gamers ages 10 and up. If that’s not your style, no worries.  For something the whole family can enjoy, the Super Mario 3D World and Bowser’s Fury game is a cool 30% off slashing the price to $42. You can chose which character you want to be and play by yourself or with friends. 

You can also get your hands on The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom for a nice 36% off dropping the price down to $45. This edition of The Legend of Zelda game has a new Ultrahand ability, the character can pick up, move, and rotate just about any object. This is also one of the few games that we know has an upgrade package available for the Switch 2. You should get this game on a deal, then upgrade to the Switch 2 version when you get it.

There are more games to chose from so take a look at Woot’s full sale page. And for more Nintendo deals, take a look at our full roundup of the best Nintendo Switch deals you can score now. 

Why this deal matters

Buying many games for your device can get expensive. Games and run up as high as $60 each and if you buy multiple games it can really run up a bill. Right now, you can score games for as low as $20 and see discounts as high as half off. It’s a great time to stock up on some new games and even grab some that you’ve been eyeing. This sale event at Woot ends on April 5 but could be earlier if games start to sell out. Don’t miss your chance. 

Scalpers who buy up multiples of a popular product only to sell them for a higher price exist just about everywhere, but over the last couple of years, gamers have had it especially rough. With Nintendo’s new Switch 2 console becoming available for preorder as early as April 9, a new set of rules have been put in place to determine who gets to click the buy button first and who will have to wait until consoles arrive on store shelves. It’s great news for Nintendo Switch fans who are eager to upgrade to this new console and terrible news for those looking to make a quick buck from the excitement. 

If you’re a fan, you’ll be able to request an invitation to buy a Nintendo Switch 2 soon, and it will run you either $449 for just the console or $499 for a bundle with Mario Kart World included. According to Nintendo, this invitation system is the best way to ensure you’re one of the first to buy. The first wave of invitations to buy will be sent on a first-come, first-served basis and is expected to arrive on May 8. Once that invitation is sent, you will have 72 hours to complete the purchase, and the console will be shipped directly to you. 

It’s a relatively straightforward system, not terribly different from invitation systems we’ve seen from Sony and Amazon for the PlayStation 5 during its supply shortage. Nintendo is limiting purchases to one console per Nintendo Switch Online account, and while accessories will be available to buy at that same time, another one-per-account limit will apply. What makes this different is a note in the FAQ section of Nintendo’s website, which identifies what you need to do in order to be considered for an invitation. There are three qualifiers:

• You must have a Nintendo Switch Online membership, which must be in your name.
• You must have had any version of the Nintendo Switch Online membership for at least 12 months.
• You must have opted in to share your gameplay data with Nintendo and have at least 50 combined hours of Nintendo Switch gameplay as of Wednesday, April 2.

By implementing these rules, Nintendo is ensuring the first wave of Switch 2 consoles are exclusively for the fans. There will be plenty of other places you will be able to preorder a Switch 2, but the company is making it clear that scalpers are not welcome. Invitations to purchase will be nontransferrable, and you will need to be able to log in to the My Nintendo Account that received the invitation in order to complete a purchase. It seems like a lot of hoops to jump through, but if it means you can actually make a purchase and the number of $1,000 consoles on eBay is decreased, it’ll be well worth it to those who get an invitation. 

If your iPhone or Android phone doesn’t start charging when you plug it in, there could be a few reasons why. From broken plugs or power cables to damaged charging ports on your phone, some issues can be resolved simply by trying a different cable or charging plug, while others may be more difficult or expensive to fix. But one common reason for faulty charging is simply that your phone’s charging port is clogged with pocket fluff, and all that debris is preventing your cable from properly connecting. 

This can easily happen with any charging port, whether that’s Lightning on the iPhone 14 Pro or older iPhones, or USB-C on the more recent iPhone 16 range and Android phones like the Google Pixel 9 Pro or Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra.

Thankfully, this is one of the simplest and cheapest charging problems to fix. Here’s how. 

Why is my charging port blocked? 

There are no covers on your phone’s charging port, meaning it’s exposed to every bit of dust, dirt and debris it encounters. Every time you slide your phone into your pocket, your phone will be susceptible to pocket fluff and if, like me, you’ve got pockets filled with detritus from accidentally washing your jeans with old receipts in the pockets, then that’s asking for trouble. And that’s to say nothing of the cookie crumbs. Do not ask me why I have cookie crumbs in my pockets. 

Day by day, this won’t be a problem, but those tiny bits of dust and fluff will build up inside your charging port over the months or years you have your phone, compacting each time you plug in your charging cable until it forms a solid barrier that stops your charger from going all the way in and allowing it to connect and charge. 

If you’ve had your phone for more than six months and you’re gradually finding the charger becoming less and less stable (particularly if you have to wiggle it around to get it to begin charging) then it’s highly likely that dirt in your port is the culprit. 

How to clean out your phone’s charging port 

It’s a simple task to unclog your phone’s port. You’ll need a cocktail stick, toothpick or other thin item that you can poke in to the port to scrape out the grime. Wood or plastic is better as it’s less likely to scrape against anything inside and potentially cause harm. I’ve done this using a metal SIM removal tool and the pin on the back of an earring and while it worked well, it’s not the safest option for your phone. 

Insert your tool of choice into the charging port until it won’t go further and gently start scraping away. With an older iPhone’s Lightning port you can scrape back and forth, but with USB-C you’ll need to scrape around the charging connector, which sits in the middle of the port. 

Eventually you’ll start to work the compacted debris loose and you’ll be able to encourage the dislodged material out of the port. It’s a satisfying process and you might be surprised at how much stuff actually comes out. Gently work on the sides of the port, too, but be careful not to scrape hard against any of the metal charging connectors. 

Eventually you’ll have pretty much all of it out. It’s difficult to check for sure if you’ve gotten rid of it all as it’s tricky to see inside the port, even if you have a good light handy. But once you’ve got a good amount of debris out, you can try your charging cable again. 

Hopefully it’ll plug in more securely now and begin charging. If not, keep trying to extract more dirt and then test the charger again. If that still doesn’t solve the issue, it’s time to consider other solutions like a new cable or charger.