Review of Steam Deck: a revolution in handheld PC gaming
Our Verdict
There are some trade-offs, but for a first attempt at a handheld device, Valve has smashed it out of the park. The Steam Deck is an incredible achievement, and it’s currently impossible to find a worthy competitor that packs this many features into an affordable package.
- Massive game library
- Huge amounts of processing power
- Good control scheme
- Not the best battery life
- Not all Steam games work
Thanks to Valve and AMD, who were able to take a low-end PC and reduce it down to a surprisingly powerful handheld that can run the newest AAA games, 2022 was a landmark year for PC gaming. The Steam Deck is one of the largest handhelds we've ever played, weighing in at 669 grams and measuring over 30 centimeters in width, yet we still rank it among the top portable gaming consoles for 2023. With a trackpad, more buttons than an Xbox Elite Controller, and a seven-inch touch screen, Valve has covered all the bases without sacrificing comfort.
The arrangement of the buttons on the Steam Deck may seem perplexing to someone who hasn't used it. The buttons on most handhelds are positioned in the center of the device, but the Steam Deck moves all of the buttons—aside from the trackpads—to the top. As a consequence, your fingertips will naturally lay on top of each button on the handheld, fitting your hands properly. The Steam Deck feels like a professional-grade controller that works with every genre thanks to its well-known and simple design.
Although Valve has packed a lot of functionality into the Steam Deck, there are obvious trade-offs that prevent the least expensive Steam Deck from costing more than £350 or $400. One of the Steam Deck's shortcomings is its 1280x800 IPS screen, which makes the device appear antiquated in comparison to the majority of contemporary smartphones that use OLED panels. In addition to lacking the brilliant colors and flawless black levels that OLED panels are known for, the 60Hz display exhibits some ghosting while playing fast-paced video games.
It may be challenging to balance the Steam Deck's weight and dimensions overall. Depending on the game you're playing, the gadget can run for two to eight hours on a single battery. Exciting games like Elden Ring will drain your battery considerably more quickly than Spelunky 2.
Given that the Steam Deck weighs more than twice as much as the Nintendo Switch OLED, Valve has determined the maximum acceptable weight for a portable device. Your arms will hurt after a few hours, and if you want to use it outdoors, you'll also need a backpack that fits you well.
Storage is divided into three levels: 64GB, 256GB, and 512GB. There isn't much that separates the three models, however. NVMe SSDs are included in both the 256GB and 512GB models; the largest capacity model has a little quicker one. Anti-glare etched glass is also included with the 512GB model, although a side-by-side comparison hardly shows the difference. For the greatest value, we advise choosing the 256GB model and investing in a micro SD card.
It's obvious that manufacturers need a lot of computing power to construct a mobile computer given the state of technology. Although there are many other Steam Deck choices available, similar products such as the Aya Neo Next may cost more than £1,400 or £1,000+. It's difficult to argue that these handhelds are worth twice as much as the 512GB Steam Deck, especially when you take warranty and repairability into account.
Simply said, the Steam Deck's repairability is unmatched in this market. In addition to a one-year guarantee covering hardware malfunctions, Valve has also made all of the parts for the Steam Deck accessible on the iFixIt website, along with comprehensive repair instructions. Just as with PC builds, you may update the Steam Deck whenever you'd like. Examples of upgrades include changing the analog sticks and upgrading the SSD. You also have a large selection of docks and USB Type C hubs that allow you to output to an external monitor, unlike the Nintendo Switch.
By docking the Steam Deck, you may maximize the performance of the hardware and experiment with various resolutions and graphical settings. It comes as no surprise that there aren't many 4K games on the Steam Deck, but most games should run flawlessly at 1080p if you stay with that resolution. The Steam Deck's user interface on a television functions just as well as any contemporary console once wireless controllers are linked to the device via Bluetooth or adapters that are included in the dock itself.
Regarding contemporary gaming systems, there's no worse feeling than purchasing a brand-new console and finding no games to play on it. Having a ton of games to play right immediately is one of the key attractions of the Steam Deck. Since the release of Steam in 2003, if you've played PC games sometimes, it's likely that you have a sizable collection of discounted titles and Humble Bundles.
A significant portion of your games and cloud saves may be accessible on the portable device, even though it's doubtful that your whole collection would fit on the Steam Deck. There are plenty of free PC games to test if you're just getting started before you unavoidably lose your whole salary on your first significant Steam sale.
The Steam Deck is not as inoperable as it would seem to the layman since it operates on SteamOS, a customized version of Linux rather than Windows. With Steam pre-loaded on the handheld, setting up and navigating your library is a breeze. All you have to do is connect into your account to start downloading games. From PC releases like Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales to new titles like Stardew Valley, Valve has validated hundreds more games to be compatible with the Steam Deck since its introduction.
You can go beyond SteamOS by unlocking the Steam Deck if you're prepared to put in the work. Heroic Games Launcher is an open-source launcher for Epic and GoG games that you may use on Linux if you have a library of Epic Game Store titles. One of Steam Deck's greatest features is emulation; with the correct software, you can play your favorite old games with ease.
Although the Steam Deck's native operating system is Linux, you may still use an external micro SD card to run Windows. While not flawless, the Windows experience on a Steam Deck is sufficient to enable the playability of previously incompatible titles such as Warzone 2.0 and Forza Horizon 5.
Together with improved visuals, the most recent generation of gaming consoles has also seen developers focus closely on scalability and efficiency. These developments have greatly benefited Valve's Steam Deck, which now runs new games alongside the Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5.