I think the tech community is nearly all in agreement with this one. Well done valve. You knocked it out of the park here. We sort of knew to only expect a refresh, but we didn't expect you to refresh nearly everything. HDR/OLED/90hz screen, APU nm refinements, better battery and battery life, improved sound, better charger... Just to name a few.
It is still a powerless machine even with the fresh colt of paint. I went with the Lenovo Legion Go, because it has the muscle that the Steam Deck is missing and it will continue until Steam Deck 2, some 2 or 3 years from now. There are games that are not even running on the steam deck. I'll wait for Steam Deck 2, and in the mean time the Lenovo Legion Go has everything i need now and more.
@@Nightmare-xx4gvthat is very true. However, by a handheld standpoint it is definitely one of the most impressive not just in the efficiency of the hardware but the premium software experience. Be real for a moment, how many games do you NEED the power of the Lenovo to run comfortably? If you are into competitive games I think it definitely has an advantage in that area if you are using it SOLELY as your pc, but everything else? You’re getting less battery life because of the bigger screen and higher power requirements to push out the same performance as even the steam deck, and even at the highest power consumption it still doesn’t even beat out a GTX 1650. Thinking about it, it kinda makes sense to get a steam deck over a Lenovo for consumers solely for the reason thathalf of consumers have a PC of some kind to run demanding games on already, and half just want to play some fun games on the go. If you want the performance of your PC, you can either just play it at home or use Steam Link on a Steam Deck to get a buttery smooth experience and amazing battery life (for a much better price too). If you don’t have access to WiFi to do that, the power of the steam deck is more than enough to play a lot of games comfortably for a short period of time. The extra power and resolution of the Lenovo is there, however it is not really used to its full extent most of the time because of the battery limitations and bloated software. It also has a much less refined design than the steam deck. The Lenovo is basically a low-end gaming laptop in a small form factor, while the steam deck accomplishes itself more as a “Consumer gaming device that’s also a PC”. Those were my thoughts I guess lol.
@@_spineless Well those are valid points but to tell you the truth, they really not a problem for me. For once the battery problem is a common problem with just about every single handheld PC console out there right now. I don't game for hours and I'm more of a 2 to 3 hours type of gamer so the battery problem is not a problem for me. So you can throw that one out of the window. Second, the screen of the Legion even though is not a OLED screen still looks super beautiful and really one of the best looking screens not OLED out there. Again i prefer performance over weaker hardware and the Legion is far ahead than the Deck with that one. I pick the right handheld for me and not for anybody else. The good thing about this, is that you have choices to pick the one that suits what you looking for and like.
@@AverageUser- where I live the 512gb is only $50 more then what the 64gb was, 90hz instead of 60, better speakers, cooling and speakers, oled screen, 7% better performance 25-50% battery life increase, I can't not get it it's too good of a deal
It's too big they should have shrunk it at least 50% because it's a nice looking handheld pc but it's far too big to be called a portable system. If sony can shrink the PS5 motherboard into a slim model then valve can do the samething!
@@zekiz774 sigh... do your homework. A few RU-vidrs tried it, they said it does fit and the cover does close. It's just a tiny bit taller.... When iFixit gets the part, I might just buy it and try it...
I wonder if Steam will have a trade in program. That would be kinda cool. Wouldn’t mind trading in my current Deck for the OLED to get it at a reduced price.
Too bad a customer couldn't just mail them your old steam deck then they could replace the screen to OLED.... not sure if they could change the CPU and ram too...
Valve really delivered and made a great refresh! I wanted a Steam Deck but waited for a sale then the Rog Ally came out and next thing was the Legion Go. The fact the new Steam Deck has OLED, brighter display, better battery, more storage for less money, and 90hz… It really makes it easy to go with this. I definitely plan to get! 😁
@@Djr2699there is no handheld that can play all AAA games well, not even the Z1 extreme or 7840u chis. We need x2 performance over what RDNA 3 iGPU can offer.
@@Djr2699not everybody cares about your annual multiplayer cash-grab games. Most people will be far happier with the deck than any other handheld and the that’s an obvious fact. Good for you if you want the alternatives but there’s many things the deck ha and always will do better than those. Pros and cons.
