Support NeoGAF

[64gigabyteram]

So I finally got one. Before I got this device, 2 of the biggest concerns I had with it was the terrible battery life and the enormous size. The Steam Deck's battery life, even at its best, is still incomparable to that of the Nintendo Switch, DS Lite, or many of the smartphones out there. And regarding the size, if you thought the Switch was big, this thing is enormous.

Turns out those... actually don't hinder portability as much as i thought they would.

On the topic of battery life... 2 hours (at the worst) is surprisingly more than enough when you're out and about. I mostly game in short bursts of 3-5 minutes per session, and even longer scenarios like car rides or trains take not much more than 15-40 minutes. Now take that, and realize that when emulating/playing pre 2014/indie games, Steam Deck can climb up to 3-6 hours of playtime... and then you realize that the battery life on AAA titles really isn't that much of a big deal.
Many of the places you travel to will have a charging port nearby, excluding buses, cars and trains. It's pretty damn easy to get your shit charged if your battery is quite low.

And for the size.... It WOULD be a problem, but Valve actually negated this quite a bit with an incredibly smart design decision: The carrying case!

Valve places a lot of importance on the carrying case. The box the system comes to you in literally makes you open it in order to get access to the Deck that's inside. And I can see why, it makes this whole pocketability thing a non issue. This carrying case is quite high quality, has a handle to make taking it around easy, and it's durable and spacious enough to the point you can store SD cards and a charger in it. It's still not as convenient as being able to put the system in your pocket and take out later on, but it DOES make traveling with the Deck mostly hassle free and simple enough. You don't need to hold onto it grabbing it out in the open, just take it out and play, and when you're done put it in this case and go along with your day.

These 2 major problems I thought I would have with the device are basically not that much of an issue for me, and now I love the system even more than I thought I would.

 

[64gigabyteram]

and yes, the size is quite beneficial for ergonomics. This is one of the best feeling handheld systems I've used minus the joysticks being a bit hard to reach. Everything just melts away and i get into total immersion when i play on this thing, no controller issues. Love it.

 

[Beechos]

glad to see you're enjoying it. Size wise this is prob the max I can go with a portable handheld. I agree the battery life is sufficient for on the go and traveling. What sucks for me is that I usually would play enough that I have to charge it every playthrough otherwise I'm screwed the next time I use it. Also is it just me or the steamdeck battery drains like a mofo in sleep mode.

 

[azertydu91]

glad to see you're enjoying it. Size wise this is prob the max I can go with a portable handheld. I agree the battery life is sufficient for on the go and traveling. What sucks for me is that I usually would play enough that I have to charge it every playthrough otherwise I'm screwed the next time I use it. Also is it just me or the steamdeck battery drains like a mofo in sleep mode.

Yeah the sleep mode could have been better optimized ,although it can be altered to drain a bit less battery.
Otherwise I do agree with 64gigabyteram I had my doubts buying it and I really liked the thing and going back into linux brought me a decade back in IT school.
The case circumventing the size problem is really interesting, I hadn't thought about but is effectively pretty clever.

 

[Dr. Acid Avatar]

I love everything about my deck except for the weight. It can really hurt my hands when playing in bed. I almost installed a swivel mount for my headboard but my old lady shot that down. Sitting down and playing is a total non issue though! Happy to see what FSR 3 does to this thing.

 

[azertydu91]

I love everything about my deck except for the weight. It can really hurt my hands when playing in bed. I almost installed a swivel mount for my headboard but my old lady shot that down. Sitting down and playing is a total non issue though! Happy to see what FSR 3 does to this thing.

Wait a minute it will be compatible with fsr 3?

 

[64gigabyteram]

Wait a minute it will be compatible with fsr 3?

on supported titles yes. The Steam Deck doesn't use RDNA 3 so it won't be compatible for all DX11 and DX12 games.

 

[azertydu91]

on supported titles yes. The Steam Deck doesn't use RDNA 3 so it won't be compatible for all DX11 and DX12 games.

Oh that's a bit of a letdown but still nice nonetheless.

 

[Filben]

Never had issues with the battery life but then again I don't play AAA games like CP2077 or ER on it and only indie games. The most modern game I'm playing is the System Shock remake and Shadow Gambit.

