The Ultimate Emulation Handheld - Steam Deck OLED Emulation Review 

I hope this video helps if you are thinking about buying this for emulation 🎮 First Look: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-3C6ekDyO18s.html Steam Deck OLED vs. Switch, Ally & Legion Go: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-W4qhIEh0L_w.html Corrections 21:20 - Mario Kart Wii (thanks to @gavpool8196 )

Never get tired of seeing retro games on an OLED.

Been thinking about getting me a Steam Deck most of this year. I eventually decided I would pick up a discounted one during the Winter sale most likely. But they announced the new OLED model out of nowhere, so I caved and bought myself one this morning as soon as orders started being accepted 😂

For save files between my PC and steamdeck, I use syncthing. Kinda annoying to set up, but after that you can save on the PC. Sync and pick up your steam deck and keep progressing the same save. This works for any folder structure that is shared between the deck and the PC like save games on emu deck, the roms folder or even game directories for nodded games where you can mod games on the PC and sync it to the steam deck to carry your mods over automatically.

Finally someone covered the emulation on the oled model. Been waiting for a video on it because that is what i use a deck for.

Somebody pay this man, this is hands down, the most indepth handheld emulation hardware review!

I commend you for the quality of all your vids, they're so in-depth and entertaining to watch, the 30 mins just flew by. The Steam Deck OLED is super exciting, not sure I'll jump on the train just yet but man what a huge upgrade to the battery.

Please keep putting the link to the yellow cable you use! Edit: HE DID IT YIPPEEE

What an absolute game changer. The rear motherboard is the last piece of the modding evolution puzzle. And it's been done so well here. Great video as always!

Love this detailed breakdown and even more excited to receive my OLED Deck in the mail after watching this. Thanks for all the work it must have taken to put this together!

This device is nothing short of amazing.

R.I.P to people like me who bought a Steam Deck just a couple of months before this was announced.

This is the perfect comprehensive video I wanted to see. Excellent content!

This is a great video, thank you. I just ordered my first Steam Deck and am very excited!

I've only had my Steam Deck for 4 days and I'm already in love beyond my wildest beliefs. The OLED screen is gorgeous, the UI is intuitive for beginners and has wide open doors for experts to tinker with, the speed of the SSD and improved WiFi chip put every other device I personally own currently to shame. Downloads games faster than my current PC could dream of, loads things as fast as a PS5 (in some cases) and is a moderately budgeted emulation geeks wettest dream with the amount of consoles it runs nearly perfectly 😂 I've been playing Animal Crossing New Horizons at least once a day on a new save, Spider-Man Remastered (now my 11th playthrough across all platforms(PS4/5, PC & Deck)), GTA4, Minecraft Java Edition, Battlebit remastered (with some hacky controller configs), Fallout New Vegas. Hell, even games like Batman Arkham Knight, Gmod (for the TARDIS mods), Just Cause 3 and whatnot, some really beefy titles/mods thats visuals and/or physics really test the Deck but it still somehow pulls through. Well, more than pulls through, it STEAM ROLLS these games, light pun intended. They run a dream on great graphics settings despite some minor mapping issues in some games. But seeing intensive games run near flawlessly on the go, even with reduced battery life, is insane to me. Having some games that are PS5 level, like SMRemastered, a literal PS5/PC release working without a hitch is amazing, especially on that OLED screen. The beauty and clarity of the colours helps hide some of the visual blemishes, which is odd. Surely you'd think a bigger screen with no resolution upgrades would make them more apparent, but at least for me the games look far better than I'd expect. I really have to look for issues, but by the time I notice them, the game swiftly whisks me away in a state of awe at how I'm even running the game, let alone running it really damn well.

Outstanding job! Such detailed comparison and info. You rock!

Awesome job on the video! Thanks for all the information, I’m excited to play some retro games on this once mine comes in

Battery tests are amazing - Thanks for taking the time.

Wow! that wattage usage is very impressive. the speakers on the LCD are loud but the OLED has higher quality bass and sound in general. A big complaint of the original deck was the popping sounds of the speakers

Great vid man, subscribed! I have the LCD SD but just ordered the OLED SD as well. I have a arcade cabinet I built around the steam deck so the OD deck will stay with it.

U got a new sub. Awesome content for the ones still hesitant and worried about battery life.

These battery life changes are a game changer for me. That was the biggest thing that ruined the original steam deck. The battery was just a bit too short

Very informative vid - thank you!!

