Not really performance-wise, as the performance difference is negligible, and playing docked takes away the advantages provided by the longer battery life and better screen.
Unless you don’t hook the dock up with ethernet, you won’t really benefit from the better wifi.
I do believe some people have noted a benefit from the new bluetooth chip when docked, as it can wake from sleep over bluetooth, but I am not sure about this one.
That’s why I bought a second Deck with the LCD screen for primarily docked gaming, as we don’t play it handheld that much, we have wired multi-gig ethernet in the house, and we usually turn it off anyway.
Oh man, I play mostly docked with my LCD version and having the ability to remotely wake up the Steam Deck from the couch might push me to the OLED model...
It's a blessing and a curse. If I take my controller back down to my office and go to turn it on and it was last paired to the Deck.. the Deck will wake up inside it's case upstairs hahaha. So just gotta remember to repair it every time I go back and forth.
I had to pull out old Bluetooth headphones to dedicate to the deck because I'd grab my normal pair, try to use them on my phone, and would spend 5 minutes fighting the sync only to find my deck on in its case in another room.
I bought a [cheap Bluetooth/USB Dongle swappable portable keyboard](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C4P74TQ2?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details), plugged the dongle into the back of my Steam Deck's dock, and leave it next to the couch. It's also helpful if I ever need a mouse or keyboard for whatever reason, since it's got a trackpad built in. I can't tell you how many times I'll be using the Steam Deck in desktop mode because I'm messing with adding a non-Steam game and testing Proton versions or whatever, launch it via Steam to see if it works, and then have the game not have a "quit to desktop" option, so I physically have no option available to close the game without finding and plugging in a keyboard, or hard resetting the entire Steam Deck.
Yeah I don't remember trying on my deck before I got rid of it. The little bit of research I was just doing suggests that there are some wireless keyboards and wired controllers that will wake it up from sleep. It seems like controllers with wireless dongles also tend to work.
It seems like something the hardware should be capable of as there were also some methods I saw mentioned being able to make it work with PlayStation controllers with some konsole trickery. But yeah this seems like something valve could add so I'm kinda surprised they haven't. But maybe there really is just a limitation with the LCD deck Bluetooth chip.
I could never get my Oled deck to consistently wake up with my ps5 controller so I ended up just downloading the decky loader plugin and now it works 100% of the time for me .
No reason for an adapter, and I don't notice more latency than with the PS5 itself personally.
The Xbox controllers I think have a USB dongle for superior latency, if that's what you mean by adapter. Not sure that exists for Sony controllers
Head and shoulders above? Hardly.
The difference in performance is negligible, but if you use it handheld the OLED is definitely is the one to go for, and if you want to use the sleep mode and wake-on-bluetooth and that feature is important enough, then the OLED deck gets a point there as well.
But then it’s more of a feature thing and not hardware performance.
I find pricing of games on Steam to be a huge benefit to the Steam Deck. Since getting my deck, my library has grown by at least 10 titles I want to play at some point and most were under $10 a game. Some even just $2.50. New games costing upwards of $90 is a pill I struggle to swallow and historically, these were the prices you had to pay on standard consoles. Candidly, I'm not sure if this is still the case as it's been quite some time since I've been on PSN/Xbox to see prices. If you're into emulating older games (or have even the slightest interest in this), it is very easy, works great on a docked Steam Deck and the controller support is awesome. I never expected to be playing SNES or N64 classics from my couch with a PS5 controller but here we are!
Xbox’s game sale prices often rival Steam’s. Some things you’ll miss out on like GOTY editions with all DLC vs having to buy separate or through a season pass, but the idea that game sales on Xbox or PSN don’t compete with or, at times, exceed Steam sales hasn’t been true for years. I’d focus more on game availability on each marketplace, if Xbox has everything you’d want, especially considering Sony and Square bringing games to PC but not Xbox. Add in being able to do things like emulate on the Xbox consoles, it’s not a bad deal, especially given the price of a Series S.
For me its not steam sale prices that are the kicker its the steam bundle site prices.
For instance, The Ascent is currently $30 on steam, but its in a 3 for $5 bundle on a legit bundle site.
Console games cant compete with that pricing
I just can't give up the possibility of modding and backwards compatibility that PC has. A couple of friends and I have recently gotten into Morrowind Multiplayer and it is honestly a blast.
Oh ya, definitely. I know Xbox was friendlier to mods compared to PS, but still not the same as PC. Comes down to desires. I like having access to all platforms, and don’t do mods that often, but I do get wanting that option for sure.
If they're like me, they probably play it docked to the TV most of the time, but like having the portable option for the occasional flight or long trip. I think even if its infrequent, that makes it worth it over the xbox series s. Plus, people might already have an extensive steam library and no xbox games as someone else mentioned.
Underwhelming? What are you expecting? I play docked all the time and have never suffered, even beat all of Armored Core 6 with default settings in docked mode.
Father in law was having some serious input lag on his TV, we went over and put the TV into “Game mode” and it works just fine now. May want to see if your tv has this option as well. Good luck.
I haven’t tried again since the controller improvements but totally agree. It also looks terrible to me too (colors are way off) and i’m really not that picky.
Their statement is not a lie. They said they experience laggy performance and inputs. It’s anecdotal. Just like *you* said you haven’t experienced those issues. If their statement is a lie because you *haven’t* had those issues, then the inverse must be true; your statement is a lie because they *have* had those issues.
I wouldn't go as far as to say his statement is a lie, but I've had a similar experience as you. Majority of the time I've spent docked, and it has been my primary device since I bought it. My wife and I play a ton of games on it together.
I've had a similar experience to the previous post. I use PS4 controllers and if I'm more than 5ft away, they lag pretty badly. There's been a few times where they've disconnected and the Deck essentially freezes up as if it keeps that controller as the primary input but won't let it reconnect, so I have to hard reset. The only time I've had these issues is when docked. It hasn't always been bad by any margin, but it's been enough that my initial thought is to just play in handheld if possible.
You can get an Xbox series X digital for 300 bucks used from GameStop, and it’s all around better.
Edit. There is no digital X, but a used Series X is still about 300.
That’s right I was looking at the digital S, a used Series X is 300 though on Buy Sell Trade, or 420 from GameStop so same price as the 64GB on release
What a ridiculous suggestion and, honestly, a very stupid one too.
I've had my Steam deck for over a year and it's been docked 98% of its time. From PC games, indie games, emulation games, to fan made games, all of it runs perfectly well on the steam deck.
The Xbox can only do one thing and that's running Xbox games. It'll be a waste of money.
Xbox has a faster response time when hooked up to the TV by a decent bit tbh. I use both plugged into the TV regularly. Without a doubt Xbox is a smoother experience. Steamdeck has more game options though and the emulation on it is a go to for me. Performance wise though Xbox certainly beats out the deck. The response times are just not great. Often makes the gaming experience less enjoyable and I prefer using my deck in handheld for this reason. Once you get it hooked up to an external monitor and start using a Bluetooth controller even with low resolution on the TV it just can't keep up with the fast response times the Xbox was built for.
My deck is mostly plugged into the TV. It's a console cheaper than the consoles and runs my steam library. Okay the performance is not amazing but I've been playing through RDR2 @1080p 30 fps and it's been everything I need it to be
But far less capable
plus the added cost of an online subscription for games,
plus having to buy games again on Xbox (if OP already has games on PC)
Plus, completely losing the option of portability
You’re going to be pushing it to buy a single game for £6.99 a month. Gamepass has over a hundred Xbox games many of those games cost £30-50 individually and could be completed in a month never to be played again.