Current steam deck owner but I am 100% getting this one. Oled screen makes a huge difference for me when it comes to gaming and really makes it a better experience for me. Bigger screens and faster ram is icing on cake. Would love to see ETA overclock gpu/cpu. In a later video.
@jar768jake if you can sell your old one that's around 200-300 dollars. You can get a battery pack at 80-100 bucks that would keep you going longer than swapping decks
It's cool machine to have in the collection. I love to hold it my own hands and test it in the end. If I was an end user I won't upgrade from the old one.
I have the original one and this was exactly my initial thought, not worh the upgrade (maybe if I can get the special edition I would sell mine) but it really hypes me about the future or the next gen steam deck with all these features, a more powerful chip, VRR, better battery life and more games supported by proton or even native linux
A more powerful steam deck would be neat. I keep hearing Valve say the next device is around 3 years away so it sounds like they want a substantial performance upgrade from Deck 1, my guess is that they're waiting on RDNA 5 for Deck 2.
@@AVWUVU what's so special about Zen 6? The performance of current handheld CPUs are already very good, only thing I'm seeing holding them back is GPU performance.
@@AVWUVUyea but even mobile zen 3 can crush everything. We don't need zen 6 for that, cpu isn't holding handhelds back, it's the igpus. We need those to be better
Valve's company structure seems tailored for the employees' passions and personal drive being to motivations for their decisions, rather than "profit over everything". With that in mind, it's no wonder to see why it continues to get so much love and praise.
I'm still happy with my 512 gb LCD model but the better battery life, better cooling, better screen, and possibly a tighter dpad makes this really enticing. Maybe I'll get one sometime next year
Honestly, I wouldn't be half mad if Valve keeps updating the Steam Deck like this instead of releasing a Deck 2.0 in many years. The first Steam Deck was a great bang for the buck. The OLED Deck offers even more value. I trust them to keep the good value up. At that point, I wouldn't be mad buying any version, even if it's not the latest one.
@@Mister_PhafanapolisThat's what I'm saying, I wouldn't mind the mid-cycle refreshes to keep coming, instead of waiting for a full next gen in god knows when
@@augustoalvarez6766 I am the other side of the fence with this one. I don't mind improvements but the screen is a huge jump. It feels like a bit too much to be called a refresh, and yes I know the performance is at most only slightly improved. On a handheld the screen holds a lot of weight so this "refresh" came a bit too quickly for my liking. It feels more like a premium version vs a refresh.
Well, I use my current Steam Deck SO MUCH that I am actually just going to fork out the money once again and buy the OLED version. On the other hand looking at how much gaming I do on the Deck versus my big PC I already saved LOADS of money by simply not upgrading my gaming rig since I don't use it that much anymore.
Exactly. I LOVE my steam deck completely satisfied, but to now have every single aspect of the device improved - quite significantly, in some aspects - is absolutely astounding to me and something I frankly didn't expect to ever see in this world.
I am still on the fence about upgrading to this one, but I will say this, I now have +1 respect for ETA Prime's reviews given the fair and balanced nature of this vid (compare with another extremely popular channel, I think nuff said lol).
I already own a SD and am very glad OLDE came out. Is it an improvement? Yes. Is it upgrade-worthy? No from me. Just going to wait for SD2 with better SOC.
Agreed, I'll wait for a more powerful system, and I have an ROG Ally if I need more power, and If I'm over at someone place, I have XG Mobile (3080) and a 13" 1440 144hz portable monitor for real away from home power.
I’ve had a Deck for a year and a half and I say this is completely worth it. I’m buying it Day one and the Deck 2 day one as well. Valve can’t take my money fast enough lol
Atp the SoC in the Legion Go and the Ally is significantly better and almost the same price. I'd go with the Deck if you prefer the OS but you can always put StemOS on either via holoiso or chimeraos.
