PC Valve drops a Tim Epic-approved steamer!

[stepee]

Since it's all the same hardware one neat thing they could make an easy way for people with more experience tweaking games to easily share their work with people looking for a more console like experience or just less experienced users.  Performance profiles with game tweaks and settings and such, could help streamline the experience for those who don't want any control but just the best performance/graphics.

 

The more I think about it, this is a really smart move for Valve. Steam pc's/os obviously didn't take off, but the compatibility wasn't there and they were offering something that there was plenty of already, gaming computers. The added "bonus" of SteamOS wasn't a good selling point.

 

But now they are getting SteamOS into people's homes with a product that has a demand and not really any mainstream competition (unless you want to put it against switch).  More people will start using the OS now just because it comes standard with this device, then maybe get used to it. Then more developers assist to make sure their games are compatible because they want to get those users.

 

Then all of the sudden SteamOS is a viable alternative to gaming on Windows with proper support and a base of people already using it that might be more interested in a second attempt at pushing it as a console replacement.

 

The biggest hurdle for me to want to switch though is I'm not sure how GamePass/MS Windows store releases work with this. MS normally doesn't seem to give a fuck anymore about hardware competitors, but I'm not so sure about an OS competitor.

[silentbob]

3 hours ago, stepee said:

The biggest hurdle for me to want to switch though is I'm not sure how GamePass/MS Windows store releases work with this. MS normally doesn't seem to give a fuck anymore about hardware competitors, but I'm not so sure about an OS competitor.

It should work fine if you can switch to any OS like they said you could. It’s one of the main reasons why I reserved the mid tier system yesterday. Plus we can already link our Steam account with UGP on your PC. Would think UGP would treat this like a typical PC as well

[stepee]

19 minutes ago, silentbob said:

It should work fine if you can switch to any OS like they said you could. It’s one of the main reasons why I reserved the mid tier system yesterday. Plus we can already link our Steam account with UGP on your PC. Would think UGP would treat this like a typical PC as well

 

Oh yeah it’ll work fine on my windows partition I’m sure, I just meant if gamepass and some of the MS games not on steam could possibly come to SteamOS, so you could use the steamos and not have to switch for game pass.

[imthesoldier]

7 hours ago, ManUtdRedDevils said:

Same. Maybe we can open them together.

 

So are people gonna keep Steam OS or wipe it immediately after getting it?

 

It'll depend on how good SteamOS is, and by extension Proton turns into between now, and upon launch. Since it appears I won't be getting mine until Q1 2022 according to the Steam Deck page, that'll give me some time to process the viability of it as a platform, or if I'd be better off going full windows.

 

At the same time though, I feel as though the purpose of a device like this would be to use SteamOS. I'm liking thus far what I'm reading about with Proton, and would be cool if it gets to the point where Windows might not be necessary for Steam games.

 

The kicker though are places like GOG, Epic, Origin, and Uplay, which appear to require Windows, and that is where dual-boot comes in. I could easily partition off the 512GB SSD in half, and have Steam OS in one, and Windows 10/11 in the other, and probably similar with the microSD. I do await what consumers, tech channels, and just random people are able to get out of this thing.

 

 

And who knows? Maybe...just maybe you can overclock this thing too.

 

 

EDIT: In Valve's case, I think it would be better for them to make this the best SteamOS device ever put on the market with the highest compatibility of Windows-based games. Of course, they'll still allow you practically do what you want with it, but I think they're going to try, and make SteamOS really good with Proton.

[DPCyric]

14 hours ago, stepee said:

The biggest hurdle for me to want to switch though is I'm not sure how GamePass/MS Windows store releases work with this. MS normally doesn't seem to give a fuck anymore about hardware competitors, but I'm not so sure about an OS competitor.

 

I think they care a lot more about what makes sense and $$$ for them now. I'm sure if they think it will be profitable they will port their games to Steam OS. I think they have just learned if they want a diverse portfolio and happy developers they need to sell in more places.

[Brian]

I assume this is the etched glass technology being used on the high end model. The anti-glare is impressive but the trade off seems to be blurrier text. 