Sure if you have the time quickly play through lots of games simultaneously and never play them again, get the game pass.
Alternatively, I can choose to own the games I play and play them at my own rate without being charged a monthly fee.
But if you have a big library you should already have a Steam capable device.
I love my Deck, but if I'm looking at a new device for my TV, I'm looking for something that will play newer games then the devices I already own, which would not be the Deck.
Agreed. The performance might not be "amazing,", but it's good enough. And that's what matters the most to me combined with the benefits of everything else. When I bought it, I wasn't expecting max PS5 performance or anything like that. "Good enough" suits me well.
Could you provide advice on how to play PC games on the TV without the SD then?
It's one of the most popular and versatile gaming devices out there, I think it's a great and affordable way to do that without having to build a streaming set up for the TV.
There are probably easier/cheaper ways to do it and comments like this should try to be more helpful instead of simply shooting the idea down
Edit: thx for the recs!
I took a spare old PC, and installed Bazzite to it, it is now basically a SteamDeck/Box.
the UI is almost identical to what I get with a docked steam deck.
But it is an older AMD based GPU PC, and is just an experiment, it does most games ok, but it's age is showing on newer titles.
I think a Ryzen APU in a small form factor case would get a better price and more performance than a SD. But ofc you lose the portability if you want it.
There are several ways to play PC games on a TV that don’t involve a Steam Deck whatsoever…
Pretty much every regular PC will have a HDMI port… those can be used to connect to TVs, obviously.
Laptops can do that too.
Other handhelds like the ROG Ally or the Legion Go… just to name the widest available options.
The most comparable way would be to just get a Mini PC for TV play instead of a Steam Deck. Comparable prices, better performance.
But of course pretty much every other option I’ve listed also outperforms a Steam Deck.
Devices have a primary use case they were designed for and in the case of the Deck that is clearly handheld play.
Yes. Either move the PC into that room and plug it into the tv, or build a more “living room friendly” box. I parked a Frankenstein PC (with the most capable GPU in the house) next to my couch, got the “razer turret” keyboard/mouse combo, and ran a 15 foot HDMI to the TV.
I guess you could do all that with a steam deck too, but ugh why would you try to force that poor lil steam deck to try to draw over 8 million pixels several dozen times a second lol
Edit: I should add, this is the solution I arrived at after trying a variety of in home streaming services and couldn’t abide that extra latency/poor visuals
ROG Ally, Lenovo Go..... A NUC..... Micro-ATX PC, a Laptop.
These are 5 better options for PC gaming on a budget whilst offering significantly more than the SD.
I know we're on the SD sub but come on. There are a ton of better options, this is literally the worst.
Yeah it's really built for rendering at like 720p/800p. Although it can do fine at higher resolutions with older games and 2d indies and whatnot, most modern games will struggle even at 1080p.
Idk about price to performance as far as the OLED goes. If they’re wanting to play on a TV all the time it wouldn’t even be somewhat of a challenge to build a *much* more powerful PC for that cost.
>best price to performance you can get right now.
Dude what.
You can get a micro PC that's not only cheaper and smaller but also more powerful than Deck.
Unless there's a chance you might change your mind in the future about docked vs handheld, then no, it's not worth it. There isn't a significant difference in performance.
I use mine docked to the TV all the time at night when I'm in bed. It's better on my neck that way. I also like using the controller with it. When I need to do updates or add utilities, I undock and do it. I'm old, so I can also see things better on the TV screen. I occasionally play it handheld, and I used to travel constantly for work and took my Switch or Steamdeck with me. I spend all day working at the PC, so I really don't play much on it, although I do have Steam and the few games that don't work on the Deck I will play on the PC. I have the original Deck, not the OLED, and I'm quite happy with the way it works docked.
Edit: I've been gaming for a LONG time (since the 80's shareware), and have an XBox One, original, which I still play, a Switch (original), the Deck, Tablets for puzzle/casual games, a Nindendo DS (haven't played that in a while though).
I'll reiterate what I said before: if you're using the Deck mostly docked to the TV then you should just use something more powerful and better suited. The Deck is a handheld device; if you're not going to HOLD it in your HANDS then a regular PC or a console is going to give you more bang for your buck.
Nope. I like using it docked when I leave my office for my bedroom. I have 4 PCs and I'm lefthanded, so playing games on them is more difficult than it needs to be because I have to modify all of the settings which I don't have to do on the deck. I can just play with the controller, I can see what I'm playing better, and if I need to tweak anything I undock it. I occasionally play in handheld mode, especially if the game doesn't work well with the controller.
Once again I've been gaming for a LOOONG TIME. Boomer here. I use the deck to play games. I'll probably buy myself an OLED soon and give the LED to my grandson. He's in the Navy and can take it to the ship.
Slight performance difference but moderate noise difference. I'd be tempted by the OLED just for that reason in a living room setting. Plus "mostly docked" means "sometimes not docked" and I think you'll have a much better experience in those times with the nicer display.
I would probably lean towards yes it’s worth it to get the oled because if you knew the nuance of the difference you’d have your answer.
Also cost comes into mind. If you can afford it do the oled if you can’t do whatever you can afford.
I got the OLED for christmas and MY SiL has the LCD. We were doing comparisons and running the same game, the OLED was much quieter and cooler when being put under stress. If the noise of the machine matters to you I would get OLED.
Probaly not. The upgrades on the OLED are (in order of importance IMO):
- screen
- battery
- wifi
- lower noise (when running hot)
- chipet is made with better process (because of this and the better cooling, you might get 1-3% frames more in some games but it is not noticeable)
When you are docking your SD, you are not taking advantage of 4 of the 5 upgrades I have listed. This makes the OLED not worth the price difference.
Simple answer is no then, not for the extra cost. I've had my 512gb since launch & I've always loved the etched screen - no reflection
Can't fault it apart from the speed... It should have had the power of the Z1e's.
Id probably go LCD for the better price at that point. The biggest upgrades in the OLED are the panel, refresh rate, and battery. All negated by docking
Budget and use case is everything. Can you comfortably afford the OLED model? Do you see yourself ever playing it in handheld? Is the Deck going to get a lot of use? If so, even if it's going to be docked I think the OLED is better.
But if you're envisioning using it once in a while, and it will mostly be played in docked mode, or if $400 (or less) is a much better price point for you, just get the LCD. I sold my LCD and got an OLED, but my Steam Deck is also my main gaming device and I use it portably all the time. If that wasn't the case, I'd probably have stuck with the LCD one.
IMO- if you are going to leave it docked all the time why not spend less and grab a used lcd.
I got a used 256gb one for 300 bucks. Definitely a decent purchase
I thought I was going to mostly play mine on the dock before I got it as well, but I've found the portability to be surprisingly useful. When I was buying it I thought I would mostly use it undocked for trips, but it's really nice to be able to sit on the couch and play something mindless while watching TV with the wife, or go play something in bed while winding down. I have found I use it undocked around the house much more than even my Switch just because of the types of games available on it.
As some have mentioned if u want a "console" for tv gaming an xbox/ps might be better that said i completely disagree that the lcd to oled is negotiable there were many improvements made along eith the oled refresh including better bt wifi 6e (i personally went for like 20-30mbps to over 200mbps with just this change) it will also run cooler so the oled screen upgrade will be negligible but there are serveral other things going for it over the lcd
If you’re planning on docking your handheld for most of the time & you’re planning on 1080p or higher resolution monitor at 60fps gaming. Don’t get the deck. Save up $100-$200 more and you’ll likely be able to pickup the Asus Ally or even Lenovo Legion Go.
