Although the Steam Deck is cool, can it compete with Nintendo?
With Valve’s announcement about the Steam Deck (its long-awaited Nintendo Switch competitor), the handheld gaming market has become a lot more crowded. The new Valve handheld gaming device, will start shipping in December 2021. The base model retails for $399. Steam Deck reservations will open on 16 July, and pre-orders are expected to fill quickly.
Valve’s Steam Deck Wins the Fight to Nintendo
For a long time, the Steam Deck has been speculated. Even though it was first mentioned in 2021, SteamPal made an appearance. But now Valve has finally revealed the Steam Deck as its answer to the Switch.
The new Valve handheld gaming computer promises decent power.
The Stream Deck is equipped with an AMD Zen 2 CPU running between 2.4 and 3.5GHz. It also has a 1.0 to 1.6GHz AMD RDNA 2 GPU that can deliver up to 8CUs. 16GB DDR5 RAM makes it a substantial amount. The Steam Deck allows for three storage options. The base model has 64GB of storage, but you can also choose 256GB and 512GB versions. A microSD card can be used to increase your onboard storage.
The Steam Deck features two capacitive touch analog sticks and a D-pad. Regular buttons, shoulder bumpers, and triggers are also available. The Steam Deck offers a wide range of controls, which is remarkable considering its limited capabilities. However, Valve has done a great job of offering so many configurations.
A 40Whr lithium battery powers the Stream Deck’s 7-inch 1280×800 60Hz touchscreen. It should provide between 2-8 hours of gaming. The Stream Deck is approximately 1.47lbs (669g) in weight and measures 11.7″x4.6″x1.8″ (298mmx117mmx49mm).
The Steam Deck also includes Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, USB-C, and DisplayPort 1.4 for connectivity.
Steam Deck will use a Linux Operating System.
The Steam Deck reveal by Valve is notable because the new handheld will run on the latest version of SteamOS, which was optimized for mobile devices. SteamOS is Linux-based. The Steam Deck runs on Linux using the Proton compatibility layer. This allows Windows games to be run on the Linux operating system.
Linux modding is a popular hobby, so more experienced Linux users will likely access the regular Linux desktop with all its options.
Is Valve’s Steam Deck up to the task?
It looks great in terms of portable gaming.
The Stream Deck’s battery life is one thing that may let it down. It doesn’t seem to be very impressive from the specs. Potential Steam Deck users should hope Valve isn’t too cautious with a two-hour gaming time. A $400 handheld that can last for just a few hours is about as useful as a coffee pot.
Valve told IGN that Portal 2 could be played for up to four hours. You can play Portal 2 for up to five to six hours if you keep it at 30FPS.
This isn’t a large amount, but it should be enough to get most people through a bus trip, flight, or daily commute.
The Steam Deck by Valve will start at $399 for the 64GB model of the eMMC, rising to $529 in the 256GB NVMe SATA model and $649 in the 512GB model. To reserve your spot in the Steam Deck queue, reservations open on 16 July. All you need is $5
We want to shout out to Valve. Only accounts that have registered Steam purchases before June 2021 are eligible to join the queue. This is to prevent bot reseller accounts from seizing stock.