Battery life is literally nothing to worry about at all in these scenarios unless you're on a train without power supply for 6 hours and you plan on playing the whole time. But I guess any device would have issues in that scenario.

As for the size, this is something to consider. Within the case it is so much bigger than my Switch with its case and with a fully packed backpack I can always squeeze in the Switch somehow, even horizontally or in some little space left. Not possible with the Deck. It is something that really needs to be considered when packing; which isn't necessary with the Switch.

But what good is the amazing form factor of my Switch if I can't play my favourite games on it; not even my favourite Nintendo games like Wave Race or some N64 titles because Nintendo can't be bothered to sell them to me.

 

[balls of snow]

The best handheld I ever had. Get a 65 w pd powerbank and you can game those AAA for hours.

 

[Fess]

Battery life is a constant issue for me. Everything else is great.

 

[RoboFu]

As far as battery life goes… some portables are portable as in.. take it to the hotel and plug it in. Kids can plug it into the car usb slot.. etc etc.

Basically the same as we did with the game gear . Lol

 

[Dream-Knife]

I actually really like the size of the deck. You can keep playing it without discomfort since it handles like an actual controller.

I do think L1 and R1 are hard to hit due to the angle however.

 

[Beechos]

Never had issues with the battery life but then again I don't play AAA games like CP2077 or ER on it and only indie games. The most modern game I'm playing is the System Shock remake and Shadow Gambit.

Battery life is literally nothing to worry about at all in these scenarios unless you're on a train without power supply for 6 hours and you plan on playing the whole time. But I guess any device would have issues in that scenario.

As for the size, this is something to consider. Within the case it is so much bigger than my Switch with its case and with a fully packed backpack I can always squeeze in the Switch somehow, even horizontally or in some little space left. Not possible with the Deck. It is something that really needs to be considered when packing; which isn't necessary with the Switch.

But what good is the amazing form factor of my Switch if I can't play my favourite games on it; not even my favourite Nintendo games like Wave Race or some N64 titles because Nintendo can't be bothered to sell them to me.

Doesn't have to be aaa games that drains battery. A game like vampire survivors kills my steamdeck battery.

 

[Panajev2001a]

and yes, the size is quite beneficial for ergonomics. This is one of the best feeling handheld systems I've used minus the joysticks being a bit hard to reach. Everything just melts away and i get into total immersion when i play on this thing, no controller issues. Love it.

It is very very well ergonomically designed. Turns out that most people’s judgement about ergonomics based on looks is most times very wrong (I find the Steam Deck far more ergonomic than the Switch for example, but it was not a given from its looks).

 

[64gigabyteram]

It is very very well ergonomically designed. Turns out that most people’s judgement about ergonomics based on looks is most times very wrong (I find the Steam Deck far more ergonomic than the Switch for example, but it was not a given from its looks).

i remember the stick placement being so contentious at the time and now no one minds really. the larger size also means a big screen (tho itd be even bigger if there were no stupid bezels)

 

[Filben]

Doesn't have to be aaa games that drains battery. A game like vampire survivors kills my steamdeck battery.

You should check what's causing this. Played it for 15min right now and Watt usage was between 6.3 and 6.9 which means a estimated play time of 6 hours. CPU and GPU are both mostly around 0.9 and 1.2W.

Check if you have plug-ins running in the background or try a un-install/re-install the game or a factory reset. Or maybe a clean reboot first.

I have not tinkered with the GPU clock or TDP limit for this game. Just the default setting except for 60fps cap, v-sync in-game. I don't use the "reduced GPU lag" or "Steam overlay enabled" start parameter of the game.

 

[ReBurn]

When I had my Steam Deck I thought It was a great device. Well built and pretty comfortable for the size. But playing PC games on it didn't feel good to me. It just felt off to me. For as good as it is the experience felt clunky for me so I sold it. I'll probably get the next generation version of it, though. If the experience is more refined.

 

[MidGenRefresh]

It’s the best console I’ve ever own. Can’t wait for version 2 with a better screen.

 

[Codiox]

I was really not a fan of the steam deck until I tried it myself. Valve just know how to do it. The control placement is fucking perfect, don't know why nintendo didn't do this ever. But what sold me was the touch pad. Playing age of empires on this thing was glorious.