[imthesoldier]

I noticed in the Specs section of the Steam Deck page, they have continued to update little things here, and there. Looking back, they added the bit about the models have a socketed nvme m.2 slot (Also saying it's not "intended" for user upgradeability, but we know it can be replaced by the end user), and now they added some wording to say the ram is in dual-channel, which is good to know.

 

Single-channel wouldn't make a lot of sense anyway, so it's good they added that it is in fact dual-channel.

[Keyser_Soze]

3 minutes ago, imthesoldier said:

I noticed in the Specs section of the Steam Deck page, they have continued to update little things here, and there. Looking back, they added the bit about the models have a socketed nvme m.2 slot (Also saying it's not "intended" for user upgradeability, but we know it can be replaced by the end user), and now they added some wording to say the ram is in dual-channel, which is good to know.

 

Single-channel wouldn't make a lot of sense anyway, so it's good they added that it is in fact dual-channel.

 

I guess the distinction is socketed (meaning they installed it) rather than soldered (meaning you can't put in your own) - Hard to say until someone gets one and cracks it open.

I had an old shitty dell I wanted to upgrade a long time ago but the ram and other sockets were soldered on.

[Zaku3]

If they are saying it's not user upgradable maybe it's just that its hard to get to. Might be under the heatsink. Guess we gotta wait and see.

[imthesoldier]

4 minutes ago, Zaku3 said:

If they are saying it's not user upgradable maybe it's just that its hard to get to. Might be under the heatsink. Guess we gotta wait and see.

 

Yeah. Pretty much. My initial take is it's like replacing the battery on your smart device. Can be done, but not intended by the end user.

[cusideabelincoln]

The device looks like a bitch to tear apart.

[imthesoldier]

 

Some interesting info in this vid such as Valve are supplying dev kits to developers

[cusideabelincoln]

1 hour ago, imthesoldier said:

 

Some interesting info in this vid such as Valve are supplying dev kits to developers

 

But probably don't have any for themselves because they don't develop games anymore 

[Brian]

I have been watching a ton of GPD Win 3 videos today. 

[vaxick]

11 hours ago, imthesoldier said:

 

Yeah. Pretty much. My initial take is it's like replacing the battery on your smart device. Can be done, but not intended by the end user.

 

It would be easier than that.  Phones are a pain in the ass since you have to remove the display first to get to it, from this you'd be working from the back.  It can be a pain in the ass, but they're obviously going to deter people from doing it.  I doubt it would be anything scary for people used to disassembling small electronics though.  I admit, this makes me tempted to order the base model.  My computer right now is so old I have no hope of playing modern PC games and this would certainly scratch my PC gaming itch.

[imthesoldier]

1 hour ago, vaxick said:

 

It would be easier than that.  Phones are a pain in the ass since you have to remove the display first to get to it, from this you'd be working from the back.  It can be a pain in the ass, but they're obviously going to deter people from doing it.  I doubt it would be anything scary for people used to disassembling small electronics though.  I admit, this makes me tempted to order the base model.  My computer right now is so old I have no hope of playing modern PC games and this would certainly scratch my PC gaming itch.

How old we talking? 

[vaxick]

33 minutes ago, imthesoldier said:

How old we talking? 

 

Plasma televisions were still on the market old.

[Keyser_Soze]

5 hours ago, cusideabelincoln said:

But probably don't have any for themselves because they don't develop games anymore 

 

Hey, Campo Santo is working on something!

[vaxick]

14 hours ago, ManUtdRedDevils said:

I assume this is the etched glass technology being used on the high end model. The anti-glare is impressive but the trade off seems to be blurrier text. 

 

You have to wonder, with it being of basically the same glass type, Apple requires a special dry cloth for their Nano display, will Valve require such a special cleaning cloth as well?  Ironically, if so, that special case could have a different interior to address the uniqueness of the glass.  I think they should have offered it in a matte and glossy option personally.  Calling the matte display "premium" is a bit of a stretch as it really comes down to personal preference.  For me personally, I'd opt for a glossy display simply because it's a gaming handheld and I want all the contrast pop I can get.