I have been strongly considering getting a Steam Deck and the reviews for the OLED model have set me over the edge. I'm glad I waited until the OLED models came out because they definitely interest me more than the normal ones did. And, I am looking forward to both regular games and emulated ones :D. I only got the base 512GB model but I'm happy with it given my other expenses lately. >.> I consider it an early holiday (don't normally celebrate Xmas) gift :D Or, a late bday gift.

This video convinced me to buy one today. Can't wait!

Great video, as always dude!!

Tremendous video. Thanks for this!

Nice video. Thank you! Liked and subscribed.

I was waiting for this video 👍😎

My Steam Deck OLED limited edition arrives today. EXCITED.

gotta love my taki doing retro test on the new steam deck.

Amazing video man! You deserve more!

Thorough and well-considered. Thank you!

Honestly I would rather use an ssd for steam games and deck based stuff and sd cards for roms cheaper and also it separates them much better

This is perfect, I was able to order an oled limited edition. Hopefully, I'll get it before Christmas.

I love your videos and content, you're my go to for all my handheld questions and interests, keep killing it! Also, you should do a comparison between this and the legion go imo :) happy days

Looks like a nice refresth honestly. I'm happy with my OG model, but I think anyone looking to get an SD for the first time should opt for the newer model. Either way, Even the OG model is still a fantastic little computer. Ah yes, FFV, one of the first non-emulated games I beat on my unit. (FFV Pixel remaster) I digress. The OLED model is just good news in general. A fancy newer version for those who can afford it, and the previous model will now be SUPER affordable now that everyone wants to get rid of them. Especially used, Just in time for the holidays!

im so glad i managed to get my deck ordered in the first 3 mins of launch. i heard alot of people had trouble ordering

Amazing job!

I noticed that you mislabeled Mariokart wii as mariokart seven at 21:20 😅 but of course, great work as always, I’ve been a subscriber of your channel for quite a while now and I love all of your videos. So informative and awesome to watch. Thank you for all of the work and time you put into these 😊😊😊

Common taki udon W, just what I subbed for ❤

Yeah, nice to see an emulation only vid on the oled SD 👍

Wow thats a lotta effort! Testing so many games and they look beautiful! I wish i had that

OMFG i was waiting for someone to make a video like this .. this is the main thing i wanted the OLED emulation from psx with crt filter to yuzu switch ! LETS GOOOOO BABY IT LOOKS LIKE A BEAUTY 🤌🏽🔥

I'm so so so happy and elated that I waited man.. I cannot wait to get my oled steam deck

So many people talking down the etched glass vs gloss screen but your videos it looks fantastic and deep black still! Helped make my decision on going for the etched glass model!

Nice video :) just ordered an oled... never got around to installing emulators on my previous deck, but I'll have to do that on the new one. I want to play Gremlins 2 :P

Just put my order in, looking forward to the OLED!

Honestly the smaller bezels and slightly larger screen is a great selling point too.

I already own the 512GB previous Steam Deck flagship but no regrets getting the Limited Edition Steam Deck OLED! Can't wait to load a bunch on retro games on it! 😁

Excited to get this soon. Ended up getting the 1TB LE version since I just really liked that color wave. I just have an unrelated question: what is the skin you have on your original SD? It looks so cool!

Had emudeck on my oled for a month now and wow its made my favourite handheld even better.

Managed to get the LE OLED 1TB ordered. They are releasing the limited edition in batches it feels like. Sells out and becomes available after a while for the time being.

Was the last system you didnt show supposed to be switch or xbox 360? Great video btw

You know how you can look at a game and it just takes you back to a moment in hour childhood? You did that for me with Super R Type. Core memory unlocked!

2:22 Those deep blacks on that DKC intro is so good.

IIRC there's a setting in developer settings that you can switch to the old fps and refresh rate settings, I do hope it is there cause that 30/60 switching is gonna be annoying.

Bro. Trying to order this thing. Calm down with your timing. Give me an hour :-p - Appreciate your review on the screens. It really sealed my decision to get the etched one again.

this vid is so great!

Dude those battery drain test wow, thank you for showing those. How long do you think it takes to get a 50% and 100% charge after its been drained to turning off?

Just got finished getting my OLED deck setupm fired up MVC2 on redream and its the best I can ever remember it looking, the resolution being to near parity of it's native hardware output. Best handheld by far.

Took me 25 mins of clicking checkout buttons for this to finally be purchased! But I got it.

18:02 Brought back a classic that I didn't know was on Saturn.

I just got my shipping notice for my LE version. Fingers crossed there will be another hall effect pair of sticks for this new OLED version.

