|OT| Valve's Steam Deck - OLED refresh shipping to folks

Mor

Me llamo Willy y no hice la mili, pero vendo Chili
Sep 7, 2018
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Love the news that are being shared and the compatibility issues seem minimal so far, which is impressive since it's not even out yet.
I've reserved the cheapest and most expensive version of the Steam Deck and I'm still not sure which reservation to keep. I feel like the etched glass is only of limited use to me, since I will probably never use it outside and screen protectors will be able to somewhat replicate the effect to a certain degree. The SSD is of course a factor, but not sure if it's worth 260€ more. Especially since they're going to sell these as spare parts and putting them in seem super easy (other than the self-tapping screws which scare me, since I don't have the proper tools to handle them).
Am I missing any non-cosmetic factors here? Which versions are you guys getting? And if you're getting the cheapest one, do yo plan on opening the Steam Deck and install the SSD drive yourself? If you get the most expensive one, why are you not taking the middle or cheapest one? Are some of you who want to open the console worried about the case and the screws?
Interested in y'alls opinion :)
In my case the most expensive one for a few reasons, first of all, storage as I don't plan on opening the device if not necessary, if I need more capacity I will install an SD card and call the day.

The Anti-Glare panel is also a good option for me given that where I live, even inside my house, I get a lot of light that affect the screen reflections so for me it's a good option in combination with the 400 nits of the panel.

And no, I'm not worried about opening the Deck if needed, it's just that I will just do that in case I need to replace some parts.
 

Alexandros

Every game should be turn based
Nov 4, 2018
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Love the news that are being shared and the compatibility issues seem minimal so far, which is impressive since it's not even out yet.
I've reserved the cheapest and most expensive version of the Steam Deck and I'm still not sure which reservation to keep. I feel like the etched glass is only of limited use to me, since I will probably never use it outside and screen protectors will be able to somewhat replicate the effect to a certain degree. The SSD is of course a factor, but not sure if it's worth 260€ more. Especially since they're going to sell these as spare parts and putting them in seem super easy (other than the self-tapping screws which scare me, since I don't have the proper tools to handle them).
Am I missing any non-cosmetic factors here? Which versions are you guys getting? And if you're getting the cheapest one, do yo plan on opening the Steam Deck and install the SSD drive yourself? If you get the most expensive one, why are you not taking the middle or cheapest one? Are some of you who want to open the console worried about the case and the screws?
Interested in y'alls opinion :)
I reserved the 256GB version because I like the speed of SSDs and I probably won't need more storage since I very rarely play more than one game at a time. I would rather not open the device since I don't have much experience with mobile device repair but my brother is much more proficient so he can do it if need be.
 
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Aiii

何これ
Oct 14, 2021
2
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Love the news that are being shared and the compatibility issues seem minimal so far, which is impressive since it's not even out yet.
I've reserved the cheapest and most expensive version of the Steam Deck and I'm still not sure which reservation to keep. I feel like the etched glass is only of limited use to me, since I will probably never use it outside and screen protectors will be able to somewhat replicate the effect to a certain degree. The SSD is of course a factor, but not sure if it's worth 260€ more. Especially since they're going to sell these as spare parts and putting them in seem super easy (other than the self-tapping screws which scare me, since I don't have the proper tools to handle them).
Am I missing any non-cosmetic factors here? Which versions are you guys getting? And if you're getting the cheapest one, do yo plan on opening the Steam Deck and install the SSD drive yourself? If you get the most expensive one, why are you not taking the middle or cheapest one? Are some of you who want to open the console worried about the case and the screws?
Interested in y'alls opinion :)
I went for the cheapest option. Not necessarily to upgrade the internal storage myself at some point, though I might do that anyways, but because I feel SD cards are good enough for on the go and most non-demanding game. But I will be doing most of my playing on the couch at my home, connected to a dock with a 1TB SanDisk Extreme Portable SSD attached to it. It's 1GB/s transfer speeds will be plenty enough.
 
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Le Pertti

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Oct 10, 2018
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Yeah I also went with the middle option, wanted that storage but didn't want the anti glare screen, I need the best colours and image quality as possible. Thats why I never ever use screen protectors on anything.
 
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Ascheroth

Chilling in the Megastructure
Nov 12, 2018
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Middle option for me. I wanted the SSD but didn't want to pay another 130€ for more storage and anti-glare since while it's a super exciting thing, I'm can't really say how much use it actually will see. I also don't intend on opening up the thing.
 
