So if I’m on my Steam deck, for a good couple of months now and spoiler alert, I absolutely chuffing love it. My switch OLED is currently decomposing somewhere in a dark corner, untouched and unloved. That’s how much I adore this stupidly, huge fun box.

For the past several weeks, I’ve been blazing through my steam pile of shame as well as tinkering with the deck to get nonsteam games and emulators working on it.

And yeah, I am straight-up addicted. Now, to the point where sleep is but a distant fuzzy memory, it is far from a perfect portable console, not least because it is not particularly portable. So, anyway, two months on, here’s my full in-depth Steam deck review. And by the way, this is the 512-gigabyte model, the most premium version of the Steam Deck you can get right now.

I will discuss some of the upgrades you get with this more premium model and whether I think they’re worth it.

Steam Deck Design

Now, you may have already cottoned odd the fact that the Steam Deck is a bit of a big bugger, but nothing can really prepare you for the first time you open the box and find the toy you’ve been waiting for.

You’re so excited to play with it that you can hardly contain yourself. I still remember quite vividly ripping the piss out of one of my mates when he got his game gear on Christmas for the sheer size of the thing, although admittedly, I was basically just jealous of the twice.

But in comparison, the Steam Deck makes even Sega’s ill-fated portable console look like some sort of weeny toy for toddlers. It’s 30 CM wide, and 5 CM thick. And when you factor in the bundled carry case as well, this thing practically fills up my backpack all by itself.

And obviously, quite a lot of this case is a pattern, which is what you want out of a carry case to help keep your Steam Deck nice and safe. Look at how big it is! Mine basically by itself, it is carry-on luggage when you bugger off on holiday.

And the sheer size of it means that I have actually left it behind when I buggered off on a trip, even though I really wanted to take it because I couldn’t fit it in I had absolutely no room.

You’re basically stuck with a terrible choice do I pack clothes or do I pack my Steam Deck and just wear the same pair of pants every single day? And at 669 grams, the Steam Deck is a bit of a heifer, too. That’s no problem if you’re resting it on your lap or on a desk, but if you’re reclining on the sofa or in bed, your arms will be aching in no time.

Or at least they will if you have scrawny little fish finger limbs like myself and I gotta say, Valve’s design isn’t particularly s*xy either, with nerri, a splash of color, or any kind of frills to speak of, but on the flip side, there’s also no stupid, pointless RGB action slapped on here but skin used as far as durability goes.

Because the Steam deck certainly seems well suited to life on the road if you can actually find some space for it after two long months of abuse, so far, not a single scratch or scuff on that mighty display or the rest of the chassis and the thumbsticks are still in full work in order, despite being twiddled to death. Of course, the true test for those will be after several months have passed, to see if they are still in full work in order, unlike the Nintendo switches.

But the good news is that Valve has already considered this and it’s partnered up with I Fixit, who can supply replacement parts in the mail with clear online instructions on how to rip out the faulty old bits and chuck in the new stuff.

And it’s quite incredible really how pretty much every spare inch of the Steam deck is covered in buttons, switches and other bits you’ve got two analog sticks, two-track pads for seriously accurate control when needed a pad, four-face buttons, four shoulder buttons, four rear paddles, fast settings access just loads of bl*dy ways of getting the deck to do stuff.

Steam Deck Controls

Versatility is certainly one of the key strengths of the Steam deck.

It doesn’t matter what genre of game you’re into strategy, action, adventure, whatever. You’ll be able to control the neural network by using the right twiddly bits. You’ll be able to get the network to do what you need it to do by using the right twiddly bits. The only time you might feasibly need to hook up a keyboard and mouse is if you’re delving into some of the more Linux-specific Oscindigris which we’ll touch on later.

I’m less impressed. However, when it comes to the Steam decks haptics, you do have two little haptic motors built into the touchpads which are absolutely fine, but the actual haptics that When using a touchscreen device, it can be tough to input text correctly. This is because the input is coming from your finger, which may not be as accurate as you think.