@@madgodzilla12465 the ally and all the other knock-offs don’t even get a glance from me, even if they’re more powerful. It’s called brand loyalty. The Deck was first and valve does 90 percent of everything better than their competitors. Most Deck fans feel this way. Nobody moves from the Deck to another company’s portable PC. They all are going from Deck 1 to Deck 2.
It performs a little better while using less battery plus it can display at 90Hz. There are also undervolting and overclocking tools available for the steam deck and I would have thought the new APU could be taken further
@@Moorbs this is true but still isn’t worth me getting rid of my deck. Great upgrades on this refresh but not the upgrade I wanted. I want to be able to play more demanding games. All the bells and whistles are great but we’re getting pretty much the same result. This refresh does have me super excited for what the next gen deck can be tho
It's crazy that most RU-vidrs think that it's not a worthy upgrade. When I ask everybody that I know regular people everybody wants to upgrade to the old lady. It's just a more prettier screen. Better battery life, bigger screen with less bezels and it's just looks fantastic. It's just why I wouldn't you recommend it. It's an easy buy for all of us. All we got to do is sell the one we have and then use the money towards the new one
00:00 Unboxing the Steam Deck OLED. 02:07 Technical improvements: Display, smaller APU die, enhanced RAM speed, and many more. 04:42 Comparing Wi-Fi 6 on the OLED with Wi-Fi 5 on the LCD version. 06:14 Gaming Experience and Compatibility. 08:11 HDR Visuals test. 09:10 Personal opinions on the upgrade from the LCD to the OLED Steam Deck. 10:24 Recommendations and Closing Thoughts. Support me? Check channel descriptions
I made the mistake of getting the 64gb model so definitely upgrading to the 1TB, for me, it's going to make a big difference in every way. I don't think etched glass is going to be an issue for me and there are always screen protectors if it is.
I was thinking the same comign froma 512 but i think t better to get the 512 again which you can always switch the SSD, I think it betetr deal in price and you save more when you get msotly all the sdame from a 1TB version. Unless you wanting the Limited edition version think the 512 version would be better buy.
It's pretty simple to upgrade the storage of the original. Maybe you didn't want to do that before, but it might be a good thing to do if you're keeping the original as a secondary
This solves pretty much every issue the deck had and that screen is gorgeous, I want it soooo baaaddd but I already have the original and I just can't justify it
8:27 I'd really hope for a systemwide HDR setting, like how Windows has Auto-HDR to tone-map for games that don't natively support it. I've used it with an OLED screen and it makes a huge difference.
@@logirex Steam deck has freesync but only with displayport. IMHO, for frame pacing is better the type of frame limit that Steam deck offers because VRR is not delivering consistent frames and is stuttery all over the place. I would preffer something like freesync + low framerate compensation + arbitrary framerate limit. Nowadays Linux offers fake 48hz on top of freesync just for video content. We need extend that fake frequencies to an arbitrary amount. Search for: "phoronix amdgpu freesync video" and you will get more information about fake frequencies on top of freesync.
@logirex Unlike a Windows handheld, the software in the Steam Deck makes the lack of VRR largely a non-issue. Coupled with the improvements made in the latest version of SteamOS, and the new display, it's even *less* of an issue, which is quite remarkable considering how little of an issue it is on the LCD deck.
This is every upgrade I’d hope for with the deck. However, I think I’m gonna stick with my normal deck for now, probably will jump to the Legion Go also
Better battery life and better screen? I'm sold. I'm definitely getting myself new Deck. This version is finally the final form of first gen Deck in my opinion.
I don’t think it’s worth the upgrade if you have one. But it’s worth recommending to others. I’m happy with my LCD Deck. The screen is bright enough indoors, and I’m usually at 30FPS anyways. I’ve already installed the hall effect sticks for 0 dead zone on racing and FPS games, a clear heat sink back, and my final upgrade will be a 2TB drive when available. It’s not that bad swapping between 4 SD cards, but it is annoying when a card had been out so long, every game has an update.
@@daleadams6097 Amazon. They may or may not work on the OLED model though. There’s also a bad video out there that tells you the wrong way to calibrate them. There’s a small foil button in the back that zeroes the controller on the stick themselves. You have to start the deck without the back installed, go into controller calibration settings, set your dead zone to minimum, hold the stick slightly off center, click the tiny button, and keep trying that until you get it to zero dead center. It’s going to take patience. Dude with the top video says to do it through desktop software, which isn’t the right way to do it, since software can change.
