Update: It runs Arch Linux, and the Steam Deck interface is built on KDE’s Plasma.
Valve just announced the Steam Deck, its long-rumored Switch-like handheld gaming device. It will begin shipping in December and reservations open July 16th at 1PM ET. It starts at $399, and you can buy it in $529 and $649 models as well.
The device has an AMD APU containing a quad-core Zen 2 CPU with eight threads and eight compute units’ worth of AMD RDNA 2 graphics, alongside 16GB of LPDDR5 RAM. There are three different storage tiers: 64GB eMMC storage for $399, 256GB NVMe SSD storage for $529, and 512GB of high-speed NVME SSD storage for $649, according to Valve. You can also expand the available storage using the high-speed microSD card slot.
This is an excellent value for money, and what’s awesome is that this is a Linux device (it can run Windows too, if you choose to install it, since it’s just a PC). It runs a new version of SteamOS, using the amazing Proton to run Windows games. This is how I’ve been playing my games for a long time now, and I can’t reiterate enough just how good Proton has become. At this price point, with these features, and with Steam’s massive reach, this device is going to be a massive hit.
My fiancée and I have already decided we’re getting one, since it’s just so perfect for what it offers. I’ve been looking at similar offerings from Chinese manufacturers, but they usually come with compatibility problems, far higher prices, and Windows. This new device from Valve seems to fix a lot of these issues, and I can’t wait to see if it’ll hold up in reviews.
I’ve had my trigger finger hovering over the button for the GPD Win 3, but now I’m inclined to wait for this since it’s Linux (yay!) and AMD (YAY!) rather than the Wintel GPD unit. As much as I like the form factor of the GPD system (Sony UMPC style slider), I have a feeling the Steam Deck will be more performant and refined, and again a Linux-first machine has me drooling! They also are not restricting or locking down the device; you can install whatever OS you want, though the form factor would make some OS choices less relevant.
Consider me hyped.
Linus Tech Tips
Don’t wait for the Switch Pro, Buy This Today!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52vo1g4VBbc
I think steam have repeated the same mistake of the steam box here. Rather than having one hardware configuration for developers to target and users to understand the performance they expect, there are 3 distinct models at wide ranging price points with clearly different performance profiles.
The question “does this work on the steam deck” will be answered with “it depends”
The only difference among the three units are the storage type and size. The base unit is a 64GB eMMC, which I would expect to be on par with a SATA SSD. The midrange is a 256GB NVMe SSD, much faster than the eMMC. The top tier is a 512GB NVMe SSD, slightly faster than the midrange and of course twice the storage. The rest of the unit is exactly the same among the three tiers, and storage speed will only affect game loading times; actual in-game performance should be exactly the same among the three.
No, it will be answered with “does it fit on the built in storage or do I need to put it on the SD card”.
Ha, well I mean it’s basically a PC. Will developers target this precisely, or just start targeting Vulkan, Control inputs, etc.
The hardware seems to be very similar to current gen consoles, which is a bonus. Not having Windows is a drawback, and they will need API / Engine support to get most out of hardware.
There are two new improvements in current gen:
1) Better nvme access
2) Sampler feedback for texture quality optimization
(1) is common to Xbox and PS5, and Windows 11 (not sure about Windows 10, but I expect it to be there). So this device will definitely need a version of it.
(2) is currently only on Xbox (PS5 has no hardware support), but there seems to be no software support yet, so I will not worry about it for a while. (This machine also has RDNA2, hence hardware support).
But what concerns me are:
1) SSDs are gen 3, which is 1/2 of the speed of next gen
2) RAM is quite slow. Slower than even last gen consoles.
3) No information of reparability / upgradability. If this is a small PC, being able to tinker would be great.
“3) No information of reparability / upgradability. If this is a small PC, being able to tinker would be great.”
I doubt there will be much room to do so. To get this form factor I assume most stuff is soldered to the PCB. I even assume the battery is put into the handles.
I suppose you will be able to change the hard disk and that’s it.
“Not having Windows is a drawback, and they will need API / Engine support to get most out of hardware.” (btw, how to quote properly ?)
Depends, it’s AMD, more open than Nvidia regarding GPU specs. Good opportunity for them to get even more market share if they talk to indies and homebrews.
Kochise,
to quote, use <blockquote> text you want to quote </blockquote>
@Drumhellar : thank, I used q or quote but didn’t thought about blockquote
Update:
It looks like there is a 2230 nvme slot:
https://www.reddit.com/r/hardware/comments/olsd0f/gabe_newell_emails_steam_deck_has_an_m2_2230_slot/
However it will not be easy to find. You’ll need to dig into specialized electronics distributors to find them:
https://www.futureelectronics.com/en/p/om3pdp3512b-a01-C352588556
Drool!!!!
