The Nintendo Switch (OLED model) wasn't the "Pro" upgrade many expected it to be with 4K support and new internals but before its announcement, other handhelds aimed to take the role of the "Switch Pro". The AYA NEO and GPD Win 3 are among those devices shooting for that nickname since they are able to run recent AAA PC games on the go, given that they are handheld gaming PCs. Their efforts and popularity, although niche, enticed companies like Lenovo and Tencent to make similar concepts or patents; indicating that these indie companies might have more serious competition in the future.

It seems like this will indeed be the case and these handheld gaming PC manufacturers will need to brace themselves as Valve is itself entering this market with a Valve-branded handheld gaming PC. This news was actually reported back in May and today we have the official confirmation. In a Steam post today, Valve revealed the Steam Deck, an AMD-based handheld gaming PC that is expected to begin shipping in December 2021 in select regions.

The software giant partnered with AMD to create a custom APU for the handheld that is said to be "optimized for handheld gaming". "It is a Zen 2 + RDNA 2 powerhouse, delivering more than enough performance to run the latest AAA games in a very efficient power envelope," reads the announcement.

It will run on SteamOS 3.0 (Arch-based) and there will be several models of the Steam Deck, which differ on the storage capacity, with the base model starting at $399. However, every model will include a microSD slot for additional storage capacity. For more details about the models available and their price, refer to the image below:

You can find additional specs details in the images below (click/tap to enlarge):

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And just like the AYA NEO and GPD Win 3, the Steam Deck will also have a dock which will be sold separately. This accessory will provide ports for external displays, wired networking, USB peripherals, and power. More details about the dock's pricing will be announced at a later date but you can find some specs details in the thumbnail below:

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Valve says that the Steam Deck will start shipping this December to the United States, Canada, the European Union and the United Kingdom, with more regions coming in 2022. However, to be able to purchase one, you will need to book a paid reservation which will let you pre-order when the time comes. This reservation fee will also count towards the Steam Deck purchase price.

"The main reason for reservations is to ensure an orderly and fair ordering process for customers when Steam Deck inventory becomes available," writes Valve in the announcement FAQ. "The additional fee gives us a clearer signal of intent to purchase, which gives us better data to balance supply chain, inventory, and regional distribution leading up to launch."

Reservations for the Steam Deck will open Friday July 16th, 10am PDT. For more details about the new handheld gaming PC, head to the source link and official Steam Deck website linked below.

Are you interested in getting one?

SOURCE
Steam Deck Official Website

 

[pedro702]

To be clear, 70% of 50,000 is 35,000.

So 35,000 games (Steam games) work to some degree right now.

I think most people will be fine. It's more important that they get anticheat working which is preventing big games like pubg from working properly.

depends on what those 15000 games are, people already complain about ps5 bc which only has like 10 none working and like 110 with issues out of 3250 which is 4% of games with issues/not working.

imagine a much bigger list with issues and if they start releasing new games and that the new games wont work on day one and you need to wait weeks or months to be patched, so yeah its a big not working list and if they are popular games the worse it gets, and in the future it all depends if ti will be compatible with new releases day 1.

 

[mattyxarope]

depends on what those 15000 games are, people already complain about ps5 bc which only has like 10 none working and like 110 with issues out of 3250 which is 4% of games with issues/not working.

imagine a much bigger list with issues and if they start releasing new games and that the new games wont work on day one and you need to wait weeks or months to be patched, so yeah its a big not working list and if they are popular games the worse it gets, and in the future it all depends if ti will be compatible with new releases day 1.

It's these games:

https://www.protondb.com/explore?page=0&sort=playerCount

Notice many of the highest player count games are borked? Looking closer at those, though, it's because of the lack of anticheat like I said.

 

[AngryCinnabon]

The Gaben Gear.

Anyways, i did actually reserve one on day one, and as someone who owns a GPD Win max and nearly made the mistake of buying the Win 3 (I'm convinced it was fate that made me not order it as my CC declined on that) i really hope the Deck can stand it's ground, i'm quite certain it will considering the price tag is much cheaper than a GPD/AYA offering but still packs near if not equal power. Playing persona 1-4 on the go is gonna be even better on that beast...


and mayyyybbeee it can manage Xenosaga unlike the Win Max?
and mayyybbeee Persona 5 if atlus doesn't port it for the 25th anniversary?

 

[Noctosphere]

Pre-orders are technically free. The $5 you pay to reserve it is part of the complete steam deck price.

In other words, if you reserve the $399 model for $5, you pay the $5 up front, and then when supply is ready, you pay only $394.
They say this in the FAQ on the steam page for it.

I guess the $5 reserve is just a way to make sure people don't spam reserves without being serious about buying it, so there's a $5 pacifier.

Are you seriously serious?
You think 5$ will stop scalpers?

 

[Paolosworld]

Are you seriously serious?
You think 5$ will stop scalpers?

