I enjoyed my SD LCD but found it lacking in several areas. Yes, the OLED screen gets a lot of the spotlight, but there’s much more going on with this new model and overall it feels like a massive upgrade to me:

  1. OLED screen: it’s beautiful, significantly better than the LCD, 90Hz and fast OLED response time is very noticeable and makes even browsing around the menus much smoother. The increased screen size is more apparent in person than you’d think too and feels more appropriate to the overall size of the device.
  2. The -30g weight: I really didn’t think this was going to be noticeable but wow am I wrong. You immediately notice the weight reduction upon picking it up and the whole unit feels a lot more balanced and comfortable to hold.
  3. The buttons: every single button feels better, crispier, and more tactile to use. D-pad feels amazing, bumpers and triggers are wonderful, even the “Steam” and “***” buttons are so much nicer with noticeable tactility now. These two buttons were one of my big gripes before as they felt mushy and inconsistent.
  4. Trackpads: much, much improved, haptics are strong, the usability has been improved, they’re more enjoyable to use now.
  5. Joysticks: no more need for an extra cover or anything, stock they feel really great.
  6. Materials: Maybe they didn’t change the plastics or anything at all but it certainly feels like it. Something about this SD OLED case/shell just feels more premium than the original. Call this one placebo/honeymoon effect but the device feels nicer in the hands than before.
  7. Fan: this is so quiet compared to the original, even the Huaying fan.
  8. Charging cable: that extra 1m length is so nice.
  9. Audio: I had no issue with the original SD speakers but this is just nicer, no doubt about it.
  10. WiFi 6E is such a noticeable boost in speed and performance.

The list can go on and I’m sure I’m going to get some eyerolls for this post. But the SD OLED feels like a way bigger upgrade than I expected. The whole device just feels more premium, more comfortable, snappier, smoother, etc.

My expectations were already super high with this device and somehow Valve exceeded them.

https://preview.redd.it/ifeuym427f2c1.jpg?width=4031&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=98221cd16512617fec6a74345822b53fc51534a6

  • hushnecampus@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    10 months ago

    1. Yup! Soooo good!

    2. Yup!

    3. Actually no - on my OLED the face buttons are kinda wobbly, which isn’t true on my LCD.

    4. Mine are the same - I think there’s a bit of luck of the draw on any model.

    5. Yep! I’m a big fan!

    6. Feels the same to me.

    7. I never really had the fan problem so no thoughts on this.

    8. Yes.

    9. Haven’t noticed this.

    10. Haven’t noticed this.

  • Enelro@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    10 months ago

    My og was collecting dust so I gave it away as a gift. OP stop tempting me to buy another 700 dollar paper weight!

      • withoutapaddle@alien.topBEnglish
        1·
        10 months ago

        Yeah, I tested the charging speed using a Jackery (with a display). It shows the OLED Deck pulls almost 50W when charging now. Typically about 47W.

        Wish my flagship smartphone would charge at 50W!

    • dobo99x2@alien.topBEnglish
      1·
      10 months ago

      I don’t think I would care for it… tripple a games pull so much battery so it wouldn’t even matter, you’ll need a plug anyways and everything else it’s good enough for.🤷‍♂️

      • xk4l1br3@alien.topBEnglish
        1·
        10 months ago

        Sure they pull a decent amount of power but how many hours are you actually away from a wall socket? Like if 3-4 hours of non stop gaming isn’t enough for you then I dunno what to tell ya

      • xk4l1br3@alien.topBEnglish
        1·
        10 months ago

        I played almost 4 hrs of Control last night on a full tank. I shut it down with 5% battery. I really should’ve stopped earlier

    • nohumanape@alien.topBEnglish
      1·
      10 months ago

      That’s the main reason why I got rid of my launch Steam Deck. This improvement has me potentially reassessing

      • SnooDoughnuts5632@alien.topBEnglish
        1·
        10 months ago

        If you’re not trying to play super graphically intensive games then the battery life is fine on the Deck. The only time I ever had issues with it was when I was playing Tomb Raider because apparently I don’t play too many graphically intensive games.

        • nohumanape@alien.topBEnglish
          1·
          10 months ago

          I have a Switch that just works better for playing Indies and games on low settings. I got the Steam Deck largely to play the “console quality” modern games that Switch can’t handle. And for those games I was getting like 1.5-2 hours (tops). That was fine for around the house use. But I realized very quickly that the battery drains really quickly when you’re trying to keep yourself entertained on a flight over seas (and the AC doesn’t work or doesn’t have the juice to charge or keep a charge).

          That was when I finally bit the bullet and upgraded from a launch Switch to an OLED.

    • Unhappy_Seaweed4095@alien.topBEnglish
      1·
      10 months ago

      I agree with a lot of what’s on this list, but yeah battery would be my #1 here. It went from very bad to pretty okay.