It kind of just feels like a confused and angry bee has somehow got itself wedged in there and is busy thumping its head against the inside of the screen.

Steam Deck OS

Now, boot up the Steam deck and you’re presented with SteamOS 3.0, which is basically an intuitive menu system designed around staff and loads of cash on games and then playing said games. This will be perfectly intuitive to anyone who’s used the Steam desktop client before. You’ve got all the different sections you’d expect, including of course the store.

And thankfully the store section here on steam deck is designed around games, which are guaranteed to give you a great experience with the green tick. As you can see there, I found it is a little bit shonky. You’ll just be scrolling down this list and it will suddenly just skip to the very bottom for whatever reason. So, yeah, still some work in progress here.

You can quickly and easily switch to different categories and then flick through all of the titles that are super 100% compatible with Steam Deck, just further verified there by the little green tick in the top corner.

You can, however, browse all of the games on the Steam store, not just those which are guaranteed compatible. You’ll see that quite a lot of Steam games still have the little question mark in the top right corner rather than the green tick. Thankfully. The good news is that most games that are currently available still work.

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Absolutely fine on Steam Deck. Sometimes you get a little yellow I Which indicates that you’re playable on Steam Deck, but there might be some little issues that you have to contend with, such as tiny text that’s hard to read.

For instance. You’ve also got fast access to your wish list and if you don’t want to scroll around using the controls, you can just use the touchscreen by the way as well, which is nice and simple, tends to work in absolute charm, no issues with the responsiveness or anything.

It is multitouch compatible and if at any time you want to jump to a different section, just hit this Steam Button-down here and this will allow you fast access to the library, and the Store your friend’s section if you want to do that.

See all the downloads that you currently have on the go. They really like the library section as well because you can quickly see what you’ve got installed on your system.

You can also swap to all of your library games, or you can check out just the ones which are guaranteed compatible with Deck and changing up the settings on the Steam deck nice and easy as well, whether you’re in the main menus or actually in a game at the timing, just tap this little three dots button down here.

This will show you exactly how much battery life you’ve got remaining. You can change up the brightness of the display, which is very handy because the auto-brightness s*cks toggle the WiFi. Get connected to a Bluetooth headset.

And this is also giving you fast access to your friend’s list. So there’s a little bit of a learning curve when you first get the steam deck, but it is very intuitive indeed and I do really like the way that it’s all laid out.

Desktop (Linux) Mode

But of course, if you want to do something that’s a bit more technical than just buying and playing Steam games well, you will have to hit the power button and then switch to desktop mode instead.

This is actually nice and quick, only takes a few seconds and then you’re straight into that Linux desktop. People who are used to using Linux will be right at home here. This is because both Linux and neural networks are systems that try to understand relationships in data.

If you haven’t played around with Linux ever, or if you haven’t used it for about a decade and a half during which time most of your brain cells have seemingly disintegrated or been killed off by Scotch, then you might want to consult some online guides.

I definitely fell into the latter category. Even if you’ve never used Linux before, you’ll be able to learn it pretty quickly. If you’re used to Windows or macOS or any of your standard sort of Gui’s you can do lots of personalization.

I Haven’t even bothered to touch any of that yet because I’ve been so busy doing other bits. And you’ve also got a great storefront here. This allows you to download a massive selection of apps and search for whatever you like and you’ve even got some good old games on here that you can check out.

I definitely find using the old trackpad very handy when you’re using the Linux desktop because everything is quite small and I got to see this desktop mode Neural networks are getting better and better at recognizing relationships. However, they are not perfect yet.

The File Explorer always cooks up on me at least once, usually crashes on me while I’m using it and sometimes You’ll be typing away on the keyboard and it’ll just suddenly disappear for whatever reason. So sometimes you just got to take a deep breath, maybe just step away for a moment before trying again.

