Valve announces its very own handheld PC "Steam Deck"

Valve has announced Steam Deck, a handheld gaming PC running a custom version of SteamOS.

Valve's Steam Deck

New handheld PC!

This compact gaming device will allow players to enjoy steam games and functions just like a PC. Its design has similarities to the Nintendo Switch Hybrid Console. You'd find on either side of the screen the analog sticks with D-pad controls on the left side and the ABXY keys on right.

Front view

Unlike most other controllers, the Steam Deck's keys are arranged in a unique way, with the keys being on the same plane as the analog keys. It allowed space underneath with two capacitive trackpads which act as the mouse pointer for the device. This will enable users to control the handheld on games not designed for gamepads.

You would also find dual stereo speakers below the trackpads which the company claims have DSP for a more immersive experience. On the front side, there are four additional buttons for View, Menu, Steam, and Quick Access. While at the top portion are the four triggers.

Flipping the handheld at back there will be another four customizable grip buttons.

Back view

Just like the Switch OLED version, the Steam Deck has the same 7-inch screen but it will be an IPS LCD with a 16:10 aspect ratio and 1280 x 800 resolution with up 400 nits maximum brightness and touch support, and a 60Hz refresh rate. The top-end version has anti-glare for its screen.

Inside, it is powered by a custom 2.4GHz to 3.5GHz AMD APU that is based on Zen 2 architectures and has 4-cores and 8-threads. Its GPU uses 8 RDNA 2 CUs and the TDP of the APU has a 4-15W power draw.

All models will get 16GB LPDDR5 RAM. For the memory, the base model only has 64GB eMMC. The middle version gets 256GB NVMe SSD storage while the highest model gets 512GB NVMe SSD. The device is also expandable via a microSD card with high speed for more space to use.

It will have a 40WHr which can translate to 2 to 8hrs of gameplay depending on usage. It will be charged with a 45W USB-C PD 3.0 power supply

Other features include dual-microphone, 3.5mm jack, for connectivity it has Dual-band Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 5.0. It also contains a USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 connection for charging, data transfer, display, and audio. It functions similarly to a USB-C connection on a computer, allowing you to connect all of your gadgets as well as a desktop display to it. Through the DisplayPort 1.4 Alt-mode, it can support up to 8K at 60Hz or 4K at 120Hz.

Just like what was mentioned above, it will be running with SteamOS 3.0. An operating system based on Arch Linux and uses the compatibility layer Proton to run games that are made for Windows. The company claims it can run all games on the device not only those made for Linux.

It will have an official dock that will be sold separately. The dock will have ports of 1x USB-A 3.1 and 2x USB-A 2.0, Ethernet, DisplayPort 1.4, and HDMI 2.0.

The dock can be powered with a USB-C Power Delivery pass-through input. It has a connection of 6" USB-C captive cable with a low 90-degree connector.

USD price with direct to PHP conversion (no taxes and duties yet):

Steam Deck 64GB - USD 399 (around PHP 19.5K)

Steam Deck 256GB - USD 529 (around PHP 25K)

Steam Deck 512GB - USD 649 (around  PHP 31k)

The Steam Deck will be available by December 2021 in the USA, Canada, European Union, and the UK. The regions mentioned can now add the device to their wishlist on Steam.

However, there's no word yet for its availability in the Philippines. In the meantime stay tuned with us for more updates.

Source: Steam Deck, Via: GSMArena