I'm playing on a 2017 Switch with the day 1 patch and it's running fine for me.
Using Ultrahand in a highly detailed and busy area can causes dips, but given the slow paced nature of this feature, it's not a big deal.
Exploration and combat run consistently.

Much as I enjoy Digital Foundry, I feel like it, and just console war propaganda, have fostered a somewhat unhealthy obsession with graphics/performance among gamers.

Err is that not automatic on Switch? i bought the physical version and it said I needed to free up 360MB to start the game. Kinda assumed that was for the patch?

Ah, I feel stupid now. I had to close the game and now it updated to 1.1.1. It defaults to keep it open when turning the console off. Will see tonight if it runs better!

@curl-6 And the most often used argument in DF comments is, Nintendo can deliver 60fps games, why can't ps5/Series X deliver consistent 60fps. The irony ;)

You can change in the settings wether software updates are downloaded automatically or not.

That said, I have only comparatively rarely experienced any fps issues in TotK. But I also only ever experienced fps issues in BotW in the korok forrest and was always surprised to hear that people had issues in other places or situations.

I know DF had framerate issues before the patch. After the patch it improved drastically. The opening sky island does seem to be one of the harshest areas in the game on the framerate even after the patch especially when using ultrahand. 

Now I have noticed some people here saying there are no framerate drops at all which is not true.

I wouldn't call it unhealthy.

Digital Foundry has certainly provided a valuable service to gamers as many developers rush out buggy and low-framerate games as of late... It's our money on the line remember.

There are frame drops in tears of the kingdom, but it's also not a twitch-shooter so it's impact is far less pronounced... But was also something that was present in Breath of the Wild also.

Playstation 4 Pro relied on reconstruction to achieve 4k and did so with success.

Series X however had many games at 1800P and many using dynamic-4k. - Definitely higher than 1440P on average.

WiiU was not a 1080P console, it had a few titles that hit 1080P, but for the most part, it's best games were around 720P. (Mario Kart, Breath of the Wild, Smash, Donkey Kong etc')
Or worse. 480P for everything on the handheld display.

Seems relevant to this discussion:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4LplgYMiLhM&t=318s

In the examples Croshaw mentions what can be done with the power is physics named. This is arguably one direction TOTK explores with it's building and machines mechanics. So in a way it makes other games look dated.

It's a lot better now after the patches. In fact, I didn't really notice any slow down anymore, even while using Ultra hand. (But haven't made anything big anymore either since it just disappears anyway) The patches made a huge difference.

That said, kinda bored of Sky Island. I guess I should stop messing around and get to the 3rd shrine as so far any 'discoveries' aren't worth the time and effort. Generic loot from treasure chests is still a thing :/

How do you turn Zonai devices off btw? And is it possible to just have one going if you mount multiple fans on a vehicle / boat? I made a simple two-way rail car yet hit one fan and they both start going, thus ending up going no where lol. How do you steer a boat, going sideways looks stupid haha.

Anyway Fuse helps a lot with durability and no risk getting attached to any weapons as a stick with a mushroom glued on the end is not something you want to keep long. Also is there a faster way to fuse inventory items to weapons. Atm I go into inventory, press A on the item, Hold it in my hand, Exit menu, Drop the item on the ground, activate Fuse, press Y to fuse it to the weapon. There must be a faster way?

This is also how I do it.  

Up on d-pad, make choice, X. Item is dropped at your feet 

Can’t say I agree. Of course the game would benefit from stronger hardware, but honestly, if this game just ran at 60fps/1080p I’d be perfectly happy with it as a PS4 game. I mean, I find myself taking pictures constantly just because it’s still quite beautiful in places. There’s no denying there are graphical limitations but a lot of what you say makes it sound as if there are inherent problems, like it’s trying to hit above its weight and suffering because of it. Somebody earlier mentioned Bayonetta 3, which I can agree in that case, but not here. In fact, regarding stability, the game is surprisingly sound, considering.

I realize this thread was mostly focused on the visuals, but addressing the actual thread title from a different perspective, here is a Forbes article and YT video (apologies if this was mentioned already) showing that some developers are incredibly impressed by the game from a programming aspect - and that it manages such stability during building and item manipulation.  So from that angle, Switch doesn’t feel dated at all while playing Zelda, even if the hardware itself clearly is.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/paultassi/2023/05/18/no-one-understands-how-nintendo-made-the-legend-of-zelda-tears-of-the-kingdom/?sh=44693c90bfb1