The Steam Deck is the full package that not only integrates the hardware and software, but is also an open system.
Slapping a some inputs together onto a windows PC just isn't the same thing.
Bingo, I saw an ROG Ally(?) on display at Best Buy the other day and it was sitting on the Windows 11 desktop with a couple applications open like any demo laptop out on the floor - what dumbstruck me is that the scaling was set so the interface was absolutely tiny. Of course someone could have messed with DPI settings but it just looked like an interface for ants!
Windows 8 or 10’s tablet mode would have probably gone a ways towards making it more suited for a handheld but that function is gone.
At least the bottom edge swipe opens the start menu which I found by mistake. Maybe Big Picture mode would help.
Install playnite and have it set to open on startup, sorted
I don't know why you're being downvoted, you're just being helpful
I get that it technically is true but it’s dismissive and misses the issue that a device you drop several hundred dollars on, made by a massive company, and with successful competitors to benchmark against doesn’t have a cohesive UI option out of the box and I expect that it shouldn’t be up to the customer to need to figure out how to fix such a glaring omission out of the box.
(I haven’t heard of Playnite until that comment mentioned it so I can’t comment on its effectiveness)
I totally get that it’s a glass half full/empty difference though. (“why should I need to compensate for a massive company’s lack of care?” vs. “oh this fix is quick and good enough for me!”)
This. I can't wait to test bazzite, a community alternative of steamos 3, which would never have been possible if the deck wasn't so open.
Bazzite's great! I've been following it closely for about a year now and it's crazy how good it's gotten. I currently run the Desktop version on my PC, and have tried the Deck version in the past. It's great, a lot more capable than SteamOS imo.
I'll probably jump in if they upgrade the hardware. I would probably use the OS most of the time and an updated screen would go a long way.
Steam Deck is the only portable pc that can suspend a game thanks to being built with Linux, Windows based gaming portables can't do this.
This alone would have sold me on it over other handhelds, but I'm also a longtime Linux enthusiast and wanted to support Valve's investment in the ecosystem. I'm still just so satisfied with it even a year after I got it because of how much it can do without Windows!
And with KDE and Wayland development, dumping games with annoying save mechanics to disk might also become available.
Save scumming ahoy!
My favourite part is when it ends with "buy the steam deck on Amazon [affiliate link]"
Yeah, that's the last place where I'll buy it.
If only Valve had some sort of store where you could buy the Steam Deck and some new games to go with it!
Amazon sells it in my country (Australia), Steam does not.
Go figure right.
I agree that is odd, but at least the kangaroos delivering it are cute.
Their mail delivery hats are adorable.
Most games being bought on these "killers" is probably on Steam anyway.
Valve right now:
I really miss Jon Stewart on the Daily Show. I also miss the Daily Show even without him, but I support the strikes. They need modern contracts for a streaming based world.
The steam deck is like a beautiful stout, crafted with years of practice and knowledge. These immations are like babies first IPA.
Absolutely. Valve is the only player in this game that doesn't have to turn their profits on the actual devices themselves.
And Valve's definitely turning backflips that tons of people are entering the PC gaming space and Steam store on handhelds that Valve didn't have to subsidize.
Why don't tech reviewers every talk about gamescope? Gaming on PCs has always been finicky because PCs have to serve so many use cases at once and games often have to compete for resources. Gamescope completely circumvents all of this overhead by being solely meant for the purpose of gaming. It's the closest you can get to a "PC Console". Third parties can never make something like gamescope for Windows, Microsoft themselves would have to ship it and maintain it.
Why don't tech reviewers every talk about gamescope?
Because tech reviewers only read spec sheets and call it a day. They usually get the product for free and use it for a day or two, which is not nearly enough time to make an actual review of the product.
Yeah, I really can't figure out why valve isn't working harder on making SteamOS available to other handheld PCs.
The Steam Deck is sold at a loss, but all the benefits Valve gets from the Steam Deck have to do with it's OS. It's both clearing a path for non windows gaming PCs (it's dangerous to let a single rival company like Microsoft completely control your market), and while the deck allows you to install non-steam games, it's much easier to stick to Steam games.
So it would seem to me that putting SteamOS on other devices would be a unanimous victory for Valve, getting all the benefits of the Deck without losing money up-front by subsidizing the hardware.
Friend, you are legally allowed to install SteamOS on any device you want.
Yes, but my personal determination to put Linux on every device I own isn't going to have an impact on market share and convince gamers that they don't need windows.
Handheld PCs are a growing market and Valve has (had?) a chance to make SteamOS the handheld gaming OS.
I assume it's not "ready" yet for whatever reason
Yeah, the ROG Ally particularly makes zero sense to me and misses the point. It runs Windows and it doesn't have the touchpads.
The touchpads really broaden the utility of the console, from being able to select small UI elements in normal programs to being able to play more mouse enabled games (FTL being the most recent for me).
And Linux is the real special sauce - nobody seems to get why Valve did all that work rather than "just" putting Windows on it. Windows isn't a selling point (you can put it on the Deck if you want), it's slow, the UI doesn't work well on that screen and you lose out on being able to suspend games etc.
@lotanis@Fubarberry the legion GO is rumored to beat the SD. Steam deck needs a mid refresh before deck 2 to calm the masses.
I'm glad to see some variation in this space (I almost said innovation except that it's a combo of the Deck and Switch). But it's still running Windows (see above) and it's going to be around twice the price of a Deck.
Friend's ROG fried its SD card reader. They have some serious heat dissipation issues. The other Windows-running units he's tried have had myriad flaws: defective keyboards, poor sound, buggy performance, etc. They seem rushed. Most have sent replacement parts at least without a hassle...
The Steam Deck is the full package that not only integrates the hardware and software, but is also an open system. Slapping a some inputs together onto a windows PC just isn't the same thing.