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beep boop

MetaMember
Dec 6, 2018
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Another one for mid option. I wanted the SSD and I'm a one or two games at a time person, so I don't really need the greater storage even though it's certainly more convenient. I also don't expect to be playing the type of game on it that demands a 100gb+ install.
 
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EdwardTivrusky

Good Morning, Weather Hackers!
Dec 8, 2018
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I went for the expensive option as i despise gloss screens so Anti-Glare is essential for me and i had a quick look at the cost/availability of the M2 2230 drives and they were not easily available or in stock so i thought it would be a pain to upgrade later on and decided to just bite the bullet and go for the top option. My expected date is Q2 2022 so i have the time to save for the extra cost.
 
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Mivey

MetaMember
Sep 20, 2018
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Went for the expensive option due to never wanting to think about the storage, for which 500GB seems enough, and the better screen might help if I ever wish to play outside (which I do not imagine will be often, but it's still a nice option to have).
 
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zonk

Junior Member
Mar 29, 2019
38
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I appreciate all the replies, seems to be a mix with a tendency towards the middle one over here :) I guess I'll keep both reservations for now and wait for feedback from the first batch users. The external SSD for the dock at home is definitely something I haven't had in mind, so that's a good call. I'm very curious what the real-life performance differences will be between the MicroSD and the SSD. That, and how easy it will be to replace/upgrade the SSD (availability of the hardware as well as opening/closing the case) after purchasing the Steam Deck will then probably sway me into one or the other direction.
 

Jav

Question everything, learn nothing
Sep 17, 2019
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We still don't know anything about the Dock, right?
 

Durante

I <3 Pixels
Oct 21, 2018
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I think we've known mostly everything relevant about the dock since the launch of the website? (Except the pricing)

It's here:

Below the actual Deck specs. It has the size, weight, and ports, and I can't think of much else other than price that is relevant.
 

Phawx

Not-tradamus
Sep 6, 2018
102
354
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I went for the most expensive option because I'll be recording the screen a lot and anti-glare is quite helpful in that regard.
 

Mor

Me llamo Willy y no hice la mili, pero vendo Chili
Sep 7, 2018
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I think we've known mostly everything relevant about the dock since the launch of the website? (Except the pricing)

It's here:

Below the actual Deck specs. It has the size, weight, and ports, and I can't think of much else other than price that is relevant.
Oh jeez, didn't remember about this specs page haha, my bad.
 

Mor

Me llamo Willy y no hice la mili, pero vendo Chili
Sep 7, 2018
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So smooth, so clean :thumbsupblob:



Library of Ruina/Lobotomy corporation devs got a kit, all those fingerprints tho hahaha
 
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kami_sama

Junior Member
Oct 15, 2021
9
23
3
I got the middle one. I don't need that much storage for the games I will be playing and I can always just add more with the sd card. The 64GB version was too limiting for my taste. And I didn't want the anti-glare screen.
As for the dock, I will be 3d printing myself a shelf and putting a normal usb-c dock once people see what works and what doesn't.
 

Durante

I <3 Pixels
Oct 21, 2018
3,835
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I got the generic (but good quality) USB C docking thing I ordered. So today a friend and I
  1. connected the Steam deck to that docking station
  2. connected a keyboard, mouse, gigabit ethernet, 2 controllers, and my projector to it
  3. drove that projector at 1080p 240 Hz via the docking station (!)
  4. used gamescope to limit a 2D game to 60 FPS and use integer scaling while running the projector at 1080p240
  5. played the game with the 2 controllers on the projector using the deck (continuing from our save from the windows system we were playing on previously)
Not everything in that list went in a completely end-user-friendly way, but the sheer functionality out of that small package is just plain neat.
 

