Steam Deck worth the cost?
July 27, 2022 1:27 PM Subscribe
I pre-ordered a Steam Deck and finally got notice that I can purchase one. Now I'm getting cold feet...is it worth it?
I built a new PC for games and hobby web development right as COVID hit. That PC has somehow been claimed by Mrs Mars (not sure how that happened) but it's her PC now.
Is the Steam Deck fast enough for simple web development projects in addition to gaming? I'm quite familiar with Linux and would just be using VSCode and Node. Ideally I'd like to connect 2 external monitors and a keyboard/mouse. Should I just bite the bullet and build another PC instead?
I built a new PC for games and hobby web development right as COVID hit. That PC has somehow been claimed by Mrs Mars (not sure how that happened) but it's her PC now.
Is the Steam Deck fast enough for simple web development projects in addition to gaming? I'm quite familiar with Linux and would just be using VSCode and Node. Ideally I'd like to connect 2 external monitors and a keyboard/mouse. Should I just bite the bullet and build another PC instead?
Best answer: In theory, you can connect the things you want to connect and do "normal computer" things with it, but a cheap used PC would be better suited for that kind of thing.
It's specifically made for gaming and excels at it. I personally put Windows on mine to not have to worry about compatibility and to use MS Game Pass, free Epic games, etc., but the out of the box experience really is great for gaming.
As far as battery life, 80 minutes is on the low end from what I've experienced, but I'm happy using settings that extend battery life over visual quality. 40 fps in the Steam OS is an amazing thing.
If you have no gaming PC, I think you'd like it for that, but worst case scenario, you can buy it and resell it for a profit.
posted by hankscorpio83 at 2:45 PM on July 27, 2022 [1 favorite]
It's specifically made for gaming and excels at it. I personally put Windows on mine to not have to worry about compatibility and to use MS Game Pass, free Epic games, etc., but the out of the box experience really is great for gaming.
As far as battery life, 80 minutes is on the low end from what I've experienced, but I'm happy using settings that extend battery life over visual quality. 40 fps in the Steam OS is an amazing thing.
If you have no gaming PC, I think you'd like it for that, but worst case scenario, you can buy it and resell it for a profit.
posted by hankscorpio83 at 2:45 PM on July 27, 2022 [1 favorite]
Best answer: VS Code runs acceptably well on a 2015 11" MacBook Air; the Steam Deck is way faster than that. The Steam Deck packs a really quite quick CPU with a reasonably good GPU in it - it's not too far off from a current-generation AMD Ryzen-based laptop (albeit not one with a dedicated video card).
One thing to keep in mind is that the Steam Deck only really supports one monitor out. So, your second screen will likely need to be connected via a USB display adapter - i.e. one that uses a DisplayLink chip and isn't just a relatively simple USB-C to HDMI dongle. That will also probably add some complexity to your setup. I have a Steam Deck but I do not have that kind of dongle so I haven't tested that myself but it looks pretty non-trivial on Arch. Worth looking into - worst case is you're limited to one additional screen. (The built-in can still be used when an external is connected, AFAIK.)
I really like my Steam Deck but I haven't tried the desktop mode out beyond, like, some initial fiddling with it. But, you can install Flatpak packages on it so that should cover most things you'd want to add software-wise.
posted by mrg at 2:49 PM on July 27, 2022
One thing to keep in mind is that the Steam Deck only really supports one monitor out. So, your second screen will likely need to be connected via a USB display adapter - i.e. one that uses a DisplayLink chip and isn't just a relatively simple USB-C to HDMI dongle. That will also probably add some complexity to your setup. I have a Steam Deck but I do not have that kind of dongle so I haven't tested that myself but it looks pretty non-trivial on Arch. Worth looking into - worst case is you're limited to one additional screen. (The built-in can still be used when an external is connected, AFAIK.)
I really like my Steam Deck but I haven't tried the desktop mode out beyond, like, some initial fiddling with it. But, you can install Flatpak packages on it so that should cover most things you'd want to add software-wise.
posted by mrg at 2:49 PM on July 27, 2022
Best answer: I just received mine a few weeks ago and have been really liking it so far - it's handy to take PC-only games on the go. Maybe that will be more of a novelty than something really useful in time, but it's pretty amazing so far.
All of the advice so far is good. As a PC it's fine, and if you can navigate Arch you'll likely be able to make it do what you need it to - it's basically just a mid-range laptop in a handheld form factor.
However, this version of Arch is a bit customized in places and I'd echo the concern about whether there may not be some unexpected oddness compared to a standard install. Unless you're doing something unusual it will probably be fine, but Steam has been iterating the software pretty quickly so I'm not sure how stable things would be if you need specific dependencies.
Overall, I'd say it's a fun toy to tinker with, but I'm not sure I'd use it for my main computer or to do serious work.
posted by owls at 6:46 PM on July 27, 2022
All of the advice so far is good. As a PC it's fine, and if you can navigate Arch you'll likely be able to make it do what you need it to - it's basically just a mid-range laptop in a handheld form factor.
However, this version of Arch is a bit customized in places and I'd echo the concern about whether there may not be some unexpected oddness compared to a standard install. Unless you're doing something unusual it will probably be fine, but Steam has been iterating the software pretty quickly so I'm not sure how stable things would be if you need specific dependencies.
