Popular gaming hardware content creator, ETA PRIME, yesterday teased that his ASUS ROG Ally preview unit was seemingly running Valve's Steam Deck operating system - the short YouTube video provided a glimpse of basic UI functionality as well as in-game performance (Forza Horizon 5). He promised that a full video was incoming, thus providing a full explanation of his modification process and a more in-depth exploration of more games running on the formerly Windows 11-based example. ETA PRIME has delivered on his earlier pledge - the first look/early impressions video was released only a few hours ago (at the time of writing). He reveals that his test platform ROG Ally is not running on Valve's Steam OS.

He has resorted to installing a gaming-focused Linux distro called Chimera OS - he notes that the similar HoloISO platform was not booting up on his handheld unit. On-board audio is reported to be non-functional - the Ally is connected to an external USB-C hub that outputs sound via the in-built 3.5 mm jack. Wi-Fi performance is reported to be inconsistent, ETA PRIME says that he has to reset the system in order to re-establish online connectivity. He was largely impressed with the Ally's gaming performance in a Linux-based environment, but prefers the Steam Deck's power efficiency. He will look into lowering the Ally's TDP, but there is no sure-fire way of making optimizations within the Chimera OS test build.

Be the first to experience the future of storage! As a passionate gamer, you know the importance of fast load times, seamless gameplay, and having ample space for your favorite games. Our team of experts has worked tirelessly to create an SSD that fits the Steam Deck and that not only meets but exceeds your expectations. The Rocket Q 2230 SSD is the perfect companion to maximize your gaming potential and unleash a whole new world of possibilities.

The next generation of small form factor SSD is here. The Rocket 2230 Q delivers big drive performance so that your Steam Deck, Microsoft Surface, and other devices can live up to their potential. It's compact, fast, cool-running, and reliable. 2 TB capacity available for preorder, others will be announced soon! We tested our new Rocket Q 2 TB SSD on our Steam Deck here in the lab and received excellent results when compared to stock SSDs that come pre-equipped on Steam Decks.

The Grounded team is excited to bring Update 1.2.0 to the community this week. Rightfully titled The Super Duper update, this massive update brings with it many quality-of-life changes, more than a hundred new items to craft, a brand new Base Coziness feature, and wasps, a new terrifying creature to fight. But first, let's dive into the Super Duper… an item duplication machine!

THE SUPER DUPER UPDATE
Item Duplication - The Super Duper is a new piece of equipment installed in the Oak Lab. Players will find the Super Duper machine the next time they visit BURG.L! This machine will allow players to duplicate specific equipment and items using Raw Science. To use the Super Duper, players must locate Duper Discs throughout the yard. The first disc unlocks operation of the machine, while the other discs grant the player the ability to unlock duping of higher-tier equipment and items. It can even duplicate trinkets, unique items, and upgrade stones. Making this even more helpful for players, any item duplicated will include all of the item's Smithing upgrades, saving a lot of time for when you and your friends need to gear up quickly and get back to adventuring.

If something seems too good to be true, then it often is and the earlier rumoured price point of the "vanilla" ASUS ROG Ally at US$499.99 was apparently one such instance. Pricing information from serial Twitter leaker SnoopyTech suggests it will instead be priced at US$599.99, which seems a lot more realistic. Aside from using the 6-core CPU with a more limited GPU, the cheaper ROG Ally will also see its internal storage cut in half to 256 GB, compared to 512 GB for the "Extreme" version.

The rest of the specs appear to be identical, with both models sporting 16 GB of LPDDR5 memory, the 7-inch, 120 Hz 1080p display and possibly even the same 40 Whr battery pack. At US$70 more than the equivalent Steam Deck, it might be a tough sell, especially as it's only US$100 to upgrade to the fully featured version, a much smaller cost increase compared to each of the Steam Deck SKUs, where you're looking at spending more to get more. It could simply be that this is a sales tactic by ASUS, to push most of its potential customers to buy the more expensive model.

The Steam Deck is a hit with enthusiasts who require a gaming fix on the move, and Valve has observed its handheld getting revamped heavily by the modification community - but a new adaptation takes the pint-sized PC onto the real battlefield. The GamingOnLinux site yesterday picked up on emerging details from the Ukraine frontline - TDF Media group has shared photos and videos of an automated gun turret system dubbed "Saber" that can be operated remotely. The Steam Deck has somehow become the preferred control method - its on-screen UI, trackpads, analog sticks and button layout factor into the gun turret's operation. A reader has informed me that Valve's hardware is not officially available for sale in the region, so the military must be sourcing units from a grey/dark market source.