Knurek

OG old coot
Oct 16, 2018
2,438
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I got the generic (but good quality) USB C docking thing I ordered. So today a friend and I
  1. connected the Steam deck to that docking station
  2. connected a keyboard, mouse, gigabit ethernet, 2 controllers, and my projector to it
  3. drove that projector at 1080p 240 Hz via the docking station (!)
  4. used gamescope to limit a 2D game to 60 FPS and use integer scaling while running the projector at 1080p240
  5. played the game with the 2 controllers on the projector using the deck (continuing from our save from the windows system we were playing on previously)
Not everything in that list went in a completely end-user-friendly way, but the sheer functionality out of that small package is just plain neat.
Speaking of gamescope, have you tried the 30 fps lock? Does it provide a judder free gameplay? Or do you get the Bloodborne experience?
 

kami_sama

Junior Member
Oct 15, 2021
9
23
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So I was wondering, VRR should work when connecting to a screen right?
Hardware wise it should. It's a RDNA2 GPU and they support it out of the box. I don't think it would work with HDMI, but with an adapter that can do DP1.4 it might work. The issue as I see it is software. I remember hearing one of the two solutions to VRR didn't work in Linux, but I don't remember if it was Gsync or Freesync.
 
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Mor

Me llamo Willy y no hice la mili, pero vendo Chili
Sep 7, 2018
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Satisfactory developers Coffee Stain showed a bit of gameplay in their latest stream, it runs way better than I expected given it is very CPU intensive.



Here you can watch it as there's no official tweet as for right now.
 
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jonbones

MetaMember
Oct 14, 2021
8
41
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Speaking of gamescope, have you tried the 30 fps lock? Does it provide a judder free gameplay? Or do you get the Bloodborne experience?
This is the biggest question I have right now - if gamescope can provide good frame times at 30 fps, that's massive.
 
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jads653

MetaMember
Oct 18, 2021
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Hardware wise it should. It's a RDNA2 GPU and they support it out of the box. I don't think it would work with HDMI, but with an adapter that can do DP1.4 it might work. The issue as I see it is software. I remember hearing one of the two solutions to VRR didn't work in Linux, but I don't remember if it was Gsync or Freesync.
Freesync on HDMI was patched in earlier this year (March) for AMD hardware. Works fine for me on the latest opensource drivers


This is the biggest question I have right now - if gamescope can provide good frame times at 30 fps, that's massive.
Any games in particular that you are looking for?
 

jonbones

MetaMember
Oct 14, 2021
8
41
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Any games in particular that you are looking for?
A good question - I suppose I'd like to see games like Deathloop, Arkham Knight, Control & CP2077. Games I don't think will hit 800/60 on Steam Deck but may be very nice at 800/30 - provided the frame pacing feels like an optimized console game.
 

jads653

MetaMember
Oct 18, 2021
351
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A good question - I suppose I'd like to see games like Deathloop, Arkham Knight, Control & CP2077. Games I don't think will hit 800/60 on Steam Deck but may be very nice at 800/30 - provided the frame pacing feels like an optimized console game.
I am not someone really familiar with frametimes but I have Arkham Knight and I run Linux as a daily driver. (AMD 6800, Xeon 2678-v3, Arch Linux based OS) Keep in mind this is just for one game, Frametimes at initial run are all over the place. This most likely has to do with shader compilation. 2nd, 3rd and 4th run seem to be a solid 33,3ms, see below.

Steam settings

 

jonbones

MetaMember
Oct 14, 2021
8
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I am not someone really familiar with frametimes but I have Arkham Knight and I run Linux as a daily driver. (AMD 6800, Xeon 2678-v3, Arch Linux based OS) Keep in mind this is just for one game, Frametimes at initial run are all over the place. This most likely has to do with shader compilation. 2nd, 3rd and 4th run seem to be a solid 33,3ms, see below.

Steam settings

Thank you so much for putting this work in, I really appreciate the effort. This seems super promising!
 

jads653

MetaMember
Oct 18, 2021
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Thank you so much for putting this work in, I really appreciate the effort. This seems super promising!
No problem, I was as curious as you. I normally don't pay attention to frametimes. I had some time today and tested 3 games. Doom, Subnautica Below Zero and Horizon Zero Dawn. Horizon Zero Dawn is a bit of a weird one. As you can see Doom (Vulkan) and Subnautica (DirectX9) are a perfect 33.3 MS. Horizon (DirectX12) fluctuates a bit around the 33.3MS mark. Never a huge spike but so far it's the only game that does this.

Doom

Horizon Zero Dawn (Go Fullscreen to see mangohud displayed correctly)

Subnautica Below Zero (Go Fullscreen to see mangohud displayed correctly)
 

Paul

MetaMember
Jan 26, 2019
491
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I am annoyed nobody showed how Cyberpunk and Red Dead 2 are running on it yet.