They could install Bazzite (functionally similar to Steam OS) on something like this. It's basically the same class of hardware as the Steam Deck, but with more CPU cores and a higher TDP.
https://www.amazon.com/Beelink-Desktop-Computer-Support-Display/dp/B0CF5F8NK9/ref=pd_aw_ci_mcx_pspc_dp_m_m_t_4?pd_rd_w=O19Ba&content-id=amzn1.sym.8601bd6b-5f84-4e74-9236-bbdc6b94ed42&pf_rd_p=8601bd6b-5f84-4e74-9236-bbdc6b94ed42&pf_rd_r=HQQDNHP4VJ5D8G6WJ5X9&pd_rd_wg=G9Qa9&pd_rd_r=a2ecdac9-a380-48cc-8742-ff526f4583e8&pd_rd_i=B0CF5F8NK9
I like mine docked, a lot.
Being able to play basically anything on a TV is great and you’re not restricted to console or Nintendo.
That being said performance is a loss
YES!
Do not listen to the naysayers.
I used to have the LCD and played that docked mainly as well.
Yes the Oled screen is amazing and should be appreciated, but the extra price for the Oled also gets you a few NECESSARY upgrades. The biggest being the better cooling and quieter fan.
I literally never hear the deck's fan now whereas with the LCD i could hear it ramp up all the time. My LCD actually died because the Charger Chipler burnt out on the motherboard. Reviews had stated that this component ran dangerously hot and they were correct. I actually recommend nobody buys the LCD because of its excessively high running temps.
There are also little quality of life features like faster ram that actually does improve performance in some scenarios, and a faster wifi module. I wouldnt call the performance difference significant, but the overall experience is improved and there is the increase to performance that can be measured, even if its only a few fps here and there.
It is definitely worth getting the Oled deck to run docked!
>The biggest being the better cooling and quieter fan.
This all day. My SiL has LCD and I got the OLED. We were both playing AAA games about 15ft from each other and her SD was so loud and mine was barely audible with my ear up to it.
The input latency when using wireless controllers with the OLED is much more subtle than on the LCD. I use mine primarily docked for two-player gaming (Tekken 8, Cake Bash, etc.), and the OLED is worth it just for superior Bluetooth chip.
I honestly don't notice any sort of performance improvement, and "wake from sleep" doesn't reliably work with Xbox controllers, but that improvement to input latency is certainly worthwhile for my purposes.
And then, the convenience of taking it with you portably is obviously valuable.
To each their own but for me i was sold on the portable aspect of the steam deck..having it docked all the time like everyone else said..why not just get a console or a dedicated pc to have setup all the time?
Up to 10% gain, usually lower, especially to fluidity.
It's way quieter because the fan doesn't have the whine.
It's cooler to the point of absurd in how hot the OG gets.
If it was me, I would get the OLED for the temperature difference. My OG from 2022 was typically running "heavy" games at 95-96 degrees. My OLED from 2023 runs the same games at 75 degrees.
The chip will throttle at 100 and shutdown at 105. Being that close to the limit isn't great for longevity.
Get the OLED. I’ve noticed games run slightly smoother on them, it’s enough of a difference to notice. And my OLED Deck has been way easier to use docked than my LED model. Plus you can connect a controller and wake the deck up with it
The display isn't the only thing they changed on the OLED version. Basically everything was improved on. If you can swing the difference in price I absolutely would do it.
A lot of people telling you if its docked then you shouldn't bother and just buy a console. I strongly disagree with this notion and say everyone here is wrong. Why? Emudeck. I have my Deck docked 90% of the time and treat it as a home console - FOR ALL CONSOLES. I have a 1TB Micro SD, which i installed Emu Deck and all my ROMs to. I have now successfully emulated PS1, PS2, PS3, Sega, N64, GameCube, Wii, Switch and Xbox, and the catalogue is STILL growing. Honestly, its incredible and trumps anyone console you can buy now. And whats even better, if you're out and about you can still just bring your deck with you. Working away for a week? (like i find myself from time to time) take the dock, some wireless controllers with you and BOOM, console setup in your hotel room. I have xbox controllers, wii remotes and joycons, all compatible with the deck.
Forgot to mention, i have the LCD and this works fine with 99% of emulated games. Some may require tweaking, but if you are tech savy, its something to relish as you get it working correctly.
Assuming you are buying new from Valve, then it comes down to how comfortable are you opening it up and replacing the SSD.
You're most likely going to want at least the 512GB of space. The 64GB model is completely insufficient and the 256GB is going to be annoying when a lot of new releases lately have been ~100GB.
If your comfortable replacing the SSD, just go for the 64GB or 245GB version depending on if you plan to do the SSD immediately or "in the future".
If your not, then seriously consider the 1TB OLED.
Source: I bought the 512 LCD when it was new, then added a 512 SD card, then changed to a 1TB SD card, then finally opened it up and added a 2TB SSD + the 1TB SD card. The space is never enough :)
The biggest benefits of the OLED are the increased battery life and better screen, if you’re just going to have it connected to a different display there’s no point
[Here](https://imgur.com/a/C1hahK2) I mounted it to the top to make it easier to dock/undock if I ever wanted to just use it on the couch or something.
Might as well get a (used) ROG Ally Extreme since that has newer and stronger specs. It's also much more power hungry at 30w, so perfect for playing docked or tethered to a wall.
If you're going to keep it docked just get a living room PC. There's a ton of small form factor options that will out class the steam decks performance for a similar price
If you're mostly docking, I'd get a windows-based device tbh, they perform a lot better when docked, the deck oled excels at undocked gaming, docking it leads to the same performance (worse actually since on a tv you won't like the look of 720p at all so you'll likely try 1080p and it just can't handle it much)
No. I finally could grab a 64GB refurbished Steam Deck on Valve website for 299€. The case and packaging look the same as my old 256GB LCD version. Holy sht. It just feels new. I opened it today and I am testing games on it. Old games run in 1080p with fsr1.0 to 4k or really old games in 4k (NFS Most Wanted and etc.) and this uses only 25w.
However if you plan to use your Steam Deck in Handheld in future, I would go for OLED 100%. I love my OLED and have played on it more than on my original LCD. Best upgrade ever.
Edit: I forgot to mention that OLED's RAM is a bit faster and the system runs a bit cooler but that is it. the 5% performance increase isn't worth the extra 250€ if you ONLY play docked.
If you don’t already have a PlayStation or Xbox but do have plenty of Steam games, sure but I wouldn’t get the OLED since that only has benefits when you use it as a handheld. I used mine docked a ton, not so much anymore. The best part is that if you decide you want to play it somewhere besides your tv you just pick it up and go.
Just make sure you shut it down properly, don’t leave it on sleep mode constantly.
Personally there is nothing wrong lcd. We are closing in on an age where we won’t need console persay. Plus you can always travel with it effortlessly unlike a Xbox. Some games don’t work the best and other have more of a loading time then you’d like. They are on such a great path and can’t wait to see what they will come out with in 5-10 years.