Sergey Mohov, lead gameplay designer at Remedy Entertainment, reposted some of TDF Media's photos on his Twitter account earlier this week, and added that "this automatic turret is the best use of Steam Deck I've seen so far." The Territorial Defense Force organization has described the turret (translated) thusly: "Saber is a Ukrainian automated remote-controlled gun turret designed for stationary installation on static objects or moving vehicles. The Saber system's co-ordination is done via a remote control, camera and monitor - which allows combat from up to 500 m from the rig, while preserving the operator's life. This combat platform can be installed in a stationary (capacity) at checkpoints, border and other zones - it is even able to defeat low-flying enemy drones. The platform is flexible enough to accommodate any light anti-infantry or anti-tank weapon weapon - a good example being a Kalashnikov machine gun."

Asobo Studio and Focus Entertainment have announced via Twitter that their smash hit survival adventure game - A Plague Tale: Requiem - is now officially verified on Steam Deck. Valve has bestowed a verified badge upon the critically acclaimed sequel to A Plague Tale: Innocence (2019), and the official Twitter for the series posted about that confirmation yesterday, along with a witty tagline: "They say "keep your friends close but keep your enemies closer", so make sure to bring the rats with you wherever you go!"

A Plague Tale: Requiem has been granted "Great on Deck" status, but early user feedback indicates that the survival horror game is still not fully optimized for Steam Deck's hardware - stuttering in-game performance and crashes are being reported by early adopters. Asobo's flagship title has been quite demanding on home console systems and PCs alike - so it is not surprising that Valve's handheld is struggling through the technical showcase. Many hope that the development team will get onto optimization work, pronto.

Valve's Proton, which allows Windows games to run on Linux, has been now updated to version 8.0, bringing even more games to Linux OS and Valve's Steam Deck. The latest update is probably one of the biggest yet and much awaited re-base, bringing an extensive list of fixes, as well as a list of new games that are now playable.

Valve's own Pierre-Loup Griffais confirmed on Twitter that this is their biggest re-base to date, and that the experimental-8.0 will follow sometime this week. He also notes that the newest re-base requires a GPU with Vulkan 1.3 support. The list on new AAA games that are now playable includes some big titles like Dead Space (2023), Forspoken, Nioh 2 - The Complete Edition, Disney Dreamlight Valley, and others. It also updates Wine to 8.0, fixes issues with the 2K launcher, rendering issues in multiple games, fixes multi-touch support, adds NVIDIA NVAPI support to multiple games, and plenty of other fixes.

ASUS is keeping the hype up for its upcoming ROG Ally handheld console, and now it has confirmed the worldwide release and teased that it could come sooner than anyone expected, which is pretty impressive. Announced on April 1st, the ASUS ROG Ally has impressive specifications, running on yet to be detailed AMD 4 nm custom APU based on Zen 4 CPU and RDNA 3 GPU architecture.

The ASUS ROG Ally measures at 280 x 133 x 39 mm and weighs 608 grams, making it shorter, narrower, thinner, and lighter than its competitor, Valve's Steam Deck. It has a 7-inch display with 1920x1080 resolution, 120 Hz refresh rate, 5 ms response time, and 500 nits of brightness. According to earlier hands-on previews of the prototype from Dave2D and LinusTechTips, ASUS did a great job with the dual-fan cooling solution, making it very quite. It will also have a dedicated PCIE Gen 3 x8 XG connector, which allows it to connect to the recently launched XG Mobile GPU, an external RTX 4090 GPU which retails at $1999.99 in the US. Linus also noted that the ROG Ally will offer 50 percent higher performance at 15 W and twice the performance at 35 W, compared to the Steam Deck. As noted, ASUS has now confirmed that the ROG Ally will launch worldwide, and that it might be sooner that we expect, linking to Best Buy for those that live in North America.

Syntech, an innovative manufacturer of quality and affordable electronic accessories and consumer technology products, has today announced the launch of its new 6-in-1 USB-C Docking Station for Steam Deck. Providing users with 6 different ports to meet most needs, and the ability to output to a 4K monitor or TV at 60Hz, it is a handy and ergonomically designed gadget to complement a Steam Deck gaming setup. The Syntech 6-in-1 Docking Station for Steam Deck is available for £39.99/$39.99 on Amazon UK and Amazon US.