This was a mighty impressive refresh (way better than the Switch's equivalent OLED refresh), but I don't upgrade any of my hardware unless I can get at least a 50% performance improvement (for desktop PCs, I actually stretch that closer to 100%). Currently, there is no handheld out there that can beat the LCD Deck by 50%, so I'm waiting for the Deck 2 in a couple of years and I'll stick with my LCD Deck. One thing reviewers didn't emphasise is that while they upgraded almost everything except the outer shell, what they didn't do is actually add anything completely new. This allows the Deck 2 to get sorely missing features like a second USB C port on the bottom (maybe both ports could be USB 4?), a fingerprint reader (entering a PIN to login is painful) and perhaps even a 1080p Webcam with a privacy shutter (with face recognition for login perhaps?). Throw those in with a 50%+ faster APU (and maybe there'll be a VRR HDR OLED display and reliable hall effect joysticks by then) and I'll buy it on day one. There'll be an outer shell redesign and I'm hoping that means the Deck will be slightly smaller and slightly lighter. Oh, and find a way to not glue the battery in and maybe squeeze enough space to fit a 2280 SSD, because by then, 4TB and 8TB prices for those should have become affordable.
@quandrixtwincaster5738 performance wise yes, it's shit in every other category though, the steam deck OLED especially is much better all around than the ally, performance means nothing with shitty software
4TB 2280 SSD's are quite affordable at under $300 (Crucial P3 Plus can run as low as $220), it's the 8TB that needs to drop A LOT in price since $880 is about the lowest I've found.
Biggest change for emulation would be SteamOS 3.5 I guess, since that fixes a bug with multithreading CPU caches. I think it's not too unrealistic to expect 3.5 release with the new OLED models in a few days.
Legion go stutters far too much even at high fps. Y you can't lock fps/refresh rate to 40, which is a real bummer. Rog Ally is far more consistent with VRR.
LegionGo basically offers raw performance and its unique joycon-esque gaming modes. If those things are what you value the most, then it's an excellent piece of hardware. Otherwise, steam deck offers a significantly more compelling option.
The single biggest upgrade I have made to my gaming set up in the last 10 years was to switch to an Oled Tv and Oled monitor. It was a bigger jump in overall image quality than any GPU or CPU upgrade I ever bought. Now I am used to Oled I find it hard to use LCD screens tbh. I had a Steam deck when you still needed to wait on them but the back light bleed was terrible on it so I sold it, I might get one of these now.
The anti glare filter diminishes the colors of the OLED screen and the deep black levels. This can be made obvious with a screen protector which nullifies the anti glare coating.
NerdNest said even with the anti-glare the colors pop out and have dark black. One of the things mention about anti-glare that was mention on NerdNest is with it fingerprints are less noticeable than without it.
Even the LCD version, the anti-glare version looked more washed out and bad vs the lower end ones without it. I wish they gave the option to get the big one, or special edition, without anti-glare junk.
Tbh I'm probably grabbing the OLED model, just so I have an excuse to pass my current Deck onto my little cousin who's been wanting one for a while. I also think the thing's going to be a beast at streaming games from my PC, too. With the bigger battery and better wifi I'm really looking forward to messing with it. I wonder how Remote Play will handle HDR....
@ETA, make sure to cover up the URL for the speed tests. People can still see location of testing POP, etc (and pull it up themselves). I learned this lesson myself in the line of work I do.
The Steam Deck OLED is a great refresh but having JUST bought a steam deck, I can't possibly justify purchasing it. I wish Valve announced this earlier or offered a trade in program for current model owners.
They didn't just not announce it they actively said they weren't planning any updates to both cnet and the verge. So I went in again with the last sale two months ago. Returned the first because the screen was meh at best and the boot loop it went into twice. Feeing that sting for sure.
