screen size, CPU, port, size, memory and OS

Today Valve announced its new mobile gaming console, the Steam Deck, and although it has a similar interface to the Switch or PlayStation Portable, it is larger than most devices in its class.

Steam floor: Dimensions

The Steam Deck will measure 298mm x 117mm x 49mm, or 11.7 inches long and 4.6 inches high and just under 2 inches thick. For comparison, the standard Nintendo Switch measures 173mm x 102mm x 14mm, or 9.5 inches long, 4 inches high, and 0.55 inches thick.

Meanwhile, the Steam Deck will weigh around 669 grams or 1.47lbs, which is just under twice the weight of a Switch with a Joy-Con controller attached (0.88 pounds).

Steam Deck: Screen, Resolution, Refresh Rate

So no matter what version of Switch you’re looking at, the Steam Deck is bigger than the Switch. Valve seems to have put that space to use, according to blueprints on the official website. There are plenty of buttons, two thumbsticks, a D-pad, and a trackpad on each side of the 7-inch IPS LCD display.

Additionally, the console comes with a Right and Left analog trigger and bumper, as well as four other bindable buttons on the back (R4, R5, L4, L5). Steam Deck comes with a 7 inch touch screen. It’s bigger than the original Nintendo Switch and Switch Lite, though OLED switch fits its size.

Switch OLED also has better color reproduction and contrast thanks to its OLED panel, while the Steam Deck is based on an optically linked IPS LED display. It also runs at a fairly standard 60Hz refresh rate, and the native resolution is 1280×800, slightly more than the Nintendo Switch’s 1280×720.

Steam Deck: CPU, layout, battery and Steam Dock

While the Steam Deck will feature a Switch-style dock for easy use with TVs, Valve has confirmed that the Steam Dock will not be available at launch. The official page says “more info [is] coming soon” about the Dock, including release date and pricing.

Like the Nintendo Switch, Valve has quoted the Steam Deck’s battery life as somewhere between two and eight hours, depending on usage and gameplay. Anything that pushes a Deck’s 4-core/8-thread APU — powered by AMD’s Zen 2 design and RDNA 2 . Graphics Architecture—Up to its limit will use the battery faster, while less demanding indie titles will get you closer to six to eight hours.

Valve has opted for a fairly standard port layout with the Deck. The top left and right of the controls and buttons pad – just like the Switch – and there’s a 3.5mm headphone port, volume buttons, and power switch. Valve has also placed the USB-C charging port on top, making it easier to use the Deck while charging.

Steam Deck OS

While the Steam Deck will officially ship with Linux-based SteamOS, dual-boot Windows is officially supported. Valve also confirmed they are working with Microsoft to get Supported Decks for Windows 11. “There is nothing to tell us that there will be any problems with Windows 11,” said Greg Coomer, one of the designers of the Steam Deck, told PC Gamer in an interview.

With support for external monitors and traditional mouse and keyboard devices, this means you can turn the Deck into a sort of portable PC – although it should be emphasized that the performance of the games on the Deck in Windows may be affected by the excessive costs that Windows adds.

Steam Deck Archives

While the Steam Deck comes with different storage options, it’s worth noting the big performance difference between the base model and everything else. The entry-level deck comes with 64GB eMMC memory only, significantly slower than offerings that support 256GB and 512GB NVMe SSDs That retails from $529 and $649 respectively.

However, users have the option to upgrade for more storage. The Steam Deck comes with a microSD slot that supports expandable storage. It’s worth noting that microSD cards are typically much slower than SSDs — so if you want the same speed microSD card, expect to pay $150 or more. That said, if you’re happy playing older titles or mostly indie games where load times aren’t a major factor, then the slower SD card will do.

Where to buy Steam Deck

If you live in one of the supported countries, you can pre-order for the Steam Deck via the official site. The first Steam Deck orders are expected to ship sometime in february, with the console missing its original launch date because of the shocks caused by COVID to the supply chain. For those living outside of the US, Canada, the UK, and the European Union, Valve says “information about extended availability in the region [is] Coming soon”.

Price of the deck ranges from $399 to $649, depending on storage options.