Naughty Dog shared a bit more details about fixes and patches coming for Last of Us Part I on PC, as well as the game verification for Steam Deck. As you already know, the PC version of the game had numerous issues and while some were fixed with two previous updates, it appears that two more are coming this week. According to Naughty Dog's official Twitter account, a new hotfix will be coming tomorrow, and a big patch is expected on Friday. The release notes will be available as soon as the hotfix is live, and more information about the big Friday patch is expected soon as well.

Naughty Dog also answered some questions about the Last of Us Part I verification for Steam Deck, and it appears it won't be coming soon as they are prioritizing fixes and patches for PC before submitting it for that same verification. Hopefully, these two new patches will fix the rest of the big issues and Steam Deck verification will come soon, as it was promised by Naughty Dog co-president Neil Druckmann.

As it turned out that ASUS ROG Ally handheld console is not actually an April Fools' Day prank, more details have started to appear about this Steam Deck competitor, and these first details look pretty promising. According to the Dave2D video, showing the prototype unit in full details, the ASUS ROG Ally will indeed be based on a 4 nm custom AMD APU, featuring Zen 4 CPU and RDNA3 iGPU, so we are most likely looking at a custom AMD Phoenix APU.

The video had a few nice pictures of the pre-production PCB as well as the cooling setup as well as details on the screen, and some performance of the ASUS ROG Ally. The ROG Ally measures at 280 x 133 x 39 mm and weighing 608 grams. This makes it shorter, narrower, thinner, as well as lighter, compared to the Steam Deck. It also comes with 7-inch display, but this time around, it is a 500 nits, 1920x1080 resolution, 16:9 aspect ratio, display with a 120 Hz refresh rate and 5 ms response time, which makes it much better compared to the Steam Deck.

Update: LinusTechTips is the second one to get access to ASUS ROG Ally prototype and has provided a bit more details on specifications, performance, and other things about the upcoming handheld console.

Valve is apparently working on some sort of "game notes" system, and although details are vague, it could give players some way of adding private notes without leaving the game. The information was spotted by SteamDB Creator and dataminer, Pavel Djundik, suggesting such game notes "will be available in the Steam library, and on the web." Previously, the same source suggested that Valve is working on a new notification page as well.

The new "game notes" could easily be anything, but since a lot of players have been asking for a similar feature over at the Steam subreddit, it could suggest that Valve is actually listening to the community. As noted, Valve is also working on a notification page that could be similar to the notification page in the mobile app. Valve is expected to add the notification system as soon as it replaces some of the old parts of the Steam client. Of course, you should wait to hear an official announcement from Valve, as it could be coming soon.

It has been one year since we launched Steam Deck, and in celebration we're offering Steam Deck for 10% off! The discount will last for the duration of the Spring Sale, until March 23rd at 10am Pacific time. The sale applies to all shipping regions, including Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and Hong Kong via Komodo.

Steam Deck wouldn't be such a success without everyone in the community, so we've put together a little celebration video with highlights from Steam Deck's first year, with an emphasis on all of YOU.

Valve has shipped an updated Steam Deck Client to the Stable channel, bringing some improvements that were previously available in the Beta and Preview channels. The biggest update is the local network game transfers, which allow users to copy their Steam game installation and update files from one PC to another over a local network.

The new Steam Deck Client update also adds several other general features and Steam input support, including advanced HDR options in Developer Settings, added support for Sony DualSense Edge controller, Xbox Series X controllers connected via the Xbox Wireless Adapter, Logitech F310 controller, and more, as well as improves some features and fixes for various bugs.

As the Steam Deck turned out to be a big success, and has pretty much revived the handheld gaming market, there were so many questions about the future hardware upgrades, or even the second generation. In the latest interview, Valve's engineer Pierre-Loup Griffais said that while Valve certainly wants to make the Steam Deck better and is "looking at all avenues," upgrading the Steam Deck to OLED screen might not be that simple.

Earlier, Valve's designer Lawrence Yang and engineer Pierre-Loup Griffais have pretty much confirmed that a new and more powerful Steam Deck will not be coming in at least the next few years. In the latest interview, Griffais shed a bit more light on how complex some upgrades could be, especially the screen. Talking to PC Gamer, Griffais said that Valve "understands the limitations of the current tech that's in the Deck, in terms of the screen."