  • Shadode@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    10 months ago

    This kind of post is what made me upgrade to OLED although my LCD works fine. But I travel a lot soooo the increased battery life is probably worth it already…

    Tbh I’m just making up excuses, I wouldn’t have needed it but I wanted it. Getting my hands on it next week, can’t wait

  • anime4ya@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    10 months ago

    Massive 😍😍 so now I can run starfield with 2x the fps of the original

    • BLOODTRIBE@alien.topBEnglish
      1·
      10 months ago

      You’d have to attach an external GPU which is technically possible, but would be bottlenecked by the CPU, so probably not.

  • grayscalecrash@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    10 months ago

    The weight, yes. I immediately noticed it taking the handheld out the box(or perhaps I am used to my current LCD steamdeck weighing as much as a tank because of the Killswitch case). I’m downloading Lords of the Fallen as we speak!

  • alterexego@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    10 months ago

    Shout out to that guy who called the OLED a “mild upgrade” over the original.

    Deck 2 could literally be this device with a new APU and I’d buy it in a heartbeat. Like my ancestors used to say: “shit’s so cash!”

  • Beefy_Crunch_Burrito@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    10 months ago

    Totally agree. I think the OLED SD might be the best consumer electronic device ever made IMO. Nothing Microsoft, Sony, Samsung, or Apple has ever made has been this exciting and useful to me at the same time, and the fact that it’s so relatively affordable and it fills a unique but important role in my life makes it so easy to love. I’ve been playing mine for 4+ hours a day since I got it and am not even remotely bored. Every game from the most retro to Cyberpunk looks incredible, and I am someone who also owns a desktop PC with an RTX 4080 and an LG OLED monitor that I also love. Valve knocked it out of the park with this and the fact we can have this incredible handheld gaming PC and OLED display for $550 is unheard of.

      • Beefy_Crunch_Burrito@alien.topBEnglish
        1·
        10 months ago

        It really depends on what one finds exciting, but the iPhone was extremely exciting because all it was capable of in something that could fit in your pocket all with a very easy to use UI. I’ve been a big handheld gaming nerd since the 90s and I was excited to see what the iPhone could bring in that regard. Apple’s chip advancements were the most exciting thing about the iPhone over the years, but it was clear pretty quickly that it would never be a serious gaming machine, at least not for the foreseeable future. A very convenient pocket computer no doubt that I cannot live without now. BUT, I still felt like handheld gaming was just not moving at the pace of things like phones or PC hardware.

        I think what caught my attention and got the gears turning in my mind was the first time I played a Switch. Seeing DOOM 2016 run on a handheld blew my mind and I realized what Nintendo had done was break the barrier between handheld and home console that had never been done in such a seamless way. Yes, there were handheld PCs at the time, but they ran Windows and were extremely underpowered and physically unergonomic. Just like the smartphones before the iPhone could email, browse the web, etc… it was a pain to do and not pleasant at all. The Steam Deck has made handheld PC gaming finally, pleasant, affordable, and accessible. The OLED model further refines it while slapping a display on the Deck that any iPad or MacBook would be jealous of. Come to think of it, I feel like the Steam Deck is Valve’s iPhone moment.

        • SkyFly320@alien.topBEnglish
          1·
          10 months ago

          I agree with lots of that. I also agree the steam deck itself is a bit of an iPhone moment for valve, but to say it’s the most exciting and useful consumer electronic ever is perhaps a stretch given the high standard of other devices. Nonetheless enjoy it and I’m fully with you with your enthusiasm for it!

          • Beefy_Crunch_Burrito@alien.topBEnglish
            1·
            10 months ago

            Most exciting for me. I know the Steam Deck will never have the mass appeal of an iPhone. But to have almost my entire Steam library, that I have been building for almost two decades, now accessible in a handheld with a gorgeous OLED panel (I’m an OLED fanatic)… I couldn’t ask for too much more but I know that Valve will continue to improve and it’s exciting to see where it will go. The iPhone feels stagnant right now, but the Steam Deck does not.

  • YvesTHPS@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    10 months ago

    You forgot the wake on Bluetooth feature! It’s a game changer for docked mode ❤️

  • brandont04@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    10 months ago

    It’s it worth $350 extra (selling old one on ebay + buying oled model) just for the oled screen upgrade?

    • Leberkas3000@alien.topBEnglish
      1·
      10 months ago

      Will it make you enjoy the games you play more or will it just satisfy your tech lovin nut cravings?

      • Thekarens01@alien.topBEnglish
        1·
        10 months ago

        Guess that would depend on the person. I have a friend who bases what games he plays on the graphics. If the game isn’t beautiful he’s not playing it, so for a person like him it would make it more enjoyable. I can also see how the extra battery life would make it more enjoyable for some people.

  • Background-Mud-2466@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    10 months ago

    I’m looking forward to the Steam deck 2 with all these improvements and I’m going to make sure I’ve budgeted for it. I’m sticking with my original but I’ve already told my bf he’s getting my LCD when the SD2 comes out

    • lemmzlol@alien.topBEnglish
      1·
      10 months ago

      I am on that side that believes SD2 is actually pretty far away like 4-6 years from release. Valve achieved what they wanted now - a device that’s very compelling to buy that makes you a game hoarder also. The project to feed into the main business model is there and it works.

      When it becomes obsolete and there are fairly significant advances in tech, then I think news can be on the horizon about the SD2. This is all my assumption