After waiting almost a year, I finally have a Steam Deck. I’ve been excited about this device since Valve first announced it, and while the Steam Deck has a few issues, I love using Valve’s gaming handheld. In fact, I like it so much that the Steam Deck is replacing my Razer Blade 15, a gaming laptop that costs more than four times as much.
I’m not going to pretend that the Steam Deck is as powerful as a real gaming laptop or that it’s going to kill off gaming laptops in general. Take it easy. But as for me, I can’t find a reason to open the lid of my Blade now that the Steam Deck is in my hands. This is why.
Less powerful, more practical
Jacob Roach / Digital Trends
Steam Deck isn’t as powerful as the best laptops, and there’s no question about that. On the Steam Deck, you’re looking for 720p at 30fps for most modern AAA games, while you’re going for 60fps for indie and older titles. That’s well below even machines like the MSI GS66 Stealth, which comes with a 1440p display that has a refresh rate as low as 240Hz.
But Steam Deck allows me to start playing. I don’t have to mess with graphics settings because I’m dropping frames, I don’t have to mess with my Xbox controller that keeps losing its Bluetooth connection, and I don’t have to be plugged into a giant power brick just to run games.
Take a look at the specs of any gaming laptop, even if the GPU doesn’t tell the whole story, and you’ll see that it can run the most demanding games at the highest resolutions. And while this is true of behemoths like the MSI GE76 Raider, the reality of gaming on a gaming laptop is much different.
That reality is extremely loud fan noise, which is a constant among gaming laptops from all manufacturers, and so hot you can’t even use the keyboard. Even when it offers higher frame rates and more demanding graphics settings, using a gaming laptop feels like work. Gaming laptops are laptops first and gaming devices second. Steam Deck changes that.
And as for me, I don’t need a crazy force in motion. I play a lot of platformers and have a large back catalog of older games that run at 60fps with no issues on Steam Deck. Portable gaming means sacrifice, and the Steam Deck offers custom sacrifices that gaming laptops simply can’t.
Windows is a fraud, not a professional
What about Windows? The Steam Deck is a great device, but it’s based on SteamOS, a platform that doesn’t support a number of major games like Destiny 2, Rainbow Six Siege, and basically any multiplayer game that uses anti-cheat software. Even taking that into account, SteamOS is actually a pro for the Steam Deck, and Windows is a rip off for gaming laptops.
As I found out by uninstalling Windows on my gaming PC, Linux (which is the foundation of SteamOS) became pretty good for gaming. The vast majority of the games in my library of over 700 titles work perfectly, and I don’t have to worry about Windows shutting down in the background or a dozen peripheral utilities vying for my attention.
Steam Deck also doesn’t come loaded with bloatware. I’ve been using a Lenovo Legion 5 Pro to play games for a while and had to completely close games and restart Windows due to McAfee notifications that I can’t dismiss. It didn’t even have a Steam Deck popup.
Windows is certainly more flexible than SteamOS, at least without delving into how to use Linux, but that flexibility comes at a price. This comes at the cost of performance, practicality, and frankly, enjoyment. Windows may win points, but here’s the reality: I have to jump through some hoops about half the time I want to play a game on my laptop. I never have that Steam Deck.
First console, second PC
Jacob Roach / Digital Trends
Part of the reason I prefer the Steam Deck is that it serves a different purpose than a gaming laptop. Gaming laptops focus on being laptops first: Even with more powerful hardware, you need Windows, a keyboard, trackpad, and a webcam on any gaming laptop. Steam Deck minimizes the hassle and focuses on the game.
If you’re like me and already have a gaming PC, the Steam Deck makes a lot more sense. I will always run demanding applications other than games on my desktop. Outside of gaming, my laptop is mostly there for the basics: checking email, watching YouTube or Netflix, and shopping on Amazon.
Steam Deck can do it all. It’s not ideal for browsing the web or using a touchscreen desktop, but you can still connect a keyboard and mouse. Let’s hope that once the Steam Deck is here, it really serves as a replacement for a gaming-focused laptop.
A complement, not a replacement
Jacob Roach / Digital Trends
I’m selling my gaming laptop now that I have the Steam Deck, but that doesn’t mean it’s a complete replacement for PC gaming. I like it as a complement to my main desktop, so I can cycle through less demanding titles or jump into my never-ending collection of roguelikes on the couch. I even play God of War on Steam Deck thanks to FSR 2.0, which I didn’t think would be possible.
If you don’t already have a PC to play on, I wouldn’t recommend buying a Steam Deck. But if you already have a desktop, save yourself the hassle (and money) by choosing the Steam Deck over a gaming laptop.
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Categories: GAMING
Source: tiengtrunghaato.edu.vn