Syntech, global digital accessories industry leader, has announced the release of its latest recent product——the 6-in-1 Multifunctional Docking Station. This docking station is compatible with the portable gaming device Valve Steam Deck and is aimed to enhance the overall gaming experience. Syntech is committed to providing the greatest game user experience, which led to the creation of this product. The docking station features an HDMI 2.0 4K@60 Hz output, a gigabit Ethernet input, 3x USB-A 3.0 output, and a USB-C 3.0 output for high-speed charging. This docking station allows game user to connect Steam Deck to a broad selection of displays, controllers, and peripherals. The revolutionary spherical base design highlights the minimalist look, improves support stability, and does not obstruct the heat vents, guaranteeing that the Steam Deck stays cool throughout extended gaming sessions.

The built-in superior smart chip expands the compatibility of the USB C hub with most Type-C devices, such as phones, tablets, and laptops. This feature ensures that the docking station is compatible with a wide range of devices, making it a versatile accessory for any game user or digital content creator.

Valve has rolled out the new Steam Deck 3.4.6 OS stable update, which brings the Mesa 23.1 graphics driver update, adds support for Vulkan ray tracing and fixes some previous issues. The latest update was anxiously awaited by those playing either Forza Horizon 5, Resident Evil 4, or the new Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty game.

According to the release notes, the new update fixes a significant focus issue with Forza Horizon 5. The aforementioned Mesa 23.1 graphics driver update is bringing both functional as well as performance fixes. Mesa 23.1 fixes graphical corruption issues in both Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty and Resident Evil 4. The new driver also adds Vulkan ray tracing to the DOOM Eternal game. Unfortunately, there is no word on DXR ray tracing support, although the RDNA 2 GPU certainly has hardware support for it.

Although there were some rumors earlier, Valve's designer Lawrence Yang and engineer Pierre-Loup Griffais, have confirmed that a new and more powerful Steam Deck will not be coming in the next few years. The Steam Deck has been quite popular and has somewhat revived the handheld gaming market. Despite having troubles with production and stock early on, it has been selling like hotcakes.

A year from its official launch, first rumors about an upgraded Steam Deck started to show up. The Steam Deck might be struggling to run some of the latest games, which means that Valve is certainly looking closely at what can be improved. Speaking to Rock Paper Shotgun, Lawrence Yang said that "a true next-gen Deck with a significant bump in horsepower wouldn't be for a few years."

For those looking at upgrading—or adding an SSD—to their Steam Deck, there's now a new option from Sabrent. The company has launched an M.2 2230 sized version of its Rocket SSD that will be available in sizes of 256 GB, 512 GB and 1 TB. As one would expect, due to the form factor, we're looking at DRAM-less drives. Sabrent has gone with Phison's E21T controller and it has been paired with Micron's B47R, 176-layer NAND.

In other words, we're not talking about a high-performance drive here, but that might be a good thing as well, since it'll produce less heat, which should prevent drive throttling in the tiny space available inside the Steam Deck. Sabrent rates the drives as having a sequential read speed of up to 5,000 MB/s and a sequential write speed of up to 4,300 MB/s. The read IOPS are rated at up to 450K, with the write IOPS at up to 920K, which once again varies between the drive sizes. The 512 GB drive appears to have the overall best performance. The drives are rated for 200, 300 and 600 TBW and come with a five year warranty. No pricing has been revealed so far.

Electronics brand JSAUX just announced the release of their docking station 7-in-1 for Steam Deck, also named 'HB0702', which is the enhanced version of their previous model 'HB0603'. As a new highlight, this portable device includes for the first time ever a DisplayPort 1.2 connector, highly-demanded by their user community, and three USB-A 3.2 ports. It features a classic HDMI 2.0 port, an Ethernet input and an additional USB-C port too. The accessory is now available on their web store at a retail price of $59.99, with no extra shipping cost.

Starting this summer, JSAUX docking stations have turned out into essential accessories to make the most of Valve's handheld console in screens with up to 4K resolution. Although they were designed specifically for Steam Deck, users can also dock smartphones and tablets as well. This flexibility makes it a very complete home entertainment system. Its classy and small casing, made of polished aluminium, makes it perfect for any kind of space or decoration style.

We're happy to announce that with today's batch of order emails, we have completed our reservation queue. We are now in-stock and Steam Deck is available for purchase! It's been more than a year since Steam Deck was first announced. Since day one we've been dealing with numerous supply chain issues and component shortages. While the team worked to resolve these issues and catch up with demand, we implemented a reservation system. This system enabled customers to save their spot in line without having to worry about refreshing pages, fighting scripts, or battling bots.