Just ordered the 64gb one yesterday, and also a 1tb ssd, 256gb microsd, new backplate with cooler plate and hall effect sticks.

I directly sold my ayn odin lite after ordering the deck.

Can't wait.

 

[calistan]

Steam Deck is a great games machine but it’s not a great portable. I rarely take mine anywhere because it’s huge and the battery life is so poor, but I used it today on a rare outing.

Two hours on the train, charged it last night because of course it was dead from a couple of weeks without use. A bit of Resi 2 to begin - nope, there’s no play button, only a big blue ‘update’ button. No network, no play.

Next up, Bioshock 2. That one gets stuck on a spinning wheel saying ‘downloading update 0%’. Same thing for Xcom, Mirror’s Edge and three others, all of which are installed. Turning off auto updates does nothing, and I can’t be bothered troubleshooting them any further.

I play Wreckfest for about 30 minutes, battery is now at 40%, so I plug it in only to find that the socket next to my seat isn’t working. That’s obviously not a Deck problem, but the point is that the experience of using this thing out of the home and away from network and power can be terrible.

 

[rodrigolfp]

The best handheld I ever had. Get a 65 w pd powerbank and you can game those AAA for hours.

Recommendations, please?

console

 

[MidGenRefresh]

Handheld gaming PC is the best console on the market, that’s what I was trying to say.

 

[64gigabyteram]

 

[64gigabyteram]

The best handheld I ever had. Get a 65 w pd powerbank and you can game those AAA for hours.

not sure when ill come into a situation where id really need a powerbank... yesterday i spent the whole day outside, a bit of charging every now and then. still came back home with a charge.

 

[balls of snow]

Recommendations, please?

Aukey makes them 65w PD powerbanks. Really solid stuff. Just remember the wattage are diiferent than what you are used to with phones. My 20000 mAh capacity can get about one and a half charge for the deck from empty.

 

[Klosshufvud]

For its modest price, it offers tremendous value. I find it a bit too jack of all trades, master of none. Switch/Vita offers superior portability and SD's high end performance is also a bit lacking. But it really does everything. Only to various degrees of success.

My biggest gripes were, considering its size, underwhelming fans, display size and battery. A SD revision with a 60Wh battery, 8' display (the extra inch adds so much when playing recent games) and bigger fans would change my entire opinion on it. Fans sound a bit too much being a handheld you would use in close proximity to others.

But I will say, if you're not willing to pay $800+ for those added benefits, SD is a no brainer. It's also an emulation champ.

 

[calistan]

Steam Deck is a great games machine but it’s not a great portable. I rarely take mine anywhere because it’s huge and the battery life is so poor, but I used it today on a rare outing.

Two hours on the train, charged it last night because of course it was dead from a couple of weeks without use. A bit of Resi 2 to begin - nope, there’s no play button, only a big blue ‘update’ button. No network, no play.

Next up, Bioshock 2. That one gets stuck on a spinning wheel saying ‘downloading update 0%’. Same thing for Xcom, Mirror’s Edge and three others, all of which are installed. Turning off auto updates does nothing, and I can’t be bothered troubleshooting them any further.

I play Wreckfest for about 30 minutes, battery is now at 40%, so I plug it in only to find that the socket next to my seat isn’t working. That’s obviously not a Deck problem, but the point is that the experience of using this thing out of the home and away from network and power can be terrible.

Update to this - I came back from my trip, managed to play Doom 3 BFG edition on the way home, which was great despite being listed as not supported on Deck. More than enough battery life there.

Researching why the Deck refused to let me play so many of my games, and it seems it's a common enough problem. If a game is flagged as requiring an update, you can't play until the update is applied, even if the game was perfectly functional in the past.

Of course the Deck does not receive updates while charging in sleep mode, and patches / shaders are downloaded according to a staggered schedule. If you haven't played a game for a while, the update will be ready in a few days.

So if you're planning to use your Deck on the road, it seems you have to force all those updates by launching each game in your library. I tried playing Bioshock 2 again and it was absolutely fine after pulling down over 100 MB of whatever. Resi 2 is also playable now, but only after manually clicking the update button and receiving multiple files of about 300 MB. Probably the other non-functional games I have installed will be similar.

In short: take it away from its network connection and a large chunk of your library may well be unplayable.