All hands on Steam Deck!

Steam Deck. © Valve Corp.

The rumours had been swirling, and now they’re fact: Valve is issuing a handheld gaming console. The device, called Steam Deck, is actually a full-fledged PC running on a custom ARM APU with a quad-core Zen 2 CPU, an AMD RDNA 2 GPU and 16GB of RAM. With its 1.6 teraflops of power, the Steam Deck sits between the Xbox One S (1.4 teraflops) and the PS4 (1.8 teraflops). The massive console is 298mm wide (compared to Switch’s 284mm with Joy-Cons), weighs 670g and has a 7-inch LCD touchscreen (1280 x 800 px). The Steam Deck operates a new version of SteamOS based on a Linux distro (Arch Linux), using Valve’s Proton as a compatibility layer to run Windows-based games. If you want to use your own OS, you could wipe the device and install Windows, for example.

A USB-C dock with HDMI and an Ethernet port, whose release date hasn’t been announced, will let you connect the Steam Deck to a screen and even a keyboard and mouse, turning it into a full-fledged desktop. The Steam Deck will come in three versions. The entry-level version provides 64GB eMMC storage for CA$ 500. The mid-level provides a larger, faster SSD with 256GB NVMe storage for CA$ 660. The high-end version, at 820 CAD, provides 512GB of high-speed NVME SSD storage as well as a premium anti-glare etched glass screen treatment. You can also expand the available storage using the high-speed microSD card slot. Pre-reservations start on the Steam store on Friday with a $5.70 deposit, but initially only for Steam accounts with previous purchases dating before June 2021, in a bid to keep reseller bots at bay. The first units will be available in the United States, Canada, the European Union, and the United Kingdom in December.

⇨ YouTube, “Steam Deck: First Hands-On With Valve’s Handheld Gaming PC.”

⇨ The Verge, multiple authors, “Valve’s gaming handheld is called the Steam Deck and it’s shipping in December.”

⇨ IGN, Bo Moore, “Steam Deck: the first hands-on with Valve’s handheld gaming PC.”

2021-07-15