I’m reserving mine tomorrow for sure.
Steam Machine 2.0, ready to fail sir!
I like that they didn’t replace the right thumbstick and the D-pad for touchpads like in the Steam controller.
Also it’s good that they chose a 7″ screen. 5.5″ like most devices are using is too small for some games. I find Crusader Kings 2 difficult to play in the 8″ display of the GPD Win Max for example.
What’s more interesting is that it’s a consumer device with a full Linux KDE Plasma desktop pre-installed. This will be the first taste of Linux as a desktop OS for many non-nerds (the kind that would never dream of installing an OS by themselves).
Perhaps a little bulky for that but I want to see if you can replace an Android tablet with it.
This may eventually become the perfect gamepad for Cemu, Citra and DeSmuME!
Now this for sure is a proper device Valve. Kudos. I don’t play much games these days but there is a high chance i am getting one in the future. It just makes sense.
No mention of a dock. It’s Linux so you are going to want to play with the OS as well as play games. And it could be your PC.
Scroll down, you didn’t get that far.
~ https://store.steampowered.com/steamdeck
I looked at Steam because of the Mafia offer and saw this thing advertised there just before Thom wrote about it. I assumed it had been out for months and I was out of the loop!
This kind of thing isn’t for me but I agree it’s a nifty idea. The fact it has a dock is a real selling point to anyone who is interested. I’m assuming this makes it useful as a PC if you can access a desktop OS on it? There could be a market for this kind of thing for people who want something with more oomph than a Raspberry PI 400.
In some respects it is a throwback to the 1980’s when computers came in all shapes and sizes and form factors. It’s like a console and a tablet and a desktop all rolled into one.
Indeed, it makes me think of “cyberdecks” from Cyberpunk lore, and a little bit of the Navicomp from Serial Experiments: Lain (which technically also was a cyberdeck I guess).
It uses Arch BTW
Yeah, I’ll have to hold my nose when I use it. But then how will I hit the buttons? 😉
The Atari Lynx of the 21th century: 2h game play is a joke.
So my prediction: It will fail.
Yeah, but it can play hundreds of Lynx games at a time :
http://emulators.com/
Not full HD. Not getting. I would like a switch also, but same reason. Ahh well.
To get full HD in this form factor you’d end up with 30 minutes of battery life. You’re asking for technology that doesn’t exist yet. There’s a reason the Switch, the GPD gaming portables, and the PSP/PS Vita are all 720p or lower and it’s not for lack of wanting high res screens.
Here is an idea, stop trying to make things pointlessly slim. Put as battery in there.
I assume by what you say the battery life is only under hour anyway. More pointlessness.
It is quite possible, the problem with all mobile devices is they target “shinyness” for idiots over useability. Oh my phone is thin and metal and heavy with no batterylife, oh the back is glass so it can shatter when it slips off the sofa (or never be seen in my case only adding pointless weight).
There were many other options they could have done on this to make it grat. They just went with mediocre.
And what’s the point on that kind of screen moving all around while you play, do you really see all that sharp details you are asking for ?
The science of vision is fairly well known. Like you say whether people can perceive anything or not depends.
The newer GPU’s include clever upscaling techniques to provide more detail for a given resolution so they can achieve a target framerate. Side by side comparisons of images with and without the new upscaling techniques are so close you have to know what you are looking for to tell the difference. To some degree this new technology is “drop in”. At the same time developers can and do make design decisions all the way through the pipeline from raw asset data to what you see on the screen. Decisions are made about what to render and how as well as artists design intents and working methods to achieve a certain perceived reality or style. Resolution is a factor but not the only factor.
It’s the same with photography. A world class photographer can take a picture with a pinhole camera which will embarass your average photographer with the latest umpteen megapixel digital wonder. This is because they are skilled enough to pre-visualise or spot the moment and work with and exploit the qualities and capabilities of the tool they have in ways lesser mortals cannot. Abelardo Morell even used bin liners to turn a hotel room into a huge pinhole camera, or camera obscura.
Your average fine art big print typically has a resolution of 100 dpi. Viewed from 6-12 feet or however far they look sharp. Press you nose against them and they look like a smeared blur of blobs.
I would hope the screen is not moving all around.
I can notice the differenfce of 4k on my 28 inch monitor. And that is before I got prescription reading glasses. It is much better now.
I can also tell the difference of 4k on my 50 inch tv at 2 and a bit metres (with distance glasses). Well mostly There are a few rare 1080P films that look very goodm though they might just upscale great.
I can very much tell the difference on the screens on my pixel 4xl and my OH’s pixel 4a. And on that one especially yes I would tell the difference on a bigger screen.