The team has worked hard over the past year to address shortages and solve logistics issues, and because of these efforts we're now manufacturing and shipping Steam Decks at our highest rate ever. Despite the ever-increasing reservation rate, we've been able to beat our shipping estimates, and as of today, finally complete the queue.

Valve and Komodo, the licensed provider of Steam Deck in Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, and Taiwan, are heading to Tokyo Game Show 2022 (TGS) where they're hosting a massive booth showcasing Steam Deck, featuring over 20 gaming titles for showgoers to try. Komodo was recently revealed as the official distributor of Valve's Steam Deck in these regions, and is currently accepting reservations for the powerful handheld device, which is targeted to start shipping later this year.

Located on the north side of Hall 5, the large booth will be an ideal place to get some hands-on experience and discover how light and comfortable it is to play on Steam Deck. Those who try Steam Deck at the booth will receive limited edition Steam Deck swag, including a TGS-only Steam Deck book, items featuring Steam Pal - the official Steam Deck mascot - and more.

Tech manufacturer JSAUX announces that its upcoming generation of Steam Deck Docking Stations is available and ready to order. The HB0604 Docking Station features an M.2 SSD slot that will allow players to upgrade the Deck's storage by attaching an external storage unit (not included with the dock). This way, players can expand their library when playing games on a big screen, especially AAA titles that tend to grab a significant chunk of the Deck's storage. This new Docking Station will be on sale on September 7 at 7am PST for a special $99 early bird price for the first 100 orders. After that, next orders will be priced at $129. JSAUX is also offering two bundled M.2 Docks with a 1 TB SSD and a 2 TB SSD storage card. The Dock + 1 TB SSD storage card will have an early bird price of $169 for the first 50 units (after that, it will be sold at $199), the Dock + 2 TB SSD storage card will have an early bird price of $239 for the first 50 units (after that, it will be priced at $269). All customers will get a complimentary portable stand for the Deck (while supplies last), a skin and a keycap with their orders.

Besides the M.2 SSD slot, that supports NVMe and SATA with a 900 MB/s data transfer, the docking Station features a 4K@60 Hz / 2K@120 Hz HDMI 2.0 port, 2 USB-A 3.1 ports, 1 Gigabit Ethernet port as well as a USB-C port for power input that allows charging at 100 W, letting the Steam Deck fully recharge while plugged in. The units bundled with SSD storage will feature M.2 2280 units, featuring PCIe Gen 3 8GT/s interface, up to 4 lanes. The SSDs are compliant with NVMe Express Revision 1.4 and support host memory buffer. Both the 1 TB and the 2 TB units offer up to 3300 MB/s read speeds and up to 2600 MB/s write speeds.

While high-end smartphone SoCs pack an incredible amount of graphics processing power, they're expensive; and bringing 5 W-class PC mobile processors to the Console, such as the Steam Deck, limits AAA gameplay capability. Logitech G has a frugal idea for markets with good saturation of Internet—cloud gaming. The Logitech G Gaming Handheld is just that—an Android-based handheld device with a custom UI, a touchscreen, and a gamepad layout similar to a contemporary handheld gaming console.

The idea behind Logitech G Gaming Handheld is that the user has a cool-and-quiet device in their hands that brings Cloud Gaming to them. Logitech doesn't have a cloud-gaming service of its own, but since the device is Android-based, it will hook you up with GeForce NOW, PS Now, Stadia, Amazon Luna, Blacknut, etc. At its core is a Qualcomm G3X-based SoC, a 6.65-inch touchscreen, a conventional gamepad layout, a microSD expansion slot, and audio jack. There's no word on the comms, but it's likely that you get Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. Logitech is promising a launch later this year.

Video game accessories company iVoler today announced a Pro version of its Steam Deck docking station. Compatible with Valve Steam Deck handheld gaming device, the dock provides an immediate solution for users who have been shut out by Valve indefinitely delaying their own proprietary docking station due to production issues. This Steam Deck dock pro will be available on September 5 in 7 Amazon marketplaces; US, CA, UK, DE, FR, IT, and ES with prime shipping service. iVoler also provides a 15% discount for social media pre-order.

iVoler Steam Deck Dock Pro is a 6-in-1 docking station that is specifically designed to work with Valve's handheld device. It also features three USB 3.0 ports with up to 5 Gbps data transmission, and one angled USB-C cable fitting angled connection for the Steam Deck device. Priced at $49.99, iVoler's dock is also a budget-friendly 6-in-1 docking station option that combines a USB hub and kickstand together.