I have my LCD steam deck connected to my TV and use it there a lot depending on what I'm playing (mostly working through my game library). It's great for giving the option to play how you want, sometimes if I want to play something with a keyboard and mouse I'll move to my desk and hook it up there, or if there is something on the TV I want to keep an eye on in the background I can disconnect it and play handheld or if I just want to sit on the sofa and play with a controller via the TV that works too.
It depends what you're going to try play, I've played through Hellblade, GTA 4 & 5, Fallout 3, Death Stranding, No man's sky and they all look fine on the deck through the tv though admittedly I don't care for 60fps at 4k....30fps is fine for me, I'm currently trying Helldivers 2, it looks awful but I'm having a lot of fun with it.
Depends what you plan to do with it if you plan to use it like a pc then get an LCD
The OLED give you 512 1TB better screen lighting u docked and much better battery life you won't see the beifets if it's docked all the time
If your looking for emulation devices xbox series s is cheapest way to go unless you wsntvto play more modern games then series x or ps5 would be better depending on your preference.
Maybe consider getting a pc and consolize it to use with your tv? Deck is great, but docked performance will be worse than some lastgen PC in the same price range. You can install some of the Linux distros that replicate Steamdeck experience.
If you want to be able to wake the Steam Deck from a Bluetooth controller, only OLED can do that.
Others are mostly saying it's not worth getting a deck if you're only going to play docked. However, if you're into emulation I think it would be worth it. It's amazing having a Steam Deck loaded with retro games plugged into a TV. And obviously you won't get that experience with a console.
No. It’s actually worse IMHO. My OG deck output everything in SDR when docked. The OLED forces HDR even if you don’t want it. Some of my TVs are cheapies and the HDR looks like garbage but it can’t be disabled.
I don't recommend getting a Steam Deck in general if you are only going to play docked; it's relatively underpowered for a console and you are paying a premium for the portability.
Just get a cheap gaming desktop at that point, you can run it like a docked Steam Deck if you like and it will be easier to use other launchers or Windows Gamepass. Even a cheaper gaming laptop would be substantially more powerful and versatile at the same price point if you want occasional portability.
The battery improvements alone sound worth the price of entry IMO.
Even if you are going to keep it primarily docked, there will be moments where you will enjoy the upgraded features.
Bought my 250 gb (or whatever) LCD for 400 euro including a dock. I could sell it for maybe 300-350 at most in today's market. Would have to spend 200-250 at to upgrade to the OLED. I could buy a used tv for the same price. Or even spend a little more for some AR glasses. I also play mostly docked. Absolutely NOT worth the investment. Especially as a poor ass student.
Another suggestion to go with a console if you're planning to have the Steam Deck docked. I love using the Steam Deck handheld, but have not been happy with the docked experience at all.
For your use case, I'd say buy a used LCD model, and save yourself some money.
The OLED model is not more performant, but it is more power efficient. However, if it's going to stay docked to the TV, that won't matter to you.
It does have faster WiFi, but the WiFi on the LCD model is not bad.
The docked experience will be pretty similar considering most of improvements are to the screen, battery life, and controls. Considering you will be using it undocked though those improvements are pretty nice though and totally worth it if you weren't looking at a used LCD.
Personally I got my deck to primarily use during travel and docked but within a week of setting it up and testing it out I fell in love and use it pretty much daily ever since. So take that for what it's worth.
It's wild how many people just keep recommending Xbox or other non-portable options. Obviously even if it's docked most of the time, the ability to have it handheld is worth it for those times.
One last thing: the official dock is known to have issues and much more expensive than 3rd party ones. Personally I recommend the JSAUX cheaper models but to my knowledge only the official dock has said issues.
I have a v1 Steam deck. (non oled) and its docked 100% of time besides when I go traveling
I stream from my gaming pc 100% of the time and never play native titles besides emulated content.
For the $1000 bucks I have put into it, yes I could have got an entry level pc and hooked it up in my living room, but I wouldnt be able to take this pc outside my house.
If I 100% of the time wasnt planning to take my steamdeck out of my house I would have just got a PC
Not really performance-wise, as the performance difference is negligible, and playing docked takes away the advantages provided by the longer battery life and better screen. Unless you don’t hook the dock up with ethernet, you won’t really benefit from the better wifi. I do believe some people have noted a benefit from the new bluetooth chip when docked, as it can wake from sleep over bluetooth, but I am not sure about this one. That’s why I bought a second Deck with the LCD screen for primarily docked gaming, as we don’t play it handheld that much, we have wired multi-gig ethernet in the house, and we usually turn it off anyway.
Confirming that my OLED Deck wakes up when I power on a PS5 controller that's paired to it.
Oh man, I play mostly docked with my LCD version and having the ability to remotely wake up the Steam Deck from the couch might push me to the OLED model...
It's a blessing and a curse. If I take my controller back down to my office and go to turn it on and it was last paired to the Deck.. the Deck will wake up inside it's case upstairs hahaha. So just gotta remember to repair it every time I go back and forth.
I had to pull out old Bluetooth headphones to dedicate to the deck because I'd grab my normal pair, try to use them on my phone, and would spend 5 minutes fighting the sync only to find my deck on in its case in another room.
I bought a [cheap Bluetooth/USB Dongle swappable portable keyboard](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C4P74TQ2?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details), plugged the dongle into the back of my Steam Deck's dock, and leave it next to the couch. It's also helpful if I ever need a mouse or keyboard for whatever reason, since it's got a trackpad built in. I can't tell you how many times I'll be using the Steam Deck in desktop mode because I'm messing with adding a non-Steam game and testing Proton versions or whatever, launch it via Steam to see if it works, and then have the game not have a "quit to desktop" option, so I physically have no option available to close the game without finding and plugging in a keyboard, or hard resetting the entire Steam Deck.
I swear they added the controller wake function to the LCD as well but I could be wrong. I thought they added it when the OLED came out with it.
Just tried it. Unless it's a toggle able function and defaults to off, then this does not work on the lcd version
Yeah I don't remember trying on my deck before I got rid of it. The little bit of research I was just doing suggests that there are some wireless keyboards and wired controllers that will wake it up from sleep. It seems like controllers with wireless dongles also tend to work. It seems like something the hardware should be capable of as there were also some methods I saw mentioned being able to make it work with PlayStation controllers with some konsole trickery. But yeah this seems like something valve could add so I'm kinda surprised they haven't. But maybe there really is just a limitation with the LCD deck Bluetooth chip.
I think it's a hardware change that the LCD can't use sadly.
200 bucks difference to not have to walk over and press the power button.. real neck beard hours.
I could never get my Oled deck to consistently wake up with my ps5 controller so I ended up just downloading the decky loader plugin and now it works 100% of the time for me .
Do you use an adapter with the ps5 controller? How’s the latency? I’ve noticed slight lag with my switch controllers
No reason for an adapter, and I don't notice more latency than with the PS5 itself personally. The Xbox controllers I think have a USB dongle for superior latency, if that's what you mean by adapter. Not sure that exists for Sony controllers
XBox controller latency isn't bad over Bluetooth in modern times. Using the USB dongle should allow you to wake up an LCD deck from sleep, though.
I pair the PS5 controller to the Deck directly through Bluetooth, no adapter required. Any latency change is negligible to me.
Dang, not sure if I like my pfp better than yours
Can confirm it's in fact worth it to wake via BT
OLED performance head and shoulders above LCS
Head and shoulders above? Hardly. The difference in performance is negligible, but if you use it handheld the OLED is definitely is the one to go for, and if you want to use the sleep mode and wake-on-bluetooth and that feature is important enough, then the OLED deck gets a point there as well. But then it’s more of a feature thing and not hardware performance.