There were rumors already a month ago that a refresh is coming. Valve said there won’t be a next generation of steam deck for years, this is not a new generation, it’s the same one. It’s the same with phones, laptops, all kinds of electronics. They can’t announce a price drop or refresh 6 months in advance, because then nobody would buy the old ones for 6 months. I was thinking of selling mine on ebay, but the prices seem to have already dropped. There was one offer where someone had already bid on a used 512GB model (the old one) more than it costs now through the valve store 😢
Personally Im gonna wait till steam releases a steam deck 2 with a oled. They're the only company i trusted with this. Honestly i hope they do it 2025 so the processor is powerful.
I don't have an original Steam Deck from year 2021 but I've been interested of Steam Deck and other handheld gaming pc devices a long time so I have a question: Is this Steam Deck Oled worth it? I don't have an original Steam Deck but I wan't to buy a handheld gaming pc device in this year 2023. Valve's Steam Deck Oled looks really nice and I believe it's more powerful than an original Steam Deck. I like Valve's and Steam's cooperation. That Steam Deck Hands-on first look video was so good and this is totally worth it. ETA PRIME THANK YOU! 😊❤
I hate that even the OLED isn't available from Steam directly in Australia. Their hardware support for this country in nonexistent, and it'll probably cost me a fortune to buy from external vendors. That's if they aren't scams.
I've already owned a 512 GB model but since I love Valve with all my heart I'm gonna order the 1 TB limited edition model as well even though I have no need for it :)
I just got the steam deck earlier this year and this came out!😂 as much as I wanted to get this newer model I’ll take your advice and keep mine… especially since I’ve already made upgrades on it.
Are we gonna talk about the thumbnail showing the limited edition Deck sitting on his table, implying he got that SKU (when even channels like LTT didn't get one)?
The main issues with the original were the delicate bumpers, the bad colors and clarity of the screen, slow downloads and the mediocre battery life. All issues are now fixed. Valve is nailing this product.
I wonder if "haze" on etched Deck is coming from the screen itself or from external light sources. Therefore I would be really interested to see the glossy screen protector on/off test again, but in pitch dark.
This is amazing! If I didn't already have the original Deck I'd be all over this. But the holiday season is right around the corner and I have to think about other people instead of myself.
Rip Rog Ally, Legion Go and other PC handhelds lol good thing I decided to wait a little bit more coz I was thinking of getting a Steam Deck but wasn't convinced of the old model but I'm def getting this one. Ty for the comparison man
I'm kicking myself for having gotten the older deck during October. Seems like every time I wait to buy a new device, they come out with a newer model as soon as its been in my hands for a month.
It occurs to me as well, that HDR should be possible to add in after the fact. Acerola has a variety of videos on the topic of HDR and colour clamping via Re-shade, and it should be possible to get the software working on Steamdeck, so I don't see any reason it couldn't be done. It's a fairly involved process.
@@Saif0412 It's...A bit more involved than that. I'd recommend just watching the videos. It involves a fairly robust tone remapping and color clamping to the limit of the high dynamic range, but it does work.
I'm just going to go with 512... I'd get the higher end one if they didn't have the stupid etched screen. Even on LCD models, the lower end ones with non-etched had better visuals. Its a downgrade in looks just to try to reduce glare. I need no glare reduction
@@CaptainEffortyeah I really don't think it's possible to be an oled screen but the go is bigger better Res higher refresh etc so it's really what your priorities are.
@@Snapshot.Geo07 Why ? We all know the Legion Go has a much better processor. It's going to run a lot better than the deck in game performance. This is known.
@@TheCoolDavebecause we want to know the performance-per-watt compared between the two. Raw performance doesn’t matter much when you get significantly worse battery life 💀
It’s worth it. After experiencing ROG Ally’s disappointing SD card reader issue (terrible design) I would go with Steam Deck or Lenovo for sure. I have the old version but planning to order OLED version today.
Thanks for a great preview of the updated Steam Deck! I'm so tempted to update my original Steam Deck to this new OLED one but the only thing that worries me is Screen Burn/Image Retention. My 55" LG OLED tv has huge amounts of Screen Burn on it from gaming so I know first hand how bad it can be so it might be best to stick with the original Steam Deck rather buy this new OLED version.
