Valve may have taken a while to release its Steam Deck OLED on our shores, so we dig into if the handheld gaming PC holds onto its top spot.
When the Steam Deck first hit the scene back in 2022 it caused the PC handheld market to positively explode. From Lenovo to Asus and everyone in between, we now see plenty of companies vying for a piece of the pie, leaving gamers to be absolutely spoilt with choice.
But all the while the Steam Deck itself felt like the forbidden fruit, largely unavailable outside of grey imports. That changed late last year when Valve finally allowed its units to finally land on our shores, but is it worth investing in after all this time? The simple answer is a resounding yes, but there’s slightly more to it than that.
When Valve opened the proverbial floodgates, it gave Aussies access to its full range of devices, but the shining star is unquestionably it’s fresher OLED model. And trust me when I tell you it’s a thing of beauty. Much like the Nintendo Switch OLED model, games positively pop on the larger, more refined display, with richer blacks and more vibrant colours.
I tested the premium model in the line-up, which aside from packing a beefy 1TB of storage also adds anti-glare etched glass, designed to reduce reflections when faced with natural sunlight. I thoroughly enjoyed my experience with this version, but it will likely prove controversial for some due to the anti-glare coating affecting the vibrancy of the overall display.
It’s worth noting that unless you’ve got the standard glass model and the anti-glare model side by side there’s a good chance you won’t even notice, but if you’re after the optimal colour output, it’s best to go for the former. That said, using the Steam Deck OLED during my daily commute, the protective layer has been an absolute gem in combating varying light sources and is well worth the trade-off.
But inside is where things count, and while the Steam Deck OLED is unlikely going to replace any high-powered gaming rigs, it’s still mighty capable even after all this time. Doing the heavy lifting is an AMD Zen 2 processor alongside 16GB of RAM. Having the benefit of releasing a while after the original LCD model, the OLED model also enjoys 30-50% more battery life, better thermal performance, an upgrade in refresh rate to 90Hz and better touchscreen performance. While that might be a lot to take in, in real world testing it’s incredibly impressive.
Love Gaming?
Get the latest Gaming news, features, updates and giveaways straight to your inbox Learn more
From God of War and Spider-Man to recent heavy hitters like Avowed and Assassin’s Creed Shadows, it’s shocking how well Valve’s machine performs. In fact, there have been very few games that have flat-out refused to work during my time with the unit, and that’s largely been a historical issue where devs have not returned to an older title to add compatibility.
What you do need to keep in mind though is that for many of these games to run efficiently, it will need to be at lower settings. But when you compare it to the likes of the now aged Nintendo Switch, the Steam Deck OLED feels like it’s running rings around the competition, and performs best when focused on lesser-demanding indie titles that can easily achieve max settings.
It’s clear then that the Steam Deck OLED holds a lot of power. But all this power does come at the expense of bulk. Measuring in at 298mm x 117mm x 49mm and weighing in at around 640 grams, this is one incredibly beefy machine, and there’s no shying away from that fact. If your hands are on the smaller side or you’re looking for something lightweight you may struggle a little here, especially over extended periods of play (amplified slightly by the face button placement high in the corner).
It also means it’s a hell of a lot more complicated to bring with you on the go, and there were a number of times I had to leave it out of the backpack because it simply wouldn’t fit, although I do commend the fact that the 1TB models not only comes with a great case in the box, it also has a removable liner which makes it slightly more practical.
Arguably the Steam Deck’s other big win is its interface. By being able to leverage the decades-old Steam interface, the Steam Deck is unquestionably a dream to use. Not only is navigation easy and smooth, but Valve has done a lot of work to ensure that even the least hardcore PC player has a good experience. Almost every game has a Steam Deck compatibility rating, giving you the confidence in making the right purchase decision, and being backed up by the best online store in the business is an enormous win. It’s incredibly sleek to use and smooth to operate, and after dealing with a variety of competitors that have encountered the odd glitch or workaround, it’s nice when you have everything just work.
The caveat to this is that, out of the box you are restricted to the Steam ecosystem. For many that won’t be a huge issue considering the sheer monopoly valve has on the PC gaming marketplace, but it does mean that booting up the likes of Xbox Game Pass or Epic Game Store isn’t as simple as it can be on an AYANEO or ROG device.
In most cases there is a workaround to ultimately expand your catalogue by jumping out of the main interface and hopping into desktop mode. From there you’ll be able to install software that can link catalogues from other popular storefronts like Epic, GOG and Epic Games, into your library, but Valve doesn’t provide any actual instruction on how to do that, meaning you’ll need to jump through a few more hoops and it doesn’t always work like you’d hope (I still can’t get my Epic version of GTA V to successfully boot, for example).
This desktop mode is also how you can make the most of the Steam Deck’s emulation capabilities, and if you’re prepared to do a little digging into getting things set up it’s quite the capable device.
The biggest question you’ll likely ask yourself before purchasing a Steam Deck OLED, is what about Steam Deck 2? It’s a legitimate question that’s also difficult to answer. If you’re understandably worried, you can wait, but it may be a while and there’s absolutely nothing to say Valve won’t implement a similar wait for its successor on our shores (though we really hope not). But if you’re more interested in older titles and indies, the Steam Deck OLED is an easy purchase right now. It’s even got some surprising chops in the triple-A space that have helped cement it as the go-to choice for PC gaming handhelds. And honestly, I’m not sure I see that changing anytime soon.
You can pick up a Steam Deck for yourself from $649 via the Steam Store here.
For more on this topic, follow the Gaming Observer.