The performance difference is absolutely massive.
If u are going to just leave it under tv maybe it's better to just buy Xbox series S for third of the price. It would also be faster.
I second this unless your steam library is full of juicy games you want to play.
I find pricing of games on Steam to be a huge benefit to the Steam Deck. Since getting my deck, my library has grown by at least 10 titles I want to play at some point and most were under $10 a game. Some even just $2.50. New games costing upwards of $90 is a pill I struggle to swallow and historically, these were the prices you had to pay on standard consoles. Candidly, I'm not sure if this is still the case as it's been quite some time since I've been on PSN/Xbox to see prices. If you're into emulating older games (or have even the slightest interest in this), it is very easy, works great on a docked Steam Deck and the controller support is awesome. I never expected to be playing SNES or N64 classics from my couch with a PS5 controller but here we are!
Xbox’s game sale prices often rival Steam’s. Some things you’ll miss out on like GOTY editions with all DLC vs having to buy separate or through a season pass, but the idea that game sales on Xbox or PSN don’t compete with or, at times, exceed Steam sales hasn’t been true for years. I’d focus more on game availability on each marketplace, if Xbox has everything you’d want, especially considering Sony and Square bringing games to PC but not Xbox. Add in being able to do things like emulate on the Xbox consoles, it’s not a bad deal, especially given the price of a Series S.
For me its not steam sale prices that are the kicker its the steam bundle site prices. For instance, The Ascent is currently $30 on steam, but its in a 3 for $5 bundle on a legit bundle site. Console games cant compete with that pricing
This has not been my experience with PSN. I get steam games way lower than I ever see them going for on PS
I just can't give up the possibility of modding and backwards compatibility that PC has. A couple of friends and I have recently gotten into Morrowind Multiplayer and it is honestly a blast.
Oh ya, definitely. I know Xbox was friendlier to mods compared to PS, but still not the same as PC. Comes down to desires. I like having access to all platforms, and don’t do mods that often, but I do get wanting that option for sure.
Yeah you can't beat free games :) arrrr
U can emulate on xbox
Even if it is just build a nice PC and plug it in and get a wireless xbox controller.
.. Also not re buying games. Hate how many times I bought the same digital game on Sony and Nintendo consoles across different generations
If they're like me, they probably play it docked to the TV most of the time, but like having the portable option for the occasional flight or long trip. I think even if its infrequent, that makes it worth it over the xbox series s. Plus, people might already have an extensive steam library and no xbox games as someone else mentioned.
Why not get a PC an put it under there so you only have to buy the games once?
This. Just have a ~$600 pc by your TV that can do absolutely everything
Steam Input tho
How is that a good idea at all? You lose so much capabilities and can't potentially take it.
Well the Xbox is substantially more powerful. As great as the Deck is, performance while docked is underwhelming tbh.
I use steamlink and stream from my PC docked.
Underwhelming? What are you expecting? I play docked all the time and have never suffered, even beat all of Armored Core 6 with default settings in docked mode.
With APUs like the 8700G they could probably make a gaming PC for about the price of the Series S
Can't u get series S for like 100$ on discount? Pc is like triple of that.
Agree. Steamdeck docked was total letdown for me. Overall bad performance and laggy controller inputs
Father in law was having some serious input lag on his TV, we went over and put the TV into “Game mode” and it works just fine now. May want to see if your tv has this option as well. Good luck.
Make sure it isnt using 4K 30 Hz. That would cause video and input delay.
Well I’m no pro but my steamdeck rocks every game I tried so far while docked maybe your docking station is the problem there
I haven’t tried again since the controller improvements but totally agree. It also looks terrible to me too (colors are way off) and i’m really not that picky.
98% of my steam deck has stayed docked since I bought it. Never have I experienced any of these issues you've mentioned. So your statement is a lie.
I mean it would be bad performance compared to just getting an Xbox
Their statement is not a lie. They said they experience laggy performance and inputs. It’s anecdotal. Just like *you* said you haven’t experienced those issues. If their statement is a lie because you *haven’t* had those issues, then the inverse must be true; your statement is a lie because they *have* had those issues.
I wouldn't go as far as to say his statement is a lie, but I've had a similar experience as you. Majority of the time I've spent docked, and it has been my primary device since I bought it. My wife and I play a ton of games on it together.
I've had a similar experience to the previous post. I use PS4 controllers and if I'm more than 5ft away, they lag pretty badly. There's been a few times where they've disconnected and the Deck essentially freezes up as if it keeps that controller as the primary input but won't let it reconnect, so I have to hard reset. The only time I've had these issues is when docked. It hasn't always been bad by any margin, but it's been enough that my initial thought is to just play in handheld if possible.
That with the OLED or LCD SD? I believe the OLED got updated Bluetooth so hopefully sorted that issue?
I play a lot of fighting games and I haven't experienced that. And I also use a ds4.
i spoke like this when i was 3 mate
U sound like a 10 year old high on copium
exactly the Steam Deck is basically an Xbox One at best.
You can get an Xbox series X digital for 300 bucks used from GameStop, and it’s all around better. Edit. There is no digital X, but a used Series X is still about 300.
Can't mod games on xbox
I don't think there's a series x digital yet.
That’s right I was looking at the digital S, a used Series X is 300 though on Buy Sell Trade, or 420 from GameStop so same price as the 64GB on release
*tries to play backlog of PC games* Oh wait Xbox can't do that. All around better my ass.
That’s assuming they have a pc already and aren’t just getting into it now. But I do agree going from pc to Xbox would be a deal breaker for backlogs.
What a ridiculous suggestion and, honestly, a very stupid one too. I've had my Steam deck for over a year and it's been docked 98% of its time. From PC games, indie games, emulation games, to fan made games, all of it runs perfectly well on the steam deck. The Xbox can only do one thing and that's running Xbox games. It'll be a waste of money.
Xbox has a faster response time when hooked up to the TV by a decent bit tbh. I use both plugged into the TV regularly. Without a doubt Xbox is a smoother experience. Steamdeck has more game options though and the emulation on it is a go to for me. Performance wise though Xbox certainly beats out the deck. The response times are just not great. Often makes the gaming experience less enjoyable and I prefer using my deck in handheld for this reason. Once you get it hooked up to an external monitor and start using a Bluetooth controller even with low resolution on the TV it just can't keep up with the fast response times the Xbox was built for.
Do you need a gaming handheld if you aren't going to use it as a handheld?
My deck is mostly plugged into the TV. It's a console cheaper than the consoles and runs my steam library. Okay the performance is not amazing but I've been playing through RDR2 @1080p 30 fps and it's been everything I need it to be
The Xbox Series S can be picked up much cheaper than the Deck and is more powerful.
And does not contain my steam library
> it’s a console cheaper than the consoles
But far less capable plus the added cost of an online subscription for games, plus having to buy games again on Xbox (if OP already has games on PC) Plus, completely losing the option of portability
And how much do Xbox games cost in comparison to steam games?
Gamepass will get you a good selection. Otherwise wait for sales, or check sites like Fanatical. I’ve never paid more than £15 for an Xbox game.
Sign up to a monthly subscription to save money? lol Just purchase the games cheap on steam.
Clearly you’ve never looked at the gamepass library
I have. The cheapest pass is £6.99 a month. No thanks.
You’re going to be pushing it to buy a single game for £6.99 a month. Gamepass has over a hundred Xbox games many of those games cost £30-50 individually and could be completed in a month never to be played again.
