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Valve Steam Deck

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Re: Valve Steam Deck

#211
post #135

From the FAQ [0]: - What OS is Steam Deck running? SteamOS 3.0, a new version of SteamOS based on Arch Linux. - Will people be able to install Windows, or other 3rd party content? Yes. Steam Deck is a PC, and players will be able to install whatever they like, including other OSes. [0]: https://partner.steamgames.com/doc/steamdeck/faq

That is a great link. Perhaps even more interesting is this: Valve is working with anti-cheat vendors for Linux (Proton) support. So one of the biggest remaining obstacles to Linux gaming may soon be addressed as a side effect of this.

Re: Valve Steam Deck

#212
post #177
post #111

Earlier quoted context omitted.

One negative: With all that hardware it’s almost 3 times heavier than the Nintendo Switch, which is already near the upper limit for holding comfortable for longer play sessions. edit: On closer look that's comparing the Switch without controllers (297g) to the Steam Deck with controllers (669g). The Switch with controllers is 398g, so the Steam Deck is only ~1.7x times as heavy - though that's still a lot of extra w…

That’s almost a deal breaker. My hands get tingly after playing in hand held mode for too long. Not sure if it’s the weight or ergonomics.

Sounds like ergonomics. If it was weight based I’d expect you to experience pain or cramps near your shoulders or upper back, not your hands.

Tingling in your hands sounds worryingly like RSI, I’d see a doctor about that.

Re: Valve Steam Deck

#213
post #111
post #38

First impressions: Really good hardware for the price. They fixed the worst thing about SteamOS: It's now got an Arch base. They're definitely overcharging for storage, but I imagine it'll be easy enough to modify one, so it probably doesn't matter much. Why is any company having more USB-2 slots than USB-3 these days? Going with a relatively low resolution compared to modern ones is actually a surprisingly smart mov…

One negative: With all that hardware it’s almost 3 times heavier than the Nintendo Switch, which is already near the upper limit for holding comfortable for longer play sessions. edit: On closer look that's comparing the Switch without controllers (297g) to the Steam Deck with controllers (669g). The Switch with controllers is 398g, so the Steam Deck is only ~1.7x times as heavy - though that's still a lot of extra w…

It's much less than 3x the weight of a Switch. They list it at 670g and a Switch with Joycons attached is about 400g.

Re: Valve Steam Deck

#214

Gotta admit, I never saw that coming. I thought SteamOS was dead after the failure of Steam Machines and Valve was only continuing with their Linux efforts because it's still a useful hedge against Microsoft locking everyone in the App Store. I totally did not expect them to copy the Switch use-case with it. I'm anxious to see how this turns out. Valve's history with hardware is not so great, so it could go nowhere l…

I'm also wondering if they'll open the door to third-party apps on the Steam Deck, which could let you use it for other cloud-based gaming platforms like Stadia.

Re: Valve Steam Deck

#216
post #23

Tech specs – https://www.steamdeck.com/en/tech 800p resolution is a bit disappointing, but I guess that's the only way to get a good frame rate without a massive power-hungry GPU.

7", bigger resolution would be useless, and a waste of ressources tbh, it's a portable console, i'd rather have better FPS and better battery life than higher resolution with lower FPS

It's about the same size as a large smartphone. Having a screen with half the ppi of an iPhone would definitely be noticeable.

Re: Valve Steam Deck

#217
post #168

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>They fixed the worst thing about SteamOS: It's now got an Arch base. I'm a little surprised they didn't go with something like Fedora. The kernel / drivers are kept just as up-to-date as Arch but the rest of the system is a little more stable.

dnf adds a layer of complexity that's really unnecessary; pacman keeps things much simpler.

[deleted]

Re: Valve Steam Deck

#218
post #80

Pretty nice specs for a handheld battery powered device... Processor AMD APU CPU: Zen 2 4c/8t, 2.4-3.5GHz (up to 448 GFlops FP32) GPU: 8 RDNA 2 CUs, 1.0-1.6GHz (up to 1.6 TFlops FP32) APU power: 4-15W RAM 16 GB LPDDR5 RAM (5500 MT/s) Storage 64 GB eMMC (PCIe Gen 2 x1) 256 GB NVMe SSD (PCIe Gen 3 x4) 512 GB high-speed NVMe SSD (PCIe Gen 3 x4) All models include high-speed microSD card slot Though it does weigh 669 gra…

I was thinking AMD Renoir but Zen 2 and RDNA 2 is an odd combination. Is it custom?

Re: Valve Steam Deck

#219
For those of us with older eyes, I am skeptical -- the screen is pretty small for the amount of detail PC games often want to display.

Re: Valve Steam Deck

#220
post #177
post #111

Earlier quoted context omitted.

One negative: With all that hardware it’s almost 3 times heavier than the Nintendo Switch, which is already near the upper limit for holding comfortable for longer play sessions. edit: On closer look that's comparing the Switch without controllers (297g) to the Steam Deck with controllers (669g). The Switch with controllers is 398g, so the Steam Deck is only ~1.7x times as heavy - though that's still a lot of extra w…

That’s almost a deal breaker. My hands get tingly after playing in hand held mode for too long. Not sure if it’s the weight or ergonomics.

I wonder if they have lanyard loops so you can hang it around your neck like those heavy RC controllers xD
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