Here’s everything you need to know about the Steam Deck
Valve entered the handheld gaming space with a bombshell announcement: the Steam Deck. Billed as the world’s most powerful handheld gaming device, the Steam Deck is designed to synergize with your Steam account, which means that in theory, you can access the best PC games on the go and without a bulky desktop or laptop.
Still, being handheld means there are going to be some necessary, understandable trade-offs. Valve’s previous dedicated gaming devices, the Steam Machines, didn’t quite take off, which means there’s plenty of learning going into this new entry. Here’s everything we know about the Steam Deck so far.
What is Steam Deck?
Source: Valve
The Steam Deck is a portable device designed by Valve, parent company of Steam. The Steam Deck allows players to access their Steam account, library, and friends in a handheld device powerful enough to run modern games like Control or Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order.
You can still tweak the graphics settings and framerate caps like you would normally, though naturally, a lot of higher-end settings won’t be available given the limited horsepower compared to high-end GPUs. The settings you run games at will also have a massive impact on battery life. As an example, Valve notes that if Portal 2 is played at 30 FPS, players will likely get around five hours of continuous play. The screen is capped at a 60hz refresh rate, meaning you won’t be able to see the benefits of games running at 120 FPS on this hardware.
Steam Deck technical specs
Valve has published the full list of Steam Deck technical specifications.
Category | Steam Deck |
---|---|
Operating System | SteamOS 3.0 (Arch-based) |
Display | 7-inch diagonal, 1200×800 px |
Brightness | 400 nits |
Refresh rate | 60hz |
Processor | AMD APU, Zen 2 4c/8t, 2.4-3.5GHz |
Graphics | 8 RDNA 2 CUs, 1.0-1.6GHz |
Memory | 16GB LPDDR5 RAM |
Storage | 64GB eMMC / 256GB SSD / 512GB SSD |
Expandable storage | Yes, microSD card slot |
Bluetooth | Bluetooth 5.0 |
Wi-Fi | Dual-band Wi-Fi radio, 2.4GHz and 5GHz |
Headphone jack | 3.5mm stereo headphone / headset jack |
Charging input | 45W USB Type-C PD3.0 power supply |
Battery | 40Whr battery, 2 – 8 hours of gameplay |
Size | 298mm x 117mm x 49mm |
Weight | Roughly 669 grams |
How much does Steam Deck cost?
Source: Valve
The $529 and $649 models also include a carrying case and an exclusive Steam Community profile bundle, while the $649 model uses “premium anti-glare etched glass” and comes with an exclusive virtual keyboard theme.
Can Steam Deck play all my games?
The Steam Deck uses the latest version of SteamOS, a type of Linux operating system that works with software callled Proton. Proton works as a compatibility layer so that even Windows versions of games can run on Linux. With that in mind, there are still compatibility issues so support for every single game cannot be guaranteed. Regardless, Valve promises that any games you have running on SteamOS will have no problems running on the Steam Deck.
Steam Deck uses SteamOS
With SteamOS, players have access to Steam Chat, notifications, and other features they’ve come to expect from using Steam. Remote Play is also supported, so a game can be streamed from your PC to the Steam Deck. The store ensures that you don’t have to buy something elsewhere before you can play it on your Steam Deck — it’s all one smooth experience. Cloud Saves also mean that if you do start playing something on your regular PC, you can continue playing it on your Steam Deck without any problems, so long as the game supports Cloud Saves as a feature.
It goes further than just these features though, with Valve explaining that you can do anything on a Steam Deck found on a Linux computer, including browsing the web.
Can I pair my Steam Deck with my favorite accessories?
As long as a device has Bluetooth support, you can safely expect to use it with your Steam Deck. This means that if you have a favorite Bluetooth headset you’d like to pair, or you prefer using controllers like the DualSense, you can do so. Anything that requires a wired connection may not be compatible, however, given the limited ports available on the Steam Deck. You can use a USB-C hub with the Steam Deck, however.
What is the Steam Deck dock?
Valve is also producing a first-party dock for the Steam Deck. This dock allows users to plug the device in and connect to a TV or monitor, similar to how the Nintendo Switch can be played portable or docked. It provides flexibility in how use choose to enjoy your games, so you don’t have to hook a bulky desktop up to your TV to relax and enjoy your Steam library from the comfort of your couch.
Here’s the technical specs for the Steam Deck dock:
Category | Steam Deck dock |
---|---|
Peripherals | 1 x USB-A 3.1 Port, 2 x USB-A 2.0 Ports |
Ethernet | Yes |
External display | DisplayPort 1.4, HDMI 2.0 |
Power input | USB-C |
Size | 117mm x 29mm x 50.5mm |
Weight | Roughly 120 grams |
When is the Steam Deck release date?
Source: Valve
How do I reserve a Steam Deck?
To reserve a Steam Deck once everything is open, you’ll need to log in on Steam. You’ll also need to have your payment information ready, as there is a reservation fee. Once you make a successful reservation, you can cancel it within 30 days. Placing a reservation puts you in a queue to fully purchase a Steam Deck.
For the first 48 hours of reservations being open in your region, reservations will be limited to Steam accounts that have made a purchase before June 2021. The Steam Deck is also limited to one reservation per account.
We may earn a commission for purchases using our links. Learn more.