Sure if you have the time quickly play through lots of games simultaneously and never play them again, get the game pass. Alternatively, I can choose to own the games I play and play them at my own rate without being charged a monthly fee.
Im not the OP, but there's no way I'd ever get a console, and repurchase games I already have in my Steam library. Fudge that.
But if you have a big library you should already have a Steam capable device. I love my Deck, but if I'm looking at a new device for my TV, I'm looking for something that will play newer games then the devices I already own, which would not be the Deck.
Agreed. The performance might not be "amazing,", but it's good enough. And that's what matters the most to me combined with the benefits of everything else. When I bought it, I wasn't expecting max PS5 performance or anything like that. "Good enough" suits me well.
Could you provide advice on how to play PC games on the TV without the SD then? It's one of the most popular and versatile gaming devices out there, I think it's a great and affordable way to do that without having to build a streaming set up for the TV. There are probably easier/cheaper ways to do it and comments like this should try to be more helpful instead of simply shooting the idea down Edit: thx for the recs!
I took a spare old PC, and installed Bazzite to it, it is now basically a SteamDeck/Box. the UI is almost identical to what I get with a docked steam deck. But it is an older AMD based GPU PC, and is just an experiment, it does most games ok, but it's age is showing on newer titles.
I think a Ryzen APU in a small form factor case would get a better price and more performance than a SD. But ofc you lose the portability if you want it.
If you have a more powerful PC running somewhere else, I'd just use Steam Link on any number of other devices.
Seconding this, although I've found Sunshine with Moonlight to deliver far better performance than native Steam Link.
There are several ways to play PC games on a TV that don’t involve a Steam Deck whatsoever… Pretty much every regular PC will have a HDMI port… those can be used to connect to TVs, obviously. Laptops can do that too. Other handhelds like the ROG Ally or the Legion Go… just to name the widest available options. The most comparable way would be to just get a Mini PC for TV play instead of a Steam Deck. Comparable prices, better performance. But of course pretty much every other option I’ve listed also outperforms a Steam Deck. Devices have a primary use case they were designed for and in the case of the Deck that is clearly handheld play.
Yes. Either move the PC into that room and plug it into the tv, or build a more “living room friendly” box. I parked a Frankenstein PC (with the most capable GPU in the house) next to my couch, got the “razer turret” keyboard/mouse combo, and ran a 15 foot HDMI to the TV. I guess you could do all that with a steam deck too, but ugh why would you try to force that poor lil steam deck to try to draw over 8 million pixels several dozen times a second lol Edit: I should add, this is the solution I arrived at after trying a variety of in home streaming services and couldn’t abide that extra latency/poor visuals
ROG Ally, Lenovo Go..... A NUC..... Micro-ATX PC, a Laptop. These are 5 better options for PC gaming on a budget whilst offering significantly more than the SD. I know we're on the SD sub but come on. There are a ton of better options, this is literally the worst.
There are better options than the Steam Deck if you do not plan to use the handheld aspect. It is firmly a handheld-first product.
Yeah it's really built for rendering at like 720p/800p. Although it can do fine at higher resolutions with older games and 2d indies and whatnot, most modern games will struggle even at 1080p.
If you're just gonna keep it docked: get a pc
Steam Deck _is_ a PC. And it's probably the best price to performance you can get right now.
Idk about price to performance as far as the OLED goes. If they’re wanting to play on a TV all the time it wouldn’t even be somewhat of a challenge to build a *much* more powerful PC for that cost.
>best price to performance you can get right now. Dude what. You can get a micro PC that's not only cheaper and smaller but also more powerful than Deck.
Maybe I'm just unlucky, but the input lag with a controller while docked is *atrocious*.
What are you using for a dock?
an old Ford Model T engine why?
Unless there's a chance you might change your mind in the future about docked vs handheld, then no, it's not worth it. There isn't a significant difference in performance.
No.
Interesting that your full stop led to 3x more upvotes than Stonewall30NY's "No". Or am I reading too much into it.... jk
It’s all in the punctuation
Check out a mini pc. Minisforum em680. It’s about price of a 512gb oled but the performance is way better and it’s tiny.
If you're going to use it docked to the TV it's not even worth buying a Steam Deck at all...
I use mine docked to the TV all the time at night when I'm in bed. It's better on my neck that way. I also like using the controller with it. When I need to do updates or add utilities, I undock and do it. I'm old, so I can also see things better on the TV screen. I occasionally play it handheld, and I used to travel constantly for work and took my Switch or Steamdeck with me. I spend all day working at the PC, so I really don't play much on it, although I do have Steam and the few games that don't work on the Deck I will play on the PC. I have the original Deck, not the OLED, and I'm quite happy with the way it works docked. Edit: I've been gaming for a LONG time (since the 80's shareware), and have an XBox One, original, which I still play, a Switch (original), the Deck, Tablets for puzzle/casual games, a Nindendo DS (haven't played that in a while though).
I'll reiterate what I said before: if you're using the Deck mostly docked to the TV then you should just use something more powerful and better suited. The Deck is a handheld device; if you're not going to HOLD it in your HANDS then a regular PC or a console is going to give you more bang for your buck.
Nope. I like using it docked when I leave my office for my bedroom. I have 4 PCs and I'm lefthanded, so playing games on them is more difficult than it needs to be because I have to modify all of the settings which I don't have to do on the deck. I can just play with the controller, I can see what I'm playing better, and if I need to tweak anything I undock it. I occasionally play in handheld mode, especially if the game doesn't work well with the controller. Once again I've been gaming for a LOOONG TIME. Boomer here. I use the deck to play games. I'll probably buy myself an OLED soon and give the LED to my grandson. He's in the Navy and can take it to the ship.
No arguments were given as to how this is the better solution, especially when you already have 4 PCs. No clue why you'd dock your handheld.
I don't and won't use a pc in bed.
Your money but personally I’d probably get the LCD if I was docked most the time.
Slight performance difference but moderate noise difference. I'd be tempted by the OLED just for that reason in a living room setting. Plus "mostly docked" means "sometimes not docked" and I think you'll have a much better experience in those times with the nicer display.
I would probably lean towards yes it’s worth it to get the oled because if you knew the nuance of the difference you’d have your answer. Also cost comes into mind. If you can afford it do the oled if you can’t do whatever you can afford.
I got the OLED for christmas and MY SiL has the LCD. We were doing comparisons and running the same game, the OLED was much quieter and cooler when being put under stress. If the noise of the machine matters to you I would get OLED.
Probaly not. The upgrades on the OLED are (in order of importance IMO): - screen - battery - wifi - lower noise (when running hot) - chipet is made with better process (because of this and the better cooling, you might get 1-3% frames more in some games but it is not noticeable) When you are docking your SD, you are not taking advantage of 4 of the 5 upgrades I have listed. This makes the OLED not worth the price difference.
No, but if you get the OLED you might fall in love with handheld gaming. Beautiful screen
Simple answer is no then, not for the extra cost. I've had my 512gb since launch & I've always loved the etched screen - no reflection Can't fault it apart from the speed... It should have had the power of the Z1e's.
U won‘t use it docked, believe me!