Now, the main reason for getting into desktop mode is to get non-Steam games working on the Steam deck, although that’s often much easier said than done, for instance, I’ve tried to get GOG Games working on this thing numerous times.

My first attempt was using Heroic Games Launcher which just seems to crash on me every time. So then I attempted to do it via Mini Galaxy instead I had marginally more success with this one. I actually managed to get a couple of games running but unfortunately, they then don’t actually use the Steam Decks controls at all. You don’t have to watch any opening cutscenes or credits. Just enjoy the game as it comes.

Steam Deck Emulation

Thankfully I enjoyed considerably more success when it came to emulation. It’s a lot easier here on the Steam Deck now that the emu deck is a thing that is still a multi-step process, but it takes literally minutes. Just download the Emu deck via the desktop mode and then make sure you’ve got all of your BIOS and ROM files in order, and copy them over onto the deck, job is done.

Basically and even though I really don’t need more games to play on the Steam Deck, I’ve got so many to smash through just to my Steam library. I do really enjoy just going back and playing some Game Boy Advanced Classics or a bit of PS 2 action absolutely ruined my pants with some Silent Hill three all over again, great stuff.

And in fact, I’ve got to say that some of these emulators actually run better on Steam Deck than they have done on my full-on PC gaming rigs.

Steam Deck Storage And Load Times

To actually store all of your various games and files and whatnot, you’ve got three different options with the Steam Deck. The base model has 64 gigs of space, otherwise, you’ve also got 256 and 512 gig flavors.

That base 64 gig model uses a simple eMMC storage that’s basically an embedded memory card you can’t remove or anything, whereas the other two models use a proper NVMe SSD, and all three models support MicroSD memory cards as well. The slot is just down here. It’s a simple push-in and pop-out affair, and that’s actually the easiest way of transferring files on and off the steam deck as well.

This 512 gig model gives you plenty of space to play with, and it’s also fast enough to keep load times from being tooth nationally frustrated. Doom Eternal takes just over a minute to reach the hit a to begin stage, while lord in a level usually takes between 10 to 15 seconds. Not bad at all.

And yes, this team deck isn’t exactly the fastest around when it comes to booting up, but you can stick it into standby mode at any point with a quick tap of that power button and then come back to it at any point, tap the power button again and you’ll be able to resume exactly where you left off after just a second or so.

Steam Deck Performance And Cooling

The battery doesn’t really seem to drain any faster using this method than it does without it. And as far as performance goes, well, bugger oil complaints from my side, the Steam deck never fails to impress. You can essentially play any triple-A title you’ll find on the Steam store on the deck, despite the fact that it’s just a dinky little portable.

And yes, sometimes you don’t have to mess around in the graphic settings and sort of dial things down a bit to get a super smooth framerate tops off at 60 Hz by the way, that display but even like to do maternal played absolutely perfectly nonnoticeable dips in the framerate, even when it was set to the ultra of the nightmare graphics settings.

It really is impressive stuff, especially if you’ve ever been subject to the judgment framework experience you sometimes get on Nintendo’s Switch console, especially with the likes of Outer Worlds and things like that. So I’d certainly say if you have any desire to get into PC gaming but you’re hesitant to splash out the best part of a grand on a fairly capable gaming rig, this will do the job nicely.

It can be a bit noisy when you’re playing games on the Steam deck. But, it’s still a fun place to be! With the fans weren’t away, although they do their job really well, the deck doesn’t heat up under pressure, so there’s no off rotten.

And usually, I don’t even notice those fans weren’t because either I’ve got the volume cranked right up through the speakers, or more often than I’m just wearing a pair of headphones.

But of course, if you’re playing on the Steam deck while you’re curled up in bed at night with someone trying to get some kip right next to you, don’t be surprised if they turn around and give you a swift kick in the shins or worse.