I’m in market for a do it all handheld, emulation, AAA gaming and great external controller/4k TV support. With the cost of these units being relatively the same, does one choose the OLED Steamdeck, ROG Ally or Legion GO for the best experience? Would love to see a video on this.
Based on the addition of a dedicated Bluetooth antenna (along with the software to support it), which enables controller wake-from-sleep over Bluetooth along with the more efficient chip and better cooling solution, I'd say the deck OLED is the best overall for general use. LegionGo is probably my next recommendation. Ally w/ the "4090" is probably best for docked-only, assuming money is no object, but if it is. Other handhelds like Aya or GPD devices are definitely solid choices - if they fit your budget, but there's so many of them at this point I'll just leave it up to you.
Great vid as usual, thank you. I sold my Steam Deck earlier this year, regretted very quickly. I was looking to get the Ally, decided to wait it out for sales. Then, the Lenovo was announced and decided to wait for that. Sooooo, now theres this, lol. I may still wait it out, but Im leaning on the Steam Deck OLED. Although the Lenovo and Ally are more powerful, they seem to be more challenging as far as firm ware updates, hardware issues, (SD Card Ally) etc.
Still leaning towards the Legion Go but things are moving a bit too fast right now. It's a lot of money to plunk down on a handheld when they're coming out with faster more powerful stuff every 3 months.
The fact that HDR works on Linux now blows my mind! I know it's only Gamescope at the moment, but I bet that GNOME and KDE desktops will also get HDR in the future.
As always great video ETA. One question though, I noticed when testing the decks on your network...How the hell do you get over 200 mbps upload speed?! 😮I have fiber & wifi6 so??
At 03:40 your battery size stat for the LCD version is wrong. it's 40WH, not 45WH. Also, at 05:10, you don't mention anything about your home network setup, like the basics; what is your connection speed? How do you have so many subs? :P
Can you swap the ssd from your lcd to your OLED steam deck and let us know if there are any software/driver issues with doing so? I'd hate to have to reinstall and reconfigure another steam deck from scratch.
Awesome video, this will be the first SD worth owning for me. I am going for the 512 option because I do not like the anti glare glass esp on an Oled display it mutes the colors and you can clearly see that in Dave 2 Ds video where he demonstrates. I love gloss Oled panels just like my switch Oled and lg c2.
@@Eskoxo Yeup and with the saved money I’m gonna upgrade the internal storage with a 2tb ssd. I’d love the special edition but I’m throwing a skin on anyway and d brand grip case and calling it a day. I’m excited and hopefully no new steam deck for another two years. I know the next version will be powerful and optimized. Almost makes me not want my switch but I still got love for nintendo
@@kaiichinose9590 I would not rush to order those grips i have them and i usually have them removed they make sd rather thick and heavier just test it out before id recommend as sd is not a small handheld to begin with.
@@Eskoxo thanks for the heads up, I might just do the skin then. I will say that I had the ally and currently I have the legion go and as big as the legion go seems, it’s actually quite comfortable and doesn’t feel heavy. With that being said, this is going straight back to Best Buy. It is severely unpolished and my experience in some games is great while others not so much. The software is janky at least as of now. I think I’m gonna like the steam deck Oled very much.
@@kaiichinose9590 yea i think those other devices mostly focus on z1 extreme specs on paper but software/ease of use and battery is just terrible especially if you play more indy type of games that dont require all that power.
Just so you know, by typing the URL we see at 5:26, namely the "result/[number]" we can go back to that result and see your personal data, so you might wanna rectify that?
I have the original model and I'm upgrading. I use mine every day, as someone who's on the go a lot, it's replaced my home PC, PS5, and dumped my Switch titles on it. The screen upgrade alone was worth it, but reading other things, such as the internals being a lot easier to replace if something breaks, cooler temps, a better D-Pad (I love me some old SF2 Champion Edition), this seems like a big upgrade once you add it all up. Plus, Valve has stated their next gen Steam Deck likely isn't for a few years, at minimum.
