Steam Deck - SteamOS, Zen2 4C/8T, RDNA2 1.0-1.6 TF, 16 GB LPDDR5 88 GB/s, starting at $399 [2021-12]

I spy with my little eye

7gypj62qyxz71.jpg
 

One X player with a 5700U might give the steam deck a lot of competition. The high resolution screen is really nice and it seems to get some pretty good performance. I wonder what an rdna 2 version of thi could do. Guess we have to wait for next year
 
I'm not seeing it. Maybe for the very non price sensitive minority submarket but I don't see how any of these alternatives are going to really be competing against the Steam Deck. A quick search shows that device likely starting at $1000 if not $1200.

The pricing model of the Steam Deck essentially puts it in a class of it's own for the vast majority. Not to mention the likely more practical/accessibility after sale support (including warranty) for western markets. Valve essentially has a pseudo console model in that they can essentially shift profit taking (albeit not as directly) to their cut of software sales that no other alternative can do. They also seem like they have much more leverage on hardware contracts (eg. RDNA2 first) than any of the small players will ever have. They also seemingly will be able to leverage their position for even software level optimizations to some extent from at least some games/developers targeting the Steam Deck as essentially a hardware platform like a console.

Unless someone else big like Microsoft decides to make a push with a similar model the Steam Deck essentially is for all intents and purposes has no direct competitor.
 
arandomguy said:
They also seem like they have much more leverage on hardware contracts (eg. RDNA2 first) than any of the small players will ever have.
Click to expand...
The chip wasn't actually for Valve first. Supposedly it was MS first but it's also on AMDs general roadmap
 
Kaotik said:
The chip wasn't actually for Valve first. Supposedly it was MS first but it's also on AMDs general roadmap
Click to expand...

By first I was really referring to all these alternatives currently from much smaller companies essentially buying off the shelf when hardware's publicly available. I'm aware that Van Gogh was on the the roadmap and that it allegedly was rumored for Microsoft (also there were earlier rumors pointing to Google in some capacity as well). Microsoft was an example of a hypothetical company that would have the resources/capability (maybe even more so than Valve) to launch an actual direct competitor.

I'd wager the size of the Steam Deck release comparatively also has other economy of scale benefits to other aspects of the hardware as well.

I just don't see how all these small companies with no vertical integration/platform plans or capabilities, effectively having to negotiate with much less buying power with suppliers, and likely no presence on the software side can serve as a direct competitor.
 
arandomguy said:
By first I was really referring to all these alternatives currently from much smaller companies essentially buying off the shelf when hardware's publicly available. I'm aware that Van Gogh was on the the roadmap and that it allegedly was rumored for Microsoft (also there were earlier rumors pointing to Google in some capacity as well). Microsoft was an example of a hypothetical company that would have the resources/capability (maybe even more so than Valve) to launch an actual direct competitor.

I'd wager the size of the Steam Deck release comparatively also has other economy of scale benefits to other aspects of the hardware as well.

I just don't see how all these small companies with no vertical integration/platform plans or capabilities, effectively having to negotiate with much less buying power with suppliers, and likely no presence on the software side can serve as a direct competitor.
Click to expand...

I think its all about the cadence. When does a new steam deck launch? Is it 2022? 2023 ? 2024 ? For some a 2023 OneXplayer with I dunno a 8 core zen 3 and a rdna 2 apu with better performance than the deck , perhaps more ram also and larger built in ssd's since prices will continue to fall. IF there is no new steam deck in 2024 and its still van gogh then we may have other companies come out with Zen 4+ RDNA 3 apu machines and so on and so forth.

As it is now if a company gets its hands on van gogh and puts it in this onexplayer it could already give a compelling. It does have a 8.4 inch 2560x1600 screen giving you a 358 ppi. The steam deck is a 7 inch screen at 1280x800 with only a 215ppi. The onexplayer is a larger device allowing for much better cooling
you can see here it has dual fans with a larger heatsink. They allow you to run the chip at different wattage and clock speeds if you want to choose performance over battery.

Of course something with the size of OneXplayer but with the ease of upgradability of the aya neo would b e great too
.
Accessing the nvme drive is as simple as removing a few screws. I think its something that valve could have implemented better on their deck.

Your right with economy of scale. The steam deck will sell a lot more than any of these machines. They had over 500k preordrs in the first weekend. But that doesn't mean there isn't a growing market to support these other machines. Also we can see from the OneXplayer that they can quickly iterate on hardware while keeping the same over all design. OneXplayer offers multiple cpu options from both AMD and Intel now so it should help them keep costs down across models.

I think for valve the question is if their success will cause others to jump in.

Dell already has their UFO concept https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2020...s-pc-gaming-on-a-nintendo-switch-like-device/

Any of these small companies can also be bought by a larger company already buying chips at scale
 
https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1675180/view/3117055056380003048

Feb 25th

Hello, the day is almost here! On February 25th, we will be sending out the first batch of order emails to reservation holders. Customers will have 3 days (72 hours) from receipt of their order email to make their purchase, before their reservation is released to the next person in the queue. The first units will be on their way to customers starting the 28th, and we plan to release new order email batches on a weekly cadence.

In addition, we're sending out press units for full review shortly. Press review embargo on Steam Deck coverage will lift on February 25th, but keep an eye out for some preview coverage and impressions before that. In the meantime we're working to tie up the last few loose ends and polish some rough edges, and are excited to get these out to you at the end of next month!


Additional details for the curious:
  • We will start sending invites shortly after 10:00 am on February 25th, PST
  • Order emails are sent in the same order that reservations were made.
  • You can only order the Steam Deck model that you originally reserved.
  • Your reservation deposit will be applied to the final price of Steam Deck, and shipping costs are included.
Click to expand...

I have Q2 but it be nice if I get lucky and get mine in March. (edit: I am traveling to italy the start of april to vist family and would love to have my unit by then)
 
Last edited:
Picao84 said:
Decided to order one as well and sell my Switch. Switch games are so expensive that I end up not using the console much.
Click to expand...

The steam deck should be able to emulate the switch


the neo pro has the better cpu but only a vega gpu. So It will be interesting to see what happens as the emulators mature.
 
Watching the tear down with gamer nexus , looks like they were pushing temps of some components to the brink. They are going to add thermal pads to try and improve the temps. It seems like the vent section doesn't bring in much air. I wonder if a 3rd party fan blowing into that would help a bit. I figure people are going to make custom backs to fit another fan or larger fan.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top