[finaljedi]

On 7/16/2021 at 4:22 PM, sblfilms said:

Also, I have no idea why retailers don’t let people get in line this way for all these sorts of things. Just send it out once my number comes up in the line. I think that would get rid of a LOT of the frustration around purchasing gaming hardware.

 

Yeah, this kills me, apparently Apple and Valve are the only ones who feel the need to set up a queue.  If I could reserve a 3080 with a shipping timeframe of months from now I'd be happy.

 

Anyway, got in line for the 512GB version Friday, Q1 2022.

[imthesoldier]

7 hours ago, finaljedi said:

 

Yeah, this kills me, apparently Apple and Valve are the only ones who feel the need to set up a queue.  If I could reserve a 3080 with a shipping timeframe of months from now I'd be happy.

 

Anyway, got in line for the 512GB version Friday, Q1 2022.

There’s some good news for you then. 
 

if you sign up on EVGA’s website, you can select a 3080 like you want, and it’ll automatically put you in a queue, and will notify when your spot is up. You then have an 8 hour window to purchase the GPU, or you lose your spot, and it goes back into the queue. 

Best part is you pay msrp on it, or very close to it. Mind you, this process WILL take months, probably at least 6-9 months depending on stock. 
 

I put myself on the queue for a 3060 ti back in March, and I’ve still yet to receive a notice when my queue is up. I may not even buy one at this point now that I have the Steam Deck on reserve. 

[Keyser_Soze]

4 minutes ago, imthesoldier said:

There’s some good news for you then. 

 

I put myself on the queue for a 3060 ti back in March, and I’ve still yet to receive a notice when my queue is up.

 

Where's the good news?

[finaljedi]

1 hour ago, imthesoldier said:

There’s some good news for you then. 
 

if you sign up on EVGA’s website, you can select a 3080 like you want, and it’ll automatically put you in a queue, and will notify when your spot is up. You then have an 8 hour window to purchase the GPU, or you lose your spot, and it goes back into the queue. 

Best part is you pay msrp on it, or very close to it. Mind you, this process WILL take months, probably at least 6-9 months depending on stock. 
 

I put myself on the queue for a 3060 ti back in March, and I’ve still yet to receive a notice when my queue is up. I may not even buy one at this point now that I have the Steam Deck on reserve. 

 

I thought that was for their step up program or something.

[GameDadGrant]

Ugh I'm so hyped and nervous about this at the same time. No other company has been able to pull off a truly successful handheld other than Nintendo and I want this to knock it out of the park...and on paper, it totally should but I don't know...!

 

Whatever even if it bombs at least I'll have one. It'll look nice next to my Vita. 

[AbsolutSurgen]

They have exactly a 0% chance of achieving the sales success of the PSP.

[Zaku3]

1 hour ago, GameDadGrant said:

Ugh I'm so hyped and nervous about this at the same time. No other company has been able to pull off a truly successful handheld other than Nintendo and I want this to knock it out of the park...and on paper, it totally should but I don't know...!

 

Whatever even if it bombs at least I'll have one. It'll look nice next to my Vita. 

 

Because of the open nature of PCs even if it bombs and they don't support it you can still use it. 

[AbsolutSurgen]

Custom hardware always benefits from widespread adoption.  Getting custom profiles/settings, device specific optimizations, better driver support, better SteamOS support, etc. would be great for this unit.  However, given the extremely low production targets that Valve seems to have -- we may never get any of those.

[Guest]

1 hour ago, AbsolutSurgen said:

Custom hardware always benefits from widespread adoption.  Getting custom profiles/settings, device specific optimizations, better driver support, better SteamOS support, etc. would be great for this unit.  However, given the extremely low production targets that Valve seems to have -- we may never get any of those.

This isn’t really custom hardware though. It’s just another a PC configuration.

[AbsolutSurgen]

7 minutes ago, sblfilms said:

This isn’t really custom hardware though. It’s just another a PC configuration.

It's got a custom APU (I think)-- which requires AMD support in drivers.  Are there any other PCs that are using a Zen2/RDNA2 APU?  [If you do a Windows 10 install.]

With it using SteamOS/Proton -- that is pretty custom.