Overall, I'd say it's a fun toy to tinker with, but I'm not sure I'd use it for my main computer or to do serious work.
posted by owls at 6:46 PM on July 27, 2022
Best answer: I didn't take up my purchase slot in the end ; I too was interested in the tinkering and dev-machine side of things, but after some reading realised that this was just too vague a use-case prospect and I was probably over-weighting it as a proxy for New! Geeky! Shiny! Tech!
After discounting that aspect, I was able to make a much clearer decision on the pros and cons of it as a gaming platform, and I decided that the portability probably wouldn't make an enormous difference to my gaming-life and embarrassingly large Steam backlog, which is more road-blocked by lack of time than lack of space or kit.
I've not regretted my decision ; a much, much smaller amount of that money earmarked has since gone on a Game Pass PC sub for playing Minecraft and other games with the kids, and I now have a fund that will probably go towards my next upgrades to my desktop, and possibly a Raspberry Pi for the tinkering side of things.
I still really like the form-factor and general offering of the deck ; I hope it's a great success for Valve in the end as I'd almost certainly be in the market again in a few years' time for an eventual v2.0.
posted by protorp at 11:25 PM on July 27, 2022
After discounting that aspect, I was able to make a much clearer decision on the pros and cons of it as a gaming platform, and I decided that the portability probably wouldn't make an enormous difference to my gaming-life and embarrassingly large Steam backlog, which is more road-blocked by lack of time than lack of space or kit.
I've not regretted my decision ; a much, much smaller amount of that money earmarked has since gone on a Game Pass PC sub for playing Minecraft and other games with the kids, and I now have a fund that will probably go towards my next upgrades to my desktop, and possibly a Raspberry Pi for the tinkering side of things.
I still really like the form-factor and general offering of the deck ; I hope it's a great success for Valve in the end as I'd almost certainly be in the market again in a few years' time for an eventual v2.0.
posted by protorp at 11:25 PM on July 27, 2022
Best answer: My stepson has a Steam Deck - he was originally looking for a "cheap gaming laptop" but realistically that would be a more expensive proposition, and then Valve announced the Steam Deck (I pre-ordered the 256Gb model for him).
He's got it plugged into an external monitor, keyboard & mouse, and is mostly using it to play Minecraft currently - it's really good for that at 1080p. He also is learning some computer / Unix skills through having to get things set up, so I'm enjoying that as well (I work in technology so it's "fun" for me to see all the Unix underpinnings, reminds me of when OS X first came out). We haven't bothered to install Windows - the desktop mode is more than enough for his needs.
My verdict: it's a very capable computer in a novel form factor. With the appropriate accessories, there's little it can't do.
posted by clicking the 'Post Comment' button at 1:01 PM on July 30, 2022
He's got it plugged into an external monitor, keyboard & mouse, and is mostly using it to play Minecraft currently - it's really good for that at 1080p. He also is learning some computer / Unix skills through having to get things set up, so I'm enjoying that as well (I work in technology so it's "fun" for me to see all the Unix underpinnings, reminds me of when OS X first came out). We haven't bothered to install Windows - the desktop mode is more than enough for his needs.
My verdict: it's a very capable computer in a novel form factor. With the appropriate accessories, there's little it can't do.
posted by clicking the 'Post Comment' button at 1:01 PM on July 30, 2022
Response by poster: Quick update. I bought the Steam Deck and am liking it, but using it as a development machine is proving tricky...at least using the Steam OS. Desktop mode works great. Hooking up external monitors / keyboard / mouse went fine.
VS Code is a simple 1 click install and I was able to connect to GitHub and pull down my personal web site and run it locally. However, there doesn't appear to be a good way to install Node. Apparently the OS has a A / B partition, so anything installed will be wiped the next time the OS updates itself unless it's installed in the user's home directory.
There are some work-arounds to this, but all seem to have some drawbacks. So...as a dev machine it's score is B, B- depending on your personal needs. You can replace the OS with another flavor of Linux or Windows, but then you'll lose the tight integration on the games side, so I'm holding off on that.
As a game machine, it's been fantastic fun. I've been sucked into Skyrim yet again and all my old mods were automatically installed and ready to use on first launch. Very impressive stuff.
posted by Eddie Mars at 11:01 AM on August 22, 2022
VS Code is a simple 1 click install and I was able to connect to GitHub and pull down my personal web site and run it locally. However, there doesn't appear to be a good way to install Node. Apparently the OS has a A / B partition, so anything installed will be wiped the next time the OS updates itself unless it's installed in the user's home directory.
There are some work-arounds to this, but all seem to have some drawbacks. So...as a dev machine it's score is B, B- depending on your personal needs. You can replace the OS with another flavor of Linux or Windows, but then you'll lose the tight integration on the games side, so I'm holding off on that.
As a game machine, it's been fantastic fun. I've been sucked into Skyrim yet again and all my old mods were automatically installed and ready to use on first launch. Very impressive stuff.
posted by Eddie Mars at 11:01 AM on August 22, 2022
Response by poster: Oh! And having motion aim available on everything is fantastic, btw. Basically you run on a setting and anytime your thumb is touching the top of the right thumb-stick, you can rotate the device in your hands to act as a very accurate mouse/joystick for aiming.
posted by Eddie Mars at 11:20 AM on August 22, 2022
posted by Eddie Mars at 11:20 AM on August 22, 2022
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The steam deck is definitely fast enough for normal web development as you don't need much power for that. The only thing I would be worried about is software support, it apparently uses a modified Arch distribution so it might not be easy to get precompiled software. VS Code should definitely work though.
posted by JZig at 2:01 PM on July 27, 2022