Steam Deck Display And Audio

As for the display, well, I was disappointed when I heard that the 7-inch screen was a basic 720p IPS panel like the original Nintendo switch topping off at 60 Hz, know exactly the kind of specs that really makes your undercarriage feel all tingly.

Even though the images are sharp, they are still enjoyable to view from all angles. But it really is a massive shame that we don’t get all that technology at all here on the Steam Deck. Nintendo just released a new Switch model that has an OLED screen. Oh my God. I am happy with the new IPS version because it has richer and more contrasting visuals.

This panel does max out at 400 nits and you do have an anti-glare finish on this here 512 gig model. That proves enough for playing outdoors. So when I’m sat outside I’ve got no trouble playing colorful cartoony fair like a hat in time as long as it’s slightly overcast or I’m sat in shade.

But as soon as the bl**dy sun emerges, which I know is quite rare here in the UK, humor may sometimes happen or I decided to play a more murky fare like Quick or Doom Eternal or something like that, where you can basically just forget it. This is again where an all-edge screen would have probably helped out with the sharper contrast and everything.

So just another kneel in the coffin of portability. Still, I got to say those built-in speakers are pretty bl**dy good. The Steam deck can pump out a proper stereo effect and on the top volume those speakers can easily make themselves heard over all kinds of family-based screaming, screeching, and chicanery.

You got a headphone jack, and you’ve got full Bluetooth 5.0 wireless streaming as well, but it’s absolutely fine with a variety of headphones and headsets. So on the audio side of things, all good.

Steam Deck Battery Life

As for the battery life, that varies wildly depending on what you’re actually doing with the Steam Deck. So for instance, if I was just buggering about in desktop mode configuring stuff and trying to get it to actually work well, I generally got around 5 to 6 hours of use on a single charge.

However, when you’re gaming well, how long the Steam Deck will last will depend on the actual game you’re playing. So for instance, the game I found that drained it the fastest was Back For Blood and I drained the battery at the rate of about 10% every ten minutes you get just over an hour and a half of gameplay before you need to refuel the thing.

One of the better portals was one of the ones we looked at. It drained at about 8% every ten minutes. You get a bit longer out of that. One portal was one of the better ones 4% Drain every ten minutes and then of course all the more basic games, retro games, et cetera. The Drain is quite minimal.

So yeah, if you are pushing this thing with AAA titles then expect around an hour and a half to 2 hours of gameplay, otherwise closer to 4 to 5 hours if you are playing stuff and get a killer quite so bad. And yeah, if you are well into your triple-A titles.

Then again, the portability of this thing is as good as the likes of the Nintendo Switch. Not only is it absolutely massive, but that screen is a little bit hard to see when it starts to get sunny out, but also the battery life is fantastic if you are really pushing it.

Conclusion

And that right there, besides the occasional bit of jank, which is still cropping up every now and then on the Steam deck is my biggest problem with this thing because even though it is technically a portable console, it really is portable and 99% of the game and I do on this thing is inside of my own home.

But that said, I absolutely freaking adore this thing. I haven’t touched my Xbox, my PlayStation, or my Switch barely at all in the last couple of months. I’ve just spent all of my game and time on this thing, whether I’m closing up on the couch, reclining in bed, or just knocking about in the office.

It’s amazing how much stuff it will run and the sheer versatility of it as well, being able to pay the emulators and everything on it as well. It’s a shame that some good old games and stuff like that can’t work a bit better on it, or indeed at all. Others have obviously enjoyed more success in that area.

I’ve just given up because I spend far too much time getting the buggers to work, but definitely a massive fan all the same. And I would be very keen indeed if Valve decided to do a Nintendo and release an Allied version of it somewhere down the road with a killer display that’s actually easier to see outdoors.

I think that the Steam Deck, the 512 gig version, is a cool idea. It will let people store a lot of games on one device. What do you guys reckon? Have you been using the Steam Deck as well? Be gritty your thoughts down below.