Steam Deck (2024)

FAQs

Steam Deck? ›

Steam Decks provide the most value to established PC gamers with large Steam libraries, but only if you're interested in mobile gaming. If you don't find yourself in situations where you're both away from your gaming PC and have enough downtime to dig into a PC game, then you won't get a lot of use out of a Steam Deck.

Steam Decks provide the most value to established PC gamers with large Steam libraries, but only if you're interested in mobile gaming. If you don't find yourself in situations where you're both away from your gaming PC and have enough downtime to dig into a PC game, then you won't get a lot of use out of a Steam Deck.

Verdict: Gaming laptops win, but the Steam Deck remains alluring. Making the choice between a Steam Deck and a gaming laptop isn't easy, but this comparison has a clear victor. Gaming laptops win the day. Gaming laptops are more versatile, more powerful, have more included features, and support a wider library of games ...

The Steam Deck OLED may cost $200 more than Switch OLED, but what you get for that price bump is a better display, much better specs, and a more extensive gaming library to choose from.

Its performance profile isn't substantially different from the LCD model, but there are so many small upgrades that this feels like a worthy revision. A better battery and display, combined with a quieter fan, make the Steam Deck OLED my personal choice for the best handheld PC.

Improvements in performance and battery life go a huge way toward making the device feel better to use, and that's backed up by one of the best displays you can find on a handheld. Valve is still selling the Steam Deck LCD, but it's best to save your pennies for the OLED model if you want a superior experience.

The Steam Deck has performance similar to a PS4, but with faster storage performance. There a lots of end users trying to game on low end hardware that is significantly less powerful than a Steam Deck.

It's quite possibly the most powerful gaming PC ever sold for $400, with roughly the power of a PS4 under its 7-inch screen. I should know. I've now spent 435 hours playing Steam games across three different Decks, averaging well over an hour per day since launch.

To counter that statement, it's hugely impressive that the Linux-based software powering Valve's handheld PC means (with a few slightly fiddly tweaks), it can totally function as a teeny laptop. Well, as long as you own a wireless keyboard and mouse to connect it with. Oh, and a Steam Deck dock is absolutely essential.

What console is better than Steam Deck? ›

The Asus ROG Ally is the best Steam Deck alternative. This handheld console packs a lot of power. It has the new Ryzen Z1 CPU under the hood, an amazing 120Hz refresh rate 500 nit brightness screen, and is a really sleek device. The Asus ROG Ally was the first major response to the Steam Deck, and a great one at that.

You can connect your Steam Deck to a television with a simple USB-C to HDMI connector, which you can snag for 10 bucks or less. However, this inexpensive solution doesn't supply power to your Steam Deck, so you'll only be able to play for as long as the Deck has juice.

The Steam Deck is a really handy gaming device. Not only is it capable of playing the latest PC games available on Steam, but you can also set it up to play PS5 games remotely. In this guide, I'll teach you how to install an app called Chiaki4Deck, which makes playing PS5 games on your Steam Deck super easy.

The Steam Deck was built for extended play sessions—whether you're using thumbsticks or trackpads—with full-size controls positioned perfectly within your reach. The rear of the device is sculpted to comfortably fit a wide range of hand sizes.

Doesn't take a genius to work out that Steam Deck is a huge loss-leader for Valve. The Aya Neo isn't being manufactured in anywhere near the quantities that the Steam Deck is. That itself lowers the price extraordinarily.

Yes - The Extra Battery Life

On Windows handhelds, the difference may be negligible, with maybe an hour gained overall, but the Steam Deck uses SteamOS, and it is very battery-friendly. For major games that drain the maximum possible, we get about an extra hour to an hour and a half of battery life.

How long is the Steam Deck battery life? As mentioned, the original LCD Steam Deck gets anywhere between 2 to 8 hours, drawing from a 40Whr battery. The Steam Deck OLED lasts between 3 to 12 hours, not just because of a larger 50Whr battery, but because of improved power efficiency.

Just don't mistake the Steam Deck for a game console. This system places all the benefits of a computer such as a desktop operating system, mod support, and highly adjustable graphics settings in your pocket. Plus it has enough power to run the latest triple-A titles smoothly at up to 60 frames per second.

For most people, the $529 256GB model is the best match for functionality and price. If your budget can handle it, go for the $649 512GB Deck because it's undoubtedly the best.