Switch has been around for awhile, and is definitely more of a handheld console than a PC. A lot of the talks around the Xbox handheld have actually been in comparison to the Steam Deck, but it’s not clear yet if the Xbox handheld will be a full PC capable of playing any windows games, or a more locked down Xbox only device.

This is also pretty significant because it might mean that Windows will get increased support for handheld computers. That would both make it a better alternative OS for the Deck, and would significantly improve the user experience of competitor devices. But once again, it depends on if the device will be more of a handheld PC or handheld xbox.

So yeah, Switch is a juggernaut as far as handheld gaming goes, but I don’t think the Switch 2 will significantly impact the Steam Deck. But the Xbox handheld could be much more disruptive/impactful to the smaller niche that the Deck currently dominates.

I think there’s a good chance that we’ll see an official sale on Steam Decks for black friday. If you’re wanting a good deal on one, I would consider looking at the discontinued LCD models during the next sale.

Everything you’ve said is true, but I don’t think it really applies to this case where they’re asking about officially refurbished Decks being sold directly by Valve. The price of a standard Steam Deck is well established here, and any discount will be an actual, real discount on the product.

I did know that. I usually use the “gyro + flickstick” combination for fps games on the deck though, so the lack of a right thumbstick on the original steam controller means I still can’t use my preferred gyro control scheme.

My biggest frustration with the original steam controller thought is that I can’t get the BLE firmware update to work properly. I can use it with the original firmware, but trying to install valve’s BLE update (so that the controller can wake the steam deck from sleep) results in a non-functional controller until I downgrade.

They’re pricey for sure, but they have a lot of unique options and I imagine the production numbers are pretty low, so high prices are to be expected unfortunately.

The metal buttons in particular can have the surface finished in different ways to match your desired texture.

Yeah seriously. I have an original steam controller, but I want something that has the full layout of a standard controller plus track pads/back buttons/gyro.

You should check https://deckbuttons.com/

They have a bunch of different buttons from different manufacturers, and a good variety of materials.

Tbh I only bought this trackball because it was super cheap, and I wanted to evaluate if I could get used to a trackball. I can check the brand/model when I get home, but it’s a thumb-ball. Main nice feature with it is that it supports both bluetooth and usb wireless.

I’d like to try a fingerball as well sometimes, I find thumb ball plenty useable, but I don’t think I could do nearly as well at FPS games with it vs a traditional mouse (I might just need more learning time though). I think a fingerball might be better for me.

Probably not what you’re looking for, but I recently picked up a cheap bluetooth trackball mouse for my Deck. I already have good controllers, so I was looking for something that would let me play mouse heavy games while the deck was docked.

When did you try it? The experience is much better now (imo) than it was at a launch, but it still doesn’t run as well as I would like.

Real steam controller needs more buttons and another joystick though. When many games are designed around a standard controller, the steam controller can be awkward to use.

Many new PCs (generally the cheaper priced ones) come in S mode now, where you can only install Microsoft store apps. You can turn this off to allow regular PC programs too, but they require you to set up the Microsoft store before you can disable it.

If you’re trying to set up a new PC without a Microsoft account (which is getting increasingly hard), you can’t disable S mode. There was a workaround that involved booting into recovery mode and running some commands/registry edits, but I wouldn’t be surprised if Microsoft has blocked that too by now.

This is also the biggest reason Valve supports Linux and ChromeOS. Microsoft really wants full control over what software people can use on Windows, and Valve is worried about getting pushed off the platform.

Yes I’ve seen it before. Once Microsoft even updated their virus definitions to auto-delete the chrome installer when downloaded. Thankfully they reversed that one pretty quickly, but I had to completely disable all Windows virus protection to install chrome for a relative.

In steam deck settings, there’s an option for external monitor safe made. This limits resolution/refresh rate/hdr to improve compatibility. You can also try manually limiting external monitor resolution.

I know I had an issue where an slightly older TV I had started rejecting signal inputs if the resolution was too high or hdr was on. Originally I thought my deck’s video output was broken, but I tried a 4k chromecast and the TV couldn’t display it either (despite being a TV that had previously supported 4k and HDR). Limiting to 1080p with HDR off made everything work again.

Don’t we all

I’ve seen people replicate the Wii U experience with just a steam deck plugged into a monitor.

I think it has 4 extra buttons, in addition to the back buttons there are two extra buttons under the dpad and right thumb stick.

From what I understand, steam input has full support for it as well. As in it will show the controller in steam, and let you program back buttons/capacitive sticks/etc.

I think you only need the companion app if you aren’t using steam.

Edit:

Yeah I have 4 stadia controllers, and they’re great. But I do miss gyro/back buttons.