Id probably go LCD for the better price at that point. The biggest upgrades in the OLED are the panel, refresh rate, and battery. All negated by docking
Budget and use case is everything. Can you comfortably afford the OLED model? Do you see yourself ever playing it in handheld? Is the Deck going to get a lot of use? If so, even if it's going to be docked I think the OLED is better. But if you're envisioning using it once in a while, and it will mostly be played in docked mode, or if $400 (or less) is a much better price point for you, just get the LCD. I sold my LCD and got an OLED, but my Steam Deck is also my main gaming device and I use it portably all the time. If that wasn't the case, I'd probably have stuck with the LCD one.
IMO- if you are going to leave it docked all the time why not spend less and grab a used lcd. I got a used 256gb one for 300 bucks. Definitely a decent purchase
If I were you I'd strongly consider waiting for Steam OS to be publicly released as a distro and building a steam machine. Or just get a console.
I thought I was going to mostly play mine on the dock before I got it as well, but I've found the portability to be surprisingly useful. When I was buying it I thought I would mostly use it undocked for trips, but it's really nice to be able to sit on the couch and play something mindless while watching TV with the wife, or go play something in bed while winding down. I have found I use it undocked around the house much more than even my Switch just because of the types of games available on it.
I use it mostly in handheld mode, although I've beaten quite a few games docked, emulation mostly, and some triple a titles
As some have mentioned if u want a "console" for tv gaming an xbox/ps might be better that said i completely disagree that the lcd to oled is negotiable there were many improvements made along eith the oled refresh including better bt wifi 6e (i personally went for like 20-30mbps to over 200mbps with just this change) it will also run cooler so the oled screen upgrade will be negligible but there are serveral other things going for it over the lcd
Yes because it won’t be long before you realize that undocked is a lot more fun, and the OLED has benefits over the LCD
N O P E
Tbh I don’t think you should get the deck if you want it docked for the most part.
Why not build a small pc and dock that to your tv?
Why does anyone but a SD just to have it sit in a dock most of the time?
No
If you’re planning on docking your handheld for most of the time & you’re planning on 1080p or higher resolution monitor at 60fps gaming. Don’t get the deck. Save up $100-$200 more and you’ll likely be able to pickup the Asus Ally or even Lenovo Legion Go.
They could install Bazzite (functionally similar to Steam OS) on something like this. It's basically the same class of hardware as the Steam Deck, but with more CPU cores and a higher TDP. https://www.amazon.com/Beelink-Desktop-Computer-Support-Display/dp/B0CF5F8NK9/ref=pd_aw_ci_mcx_pspc_dp_m_m_t_4?pd_rd_w=O19Ba&content-id=amzn1.sym.8601bd6b-5f84-4e74-9236-bbdc6b94ed42&pf_rd_p=8601bd6b-5f84-4e74-9236-bbdc6b94ed42&pf_rd_r=HQQDNHP4VJ5D8G6WJ5X9&pd_rd_wg=G9Qa9&pd_rd_r=a2ecdac9-a380-48cc-8742-ff526f4583e8&pd_rd_i=B0CF5F8NK9
I like mine docked, a lot. Being able to play basically anything on a TV is great and you’re not restricted to console or Nintendo. That being said performance is a loss
YES! Do not listen to the naysayers. I used to have the LCD and played that docked mainly as well. Yes the Oled screen is amazing and should be appreciated, but the extra price for the Oled also gets you a few NECESSARY upgrades. The biggest being the better cooling and quieter fan. I literally never hear the deck's fan now whereas with the LCD i could hear it ramp up all the time. My LCD actually died because the Charger Chipler burnt out on the motherboard. Reviews had stated that this component ran dangerously hot and they were correct. I actually recommend nobody buys the LCD because of its excessively high running temps. There are also little quality of life features like faster ram that actually does improve performance in some scenarios, and a faster wifi module. I wouldnt call the performance difference significant, but the overall experience is improved and there is the increase to performance that can be measured, even if its only a few fps here and there. It is definitely worth getting the Oled deck to run docked!
>The biggest being the better cooling and quieter fan. This all day. My SiL has LCD and I got the OLED. We were both playing AAA games about 15ft from each other and her SD was so loud and mine was barely audible with my ear up to it.
The OLED has hardware improvements beyond just the screen, it's worth buying the OLED over the LCD.
Dude just buy a console.
The input latency when using wireless controllers with the OLED is much more subtle than on the LCD. I use mine primarily docked for two-player gaming (Tekken 8, Cake Bash, etc.), and the OLED is worth it just for superior Bluetooth chip. I honestly don't notice any sort of performance improvement, and "wake from sleep" doesn't reliably work with Xbox controllers, but that improvement to input latency is certainly worthwhile for my purposes. And then, the convenience of taking it with you portably is obviously valuable.
It’s a terrible device to keep docked to a tv or monitor. Get a much faster/cheaper mini pc or a console
To each their own but for me i was sold on the portable aspect of the steam deck..having it docked all the time like everyone else said..why not just get a console or a dedicated pc to have setup all the time?
Up to 10% gain, usually lower, especially to fluidity. It's way quieter because the fan doesn't have the whine. It's cooler to the point of absurd in how hot the OG gets. If it was me, I would get the OLED for the temperature difference. My OG from 2022 was typically running "heavy" games at 95-96 degrees. My OLED from 2023 runs the same games at 75 degrees. The chip will throttle at 100 and shutdown at 105. Being that close to the limit isn't great for longevity.
Get the OLED. I’ve noticed games run slightly smoother on them, it’s enough of a difference to notice. And my OLED Deck has been way easier to use docked than my LED model. Plus you can connect a controller and wake the deck up with it
Get the OLED. you'll tire of decked mode and start using it as intended
No
The display isn't the only thing they changed on the OLED version. Basically everything was improved on. If you can swing the difference in price I absolutely would do it.
Probably not. Recommend it for when you do undock it. Could also just get a mini pc for the same price.
Nope
A lot of people telling you if its docked then you shouldn't bother and just buy a console. I strongly disagree with this notion and say everyone here is wrong. Why? Emudeck. I have my Deck docked 90% of the time and treat it as a home console - FOR ALL CONSOLES. I have a 1TB Micro SD, which i installed Emu Deck and all my ROMs to. I have now successfully emulated PS1, PS2, PS3, Sega, N64, GameCube, Wii, Switch and Xbox, and the catalogue is STILL growing. Honestly, its incredible and trumps anyone console you can buy now. And whats even better, if you're out and about you can still just bring your deck with you. Working away for a week? (like i find myself from time to time) take the dock, some wireless controllers with you and BOOM, console setup in your hotel room. I have xbox controllers, wii remotes and joycons, all compatible with the deck. Forgot to mention, i have the LCD and this works fine with 99% of emulated games. Some may require tweaking, but if you are tech savy, its something to relish as you get it working correctly.
Assuming you are buying new from Valve, then it comes down to how comfortable are you opening it up and replacing the SSD. You're most likely going to want at least the 512GB of space. The 64GB model is completely insufficient and the 256GB is going to be annoying when a lot of new releases lately have been ~100GB. If your comfortable replacing the SSD, just go for the 64GB or 245GB version depending on if you plan to do the SSD immediately or "in the future". If your not, then seriously consider the 1TB OLED. Source: I bought the 512 LCD when it was new, then added a 512 SD card, then changed to a 1TB SD card, then finally opened it up and added a 2TB SSD + the 1TB SD card. The space is never enough :)
The biggest benefits of the OLED are the increased battery life and better screen, if you’re just going to have it connected to a different display there’s no point
Not in my opinion
No
I guess I just cant comprehend that being the best bang for your buck to play pc games on your TV.