Bingo, I saw an ROG Ally(?) on display at Best Buy the other day and it was sitting on the Windows 11 desktop with a couple applications open like any demo laptop out on the floor - what dumbstruck me is that the scaling was set so the interface was absolutely tiny. Of course someone could have messed with DPI settings but it just looked like an interface for ants!
Windows 8 or 10’s tablet mode would have probably gone a ways towards making it more suited for a handheld but that function is gone.
At least the bottom edge swipe opens the start menu which I found by mistake. Maybe Big Picture mode would help.
Install playnite and have it set to open on startup, sorted
I don't know why you're being downvoted, you're just being helpful
I get that it technically is true but it’s dismissive and misses the issue that a device you drop several hundred dollars on, made by a massive company, and with successful competitors to benchmark against doesn’t have a cohesive UI option out of the box and I expect that it shouldn’t be up to the customer to need to figure out how to fix such a glaring omission out of the box.
(I haven’t heard of Playnite until that comment mentioned it so I can’t comment on its effectiveness)
I totally get that it’s a glass half full/empty difference though. (“why should I need to compensate for a massive company’s lack of care?” vs. “oh this fix is quick and good enough for me!”)
This. I can't wait to test bazzite, a community alternative of steamos 3, which would never have been possible if the deck wasn't so open.
Bazzite's great! I've been following it closely for about a year now and it's crazy how good it's gotten. I currently run the Desktop version on my PC, and have tried the Deck version in the past. It's great, a lot more capable than SteamOS imo.
I'll probably jump in if they upgrade the hardware. I would probably use the OS most of the time and an updated screen would go a long way.
Steam Deck is the only portable pc that can suspend a game thanks to being built with Linux, Windows based gaming portables can't do this.
This alone would have sold me on it over other handhelds, but I'm also a longtime Linux enthusiast and wanted to support Valve's investment in the ecosystem. I'm still just so satisfied with it even a year after I got it because of how much it can do without Windows!
And with KDE and Wayland development, dumping games with annoying save mechanics to disk might also become available.
Save scumming ahoy!
My favourite part is when it ends with "buy the steam deck on Amazon [affiliate link]"
Yeah, that's the last place where I'll buy it.
If only Valve had some sort of store where you could buy the Steam Deck and some new games to go with it!
Amazon sells it in my country (Australia), Steam does not.
Go figure right.
I agree that is odd, but at least the kangaroos delivering it are cute.
Their mail delivery hats are adorable.
Most games being bought on these "killers" is probably on Steam anyway.
Valve right now:
I really miss Jon Stewart on the Daily Show. I also miss the Daily Show even without him, but I support the strikes. They need modern contracts for a streaming based world.
The steam deck is like a beautiful stout, crafted with years of practice and knowledge. These immations are like babies first IPA.
Absolutely. Valve is the only player in this game that doesn't have to turn their profits on the actual devices themselves.
And Valve's definitely turning backflips that tons of people are entering the PC gaming space and Steam store on handhelds that Valve didn't have to subsidize.
Why don't tech reviewers every talk about gamescope? Gaming on PCs has always been finicky because PCs have to serve so many use cases at once and games often have to compete for resources. Gamescope completely circumvents all of this overhead by being solely meant for the purpose of gaming. It's the closest you can get to a "PC Console". Third parties can never make something like gamescope for Windows, Microsoft themselves would have to ship it and maintain it.
Because tech reviewers only read spec sheets and call it a day. They usually get the product for free and use it for a day or two, which is not nearly enough time to make an actual review of the product.
Once Valve releases SteamOS for other devices, they will be so much better. Assuming they actually switch away from Windows.
IIRC, Valve has said in the past that they're willing to support other devices. In fact, GPD had said that they were in contact with Valve to bring support to their devices.
Yeah, I really can't figure out why valve isn't working harder on making SteamOS available to other handheld PCs.
The Steam Deck is sold at a loss, but all the benefits Valve gets from the Steam Deck have to do with it's OS. It's both clearing a path for non windows gaming PCs (it's dangerous to let a single rival company like Microsoft completely control your market), and while the deck allows you to install non-steam games, it's much easier to stick to Steam games.
So it would seem to me that putting SteamOS on other devices would be a unanimous victory for Valve, getting all the benefits of the Deck without losing money up-front by subsidizing the hardware.
Friend, you are legally allowed to install SteamOS on any device you want.
Yes, but my personal determination to put Linux on every device I own isn't going to have an impact on market share and convince gamers that they don't need windows.
Handheld PCs are a growing market and Valve has (had?) a chance to make SteamOS the handheld gaming OS.
I assume it's not "ready" yet for whatever reason
Yeah, the ROG Ally particularly makes zero sense to me and misses the point. It runs Windows and it doesn't have the touchpads.
The touchpads really broaden the utility of the console, from being able to select small UI elements in normal programs to being able to play more mouse enabled games (FTL being the most recent for me).
And Linux is the real special sauce - nobody seems to get why Valve did all that work rather than "just" putting Windows on it. Windows isn't a selling point (you can put it on the Deck if you want), it's slow, the UI doesn't work well on that screen and you lose out on being able to suspend games etc.
@lotanis @Fubarberry the legion GO is rumored to beat the SD. Steam deck needs a mid refresh before deck 2 to calm the masses.
I'm glad to see some variation in this space (I almost said innovation except that it's a combo of the Deck and Switch). But it's still running Windows (see above) and it's going to be around twice the price of a Deck.
Friend's ROG fried its SD card reader. They have some serious heat dissipation issues. The other Windows-running units he's tried have had myriad flaws: defective keyboards, poor sound, buggy performance, etc. They seem rushed. Most have sent replacement parts at least without a hassle...