That was really informative! Honestly, I don't care about the minor visual differences between the OLED and IPS panels, but the power consumption differences do matter to me. I was quite surprised by how well the OLED performed compared to the IPS.

The sound is amazing

You know how to make a review. Kudos.

gran trabajo que sin duda vale la pena apoyar

Awesome video. How would this device perform if hooked to a TV? I'm looking for an option to play 4 player double dash with no/minimal lag at 720p.

This is a great video ,really in depth! can't wait for you to review the Oddin 2. Any plans for this in the next few weeks ?

Thanks!

1. Was the yuzu battery test on handheld or docked mode? 2. So RetroArch is a no for now? Unless you enjoy switching refresh rate. 3. With steam os 3.5, is disabling SMT still needed for best emulation performance?

Having the right ally for the heavy stuff and this for emulation is also on my mind

Beautiful!

Your desk light set up was washing out the color differences between the two somewhat, taking away from how drastic of a difference it reallt is. You can see an example when your light moves off Mario's face on SM64

Great video! But why would you emulate the Game Boy version of DKC instead of the SNES version? XD

Can u do the same test with legion go, 800p / 90hz? Excellent video

This video is literally perfect for someone like me who was looking into steam decks recently and appreciates the fact it can play some newer games but really only wanted one for emulation purposes! Also whats that song at 7:55?

Wow such a fire skin, where did you get that RX skin !!! 😮😮😮

Superb device all around. Got my order in.

Have you tried Retroarch with HDR (both in system settings and in the Retroarch software) enabled? That is what I use on my OLED TV and it makes games really pop, like they do on my PVM CRT. Curious of it all works as it should on the OLED deck!

Finally an emulation-centric review!

Can you take a look at some of the HDR specific retroarch shaders? Specifically the ones by Cyberlab?

decided to try Super R Type because of this video. I really enjoy it but there is a lot of slow down. still think the game is a blast and thank you for showing it.

Seems like a fantastic handheld. Would love to hear your thoughts on what is the best solution for an emulation-focused Linux mini-PC. Both hardware and software. Like, would it be best to just drop batocera onto a cheap N100 mini PC, or is there some better solution?

Taki, have you tried enabling ATMOS or any other Pulse Spacial audio profiles on the new (or old) Deck to match the Ally? I’ve been playing with this in Linux on a gaming RC, and it’s actually pretty good. 👍🏻 m wondering how much it would help with the Deck. My OLED LE order went through today, so I’m pretty excited (and very lucky).

Great selection of games for black level comparisons. Question when switching Steam Decks. Is it easy to copy over all your Emudeck stuff over to the new one? Can I just swap my old microsd and be good to go on the OLED?

I'm really impressed with the battery life on the Steam Deck OLED. Seeing that the difference in battery consumption is significant just by using better lithography, would it make sense for them to release another refresh that uses the same APU at 4nm in the future?

0:30 so just pointing out the obvious, you can play any roms (even ones Nintendo online doesn't have, including hacked roms) on the official Nintendo emulators (or unofficial) using a modded switch. Works 100% offline as well, no monthly fee.

Hey Taki, do you prefer to play on this 7.4 inch or on the Ayaneo Kun's 8.4 inch screen. Ignore the weight / battery life etc of both devices. =)

omg you got GC and PS2 games working on this? I am so sold

Will need a dedicated rom download/transfers/setup video.

I already own a miyoo mini for my old school emulation needs. My Steam Deck will be used mostly to play my back log of older pc games circa 2014-2022

This is cool, but are we going to get a deep dive on the Odin 2? I'm interested in premium android emulation and you do the most trustworthy reviews.

Thanks for another great video! One criticism though: please stop saying you can vsync 60fps to a 90Hz screen. That's a 1.5x frame pacing factor, so while you can technically vsync it (as you can any frame rate at any higher refresh rate), frame times will be very uneven (for every three frames displayed, you'll render two, but only the first and third will be new frames as the newly rendered frame finishes around the middle of the time frame 2 is displayed, causing extremely uneven frame pacing). Upwards vsync scaling only works at integer increments, so for something to fit both 30 and 60fps it must be a refresh rate that is an integer multiple of both - i.e. 120, 180, 240, etc.

OMFG CRAZY TAXI!!! MY CHILDHOOD

Little surprised no switch testing, but so far looks great! Just a shame they're so hard to get in Australia

I purchased the oled 512 since it has the glossy screen. Planning on selling my old steam deck with the Matte screen soon.

@TakiUdon when you say this is the best handheld for emulation, are you including the Odin 2 in that?

I have the oled model coming this week , and I'm back and forth in my head if its worth the hassle with emulation,