I wasn't saying I'd be effective, I'm just saying what the intent of the $5 reserve was (according to the FAQ, anyway)

Clearly it wasn't effective because the damn reserves crashed the store on the first few hours.

 

[Xzi]

Who's thinking that dual-booting WinXP 64-bit would be kinda cool, for running all those 2000s games that have a shit ton of incompatibilities with modern Windows? You'd keep it off the internet, of course.

 

[RichardTheKing]

This item is not available for reservation in your country

Well, bugger. Oh well, I don't like pre-ordering anyway...grumble grumble...

 

[mattyxarope]

Well, bugger. Oh well, I don't like pre-ordering anyway...grumble grumble...

Could always do a shipping forwarder from US and pay the import tax

 

[RichardTheKing]

Could always do a shipping forwarder from US and pay the import tax

A) How, when I don't have a US Steam account nor a US credit card? Regional stores don't tend to accept cards from "overseas". Purchasing US gift cards from a third-party would be possible, but for a $649 item...? Not really practical.
B) I don't exactly have the spending money for US$649+tax+import tax converted to AUD, whatever monstrous amount that ends up being.

I think I'll just wait for now.

 

[Randy Steele]

I'm so glad I managed to get a pre-order and I'm even happier that this thing seems to have upgradeable storage with a little bit of extra work. I was seriously going to shell out the money for a Win 3 next year before this fortunately got announced. I really have no interest in giving GPD any more money after how much extra money and work I've had to put into my Win 2 to get it working properly. Replacing the dpad/membranes with better ones, installing the third party cooling mod, several thermal paste replacements and replacing the battery because the heat screwed up the original one.
Ugh... i continue to hear people having issues with the Win 3 and they couldn't even put a proper keyboard on the device. Oh and good luck dealing with their (lack of) customer support. Yeah I'm looking forward to this.

 

[dawnbringer]

base is 64gb???? nah

 

[sarkwalvein]

base is 64gb???? nah

The 64 gb model really looks like a beast emulation and indie machine for a very reasonable price to be honest... still reserved the 512gb model myself.

 

[tech3475]

Windows takes up like 37gb, so it's probably not the best idea unless you have the gangster model or sd cards

Be careful with sd cards, I’ve had cheap tablets in the past where the mSD slot doesn’t work in safe mode and requires separate drivers, so backup software may not fully work with it e.g. restoring from a recovery OS, putting documents folder on the card, etc.

So you may have to plan a little if this matters.

Main reason I went for the 512 model.

base is 64gb???? nah

It uses an m.2 2230 card, so it may be good if you’re running stuff that’s ok on mSD e.g. emulators or are willing to open it up and replace it with something larger since 256GB cards I’ve seen relatively cheap or even a 1TB SSD.

Officially though it’s not intended to be replaced and I haven’t heard any confirmation over how easy or difficult it is to replace.

 

[Nyaako]

I wonder how they'll handle replacements/repairs. Doesn't look simple for many end users to take it apart to replace certain parts like the buttons and sticks. Hopefully, they don't have any drift problems like with the Joycons and PS5 controllers.

 

[Kioku]

Be careful with sd cards, I’ve had cheap tablets in the past where the mSD slot doesn’t work in safe mode and requires separate drivers, so backup software may not fully work with it e.g. restoring from a recovery OS, putting documents folder on the card, etc.

So you may have to plan a little if this matters.

Main reason I went for the 512 model.



It uses an m.2 2230 card, so it may be good if you’re running stuff that’s ok on mSD e.g. emulators or are willing to open it up and replace it with something larger since 256GB cards I’ve seen relatively cheap or even a 1TB SSD.

Officially though it’s not intended to be replaced and I haven’t heard any confirmation over how easy or difficult it is to replace.

I think the 256 and 512GB models are the only ones using the M.2 drive. Granted, this could very well be a terrible misunderstanding based on phrasing.

 

[tech3475]

I think the 256 and 512GB models are the only ones using the M.2 drive. Granted, this could very well be a terrible misunderstanding based on phrasing.

According to the website:

All models use socketed 2230 m.2 modules (not intended for end-user replacement)

https://www.steamdeck.com/en/tech

 

[Kioku]

According to the website:


https://www.steamdeck.com/en/tech

According to the website:


https://www.steamdeck.com/en/tech

Oh, modules. That's a key word, there. My bad.

 

[Chary]

Lame, I was hopeful I could shove an m.2 I've got sitting around into it. Oh well. Load times on a MicroSD won't kill me.

 

[pedro702]

so they dont want people replacing the ssd at all, they want to sell that 512gb model for profit xD

 

[LightyKD]

Anyone plan to do some Wii U style gaming with the Steam Deck? Keep in mind that both screens can be active while playing. I can see someone having their Steam Chats or a game walkthrough on the deck screen while playing the game on a monitor or TV.