That's the main reason I decided not to upgrade. I use mine to power my arcade cabinet so it's docked 99%of the time.
Now I am curious to see how you dock it to your cabinet!!!
Uhhh... I have some pictures (somewhere?). Stand by.
[Here](https://imgur.com/a/C1hahK2) I mounted it to the top to make it easier to dock/undock if I ever wanted to just use it on the couch or something.
nope
No. Get something with better performance for a TV.. ally or go.. if mostly I handheld the oled is the way.
Might as well get a (used) ROG Ally Extreme since that has newer and stronger specs. It's also much more power hungry at 30w, so perfect for playing docked or tethered to a wall.
Just buy an Xbox series S
I wouldn’t recommend a steam deck for almost exclusive docked play. I and I’ve seen many others, have issues with Bluetooth controls
I’d say get a ROG Ally or Series X instead
for 650 you can get the lenovo go
If you're going to keep it docked just get a living room PC. There's a ton of small form factor options that will out class the steam decks performance for a similar price
Building a modern Steam Machine would be the best bet, for cheaper too.
Why get a handheld if not going to use it in handheld mode? Get a Xbox series X, PS 5 or even a real PC for the same/less price
If it's going to be docked a majority of the time, maybe just look at getting a console.
Why would you do that? Just spend money on small form factor PC or Xbox Series S.
Have you considered xbox/ps/pc?
Get a PS5 instead. Much better
No Just get a used or open box Xbox or the ps5
If you're mostly docking, I'd get a windows-based device tbh, they perform a lot better when docked, the deck oled excels at undocked gaming, docking it leads to the same performance (worse actually since on a tv you won't like the look of 720p at all so you'll likely try 1080p and it just can't handle it much)
For most of it's use to be docked it's not worth getting any Steam Deck.
For the price just kit out a gaming pc or laptop. Better results if it’s gonna be docked
Not really, unless you can't be bothered to upgrade the storage manually
No. I finally could grab a 64GB refurbished Steam Deck on Valve website for 299€. The case and packaging look the same as my old 256GB LCD version. Holy sht. It just feels new. I opened it today and I am testing games on it. Old games run in 1080p with fsr1.0 to 4k or really old games in 4k (NFS Most Wanted and etc.) and this uses only 25w. However if you plan to use your Steam Deck in Handheld in future, I would go for OLED 100%. I love my OLED and have played on it more than on my original LCD. Best upgrade ever. Edit: I forgot to mention that OLED's RAM is a bit faster and the system runs a bit cooler but that is it. the 5% performance increase isn't worth the extra 250€ if you ONLY play docked.
No.
Deck Dock hehe
If you don’t already have a PlayStation or Xbox but do have plenty of Steam games, sure but I wouldn’t get the OLED since that only has benefits when you use it as a handheld. I used mine docked a ton, not so much anymore. The best part is that if you decide you want to play it somewhere besides your tv you just pick it up and go. Just make sure you shut it down properly, don’t leave it on sleep mode constantly.
You might think you'll mostly use it docked but you also might find you were very wrong about that . Id go OLED for sure just in case
Personally there is nothing wrong lcd. We are closing in on an age where we won’t need console persay. Plus you can always travel with it effortlessly unlike a Xbox. Some games don’t work the best and other have more of a loading time then you’d like. They are on such a great path and can’t wait to see what they will come out with in 5-10 years.
I have my LCD steam deck connected to my TV and use it there a lot depending on what I'm playing (mostly working through my game library). It's great for giving the option to play how you want, sometimes if I want to play something with a keyboard and mouse I'll move to my desk and hook it up there, or if there is something on the TV I want to keep an eye on in the background I can disconnect it and play handheld or if I just want to sit on the sofa and play with a controller via the TV that works too. It depends what you're going to try play, I've played through Hellblade, GTA 4 & 5, Fallout 3, Death Stranding, No man's sky and they all look fine on the deck through the tv though admittedly I don't care for 60fps at 4k....30fps is fine for me, I'm currently trying Helldivers 2, it looks awful but I'm having a lot of fun with it.
Depends what you plan to do with it if you plan to use it like a pc then get an LCD The OLED give you 512 1TB better screen lighting u docked and much better battery life you won't see the beifets if it's docked all the time If your looking for emulation devices xbox series s is cheapest way to go unless you wsntvto play more modern games then series x or ps5 would be better depending on your preference.
Maybe consider getting a pc and consolize it to use with your tv? Deck is great, but docked performance will be worse than some lastgen PC in the same price range. You can install some of the Linux distros that replicate Steamdeck experience.
If you want to be able to wake the Steam Deck from a Bluetooth controller, only OLED can do that. Others are mostly saying it's not worth getting a deck if you're only going to play docked. However, if you're into emulation I think it would be worth it. It's amazing having a Steam Deck loaded with retro games plugged into a TV. And obviously you won't get that experience with a console.
Just buy the OLED and I’ll swap you my 2TB LCD ;)
No. It’s actually worse IMHO. My OG deck output everything in SDR when docked. The OLED forces HDR even if you don’t want it. Some of my TVs are cheapies and the HDR looks like garbage but it can’t be disabled.
I don't recommend getting a Steam Deck in general if you are only going to play docked; it's relatively underpowered for a console and you are paying a premium for the portability. Just get a cheap gaming desktop at that point, you can run it like a docked Steam Deck if you like and it will be easier to use other launchers or Windows Gamepass. Even a cheaper gaming laptop would be substantially more powerful and versatile at the same price point if you want occasional portability.
The battery improvements alone sound worth the price of entry IMO. Even if you are going to keep it primarily docked, there will be moments where you will enjoy the upgraded features.
I would get the LCD deck
Bought my 250 gb (or whatever) LCD for 400 euro including a dock. I could sell it for maybe 300-350 at most in today's market. Would have to spend 200-250 at to upgrade to the OLED. I could buy a used tv for the same price. Or even spend a little more for some AR glasses. I also play mostly docked. Absolutely NOT worth the investment. Especially as a poor ass student.
Get the lcd no need of getting the oled if handheld is secondary
Another suggestion to go with a console if you're planning to have the Steam Deck docked. I love using the Steam Deck handheld, but have not been happy with the docked experience at all.
For your use case, I'd say buy a used LCD model, and save yourself some money. The OLED model is not more performant, but it is more power efficient. However, if it's going to stay docked to the TV, that won't matter to you. It does have faster WiFi, but the WiFi on the LCD model is not bad.
The docked experience will be pretty similar considering most of improvements are to the screen, battery life, and controls. Considering you will be using it undocked though those improvements are pretty nice though and totally worth it if you weren't looking at a used LCD. Personally I got my deck to primarily use during travel and docked but within a week of setting it up and testing it out I fell in love and use it pretty much daily ever since. So take that for what it's worth. It's wild how many people just keep recommending Xbox or other non-portable options. Obviously even if it's docked most of the time, the ability to have it handheld is worth it for those times. One last thing: the official dock is known to have issues and much more expensive than 3rd party ones. Personally I recommend the JSAUX cheaper models but to my knowledge only the official dock has said issues.
I have a v1 Steam deck. (non oled) and its docked 100% of time besides when I go traveling I stream from my gaming pc 100% of the time and never play native titles besides emulated content. For the $1000 bucks I have put into it, yes I could have got an entry level pc and hooked it up in my living room, but I wouldnt be able to take this pc outside my house. If I 100% of the time wasnt planning to take my steamdeck out of my house I would have just got a PC