[Guest]

2 minutes ago, AbsolutSurgen said:

It's got a custom APU (I think)-- which requires AMD support in drivers.  Are there any other PCs that are using a Zen2/RDNA2 APU?

It’s using a standard Van Gogh APU, which will be available in other devices before the deck ships.

[imthesoldier]

2 minutes ago, AbsolutSurgen said:

It's got a custom APU (I think)-- which requires AMD support in drivers.  Are there any other PCs that are using a Zen2/RDNA2 APU?

 

It's difficult to nail down exactly because it doesn't appear to exist in that format for consumer desktops/laptops. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zen_2

 

The chip is custom in that while it's using a Zen 2 CPU, it's using an RDNA2 GPU like you said, and instead of LPDDR4, it's using LPDDR5 memory (no APU uses that currently). So, it may be based on a Ryzen 3 4000 series APU, but its GPU is much more powerful than what a standard GPU would have for an APU of that design. Not to mention it has Ray-Tracing support, so it's appears to be a mesh-mash of different elements. It could also be based on a Ryzen 7 4980U, but with half the cores and threads disabled/eliminated, and the GPU adding Ray-Tracing.

 

I don't know off hand what AMD APU even has Ray-Tracing support yet. I'm more inclined to believe AMD took the Xbox Series S APU, and trimmed it down for use in the Steam Deck. Would cut down on the R&D to create such a chip, while not starting from scratch either.

[imthesoldier]

14 minutes ago, sblfilms said:

It’s using a standard Van Gogh APU, which will be available in other devices before the deck ships.

 

I think you're right actually: https://wccftech.com/amd-van-gogh-apus-bring-power-of-rdna-2-in-ultra-low-power-ryzen-notebooks/

[Guest]

I am actually really glad Valve went the off the shelf route for the APU as it makes it even more likely we can see relatively frequent updates to the system.

[TwinIon]

I'd say that it's pretty much standard PC hardware, but it is still running non-standard software by default. I doesn't seem like getting a game working on ProtonDB is a big deal, but a lot of devs won't do it.

 

ProtonDB.com says that even their gold rating requires some tweaks, and only their platinum and native rated games run perfectly out of the box. 42% of the steam top 100 will run well out of the box, with 52% running well after tweaks. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe a native Proton game will run better than the same game on the same specs on Windows. So somewhere between 20%-30% of games right now will run better with Steam OS. Nearly half of games will probably run better or will only be playable on Windows, and everything in between will depend on the game.

 

So If we're talking about how games will run on the Steam Deck using Steam OS, I'd argue that the bar for devs to have the game run well is higher than "just another PC configuration." If you're including running the game under Windows, then it's basically just another PC config.

[imthesoldier]

9 minutes ago, TwinIon said:

I'd say that it's pretty much standard PC hardware, but it is still running non-standard software by default. I doesn't seem like getting a game working on ProtonDB is a big deal, but a lot of devs won't do it.

 

ProtonDB.com says that even their gold rating requires some tweaks, and only their platinum and native rated games run perfectly out of the box. 42% of the steam top 100 will run well out of the box, with 52% running well after tweaks. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe a native Proton game will run better than the same game on the same specs on Windows. So somewhere between 20%-30% of games right now will run better with Steam OS. Nearly half of games will probably run better or will only be playable on Windows, and everything in between will depend on the game.

 

So If we're talking about how games will run on the Steam Deck using Steam OS, I'd argue that the bar for devs to have the game run well is higher than "just another PC configuration." If you're including running the game under Windows, then it's basically just another PC config.

 

And yet, based on that Steamworks video I posted earlier, Valve are supplying dev kits for folks. So I'm wondering if their plan is to get developers to have their games work natively via SteamOS on this, and/or have a proper compatibility layer with Proton (Did Valve have dev kits for their Steam Machines back in the day?). That, and maybe have specific graphic profiles for optimal performance, and fidelity.

 

Valve appears to be taking this whole thing quite seriously if they're supplying dev kits for what is a full-blown Computer in handheld form. At least, that's my take on this. I will be actively checking on updates from Valve as the Deck gets closer to launch.