Steam Deck: Everything we know about Valve's handheld gaming PC

The Steam Deck is on its way. Valve will soon start sending emails to the first customers who pre-ordered the handheld gaming PC last year, allowing them to pay the remaining balance for their own Deck. Then, on February 28, the first Decks will begin to ship. There is not much longer to wait.

The Steam Deck is a handheld system with considerable power below its screen. It is part Nintendo Switch, part gaming PC. While it resembles a console, it is as open as a PC, so you can connect it to a monitor or TV, connect controllers or a mouse and keyboard, and even install Windows if you like. 

The Steam Deck, on the other hand, has several unique characteristics that make it feel more like a console.

Thanks to a compatibility solution called Proton, the new edition of SteamOS, Valve's Linux-based operating system, will be able to play games that were designed for Windows without any issues. The system also has the ability to suspend and restart games, as well as support for some of AMD's newest graphics technologies.

Here's what you need to know about the Steam Deck right before launch.

When will the Steam Deck be available?

Valve has announced that the Steam Deck will be released on February 25, 2022.

However, "launch" in this situation does not necessarily imply that you will receive a Steam Deck on that day. Valve will begin sending emails to everyone who pre-ordered a Steam Deck on February 25th.

"Customers will have three days (72 hours) to complete their purchase after receiving their order email before their reservation is released to the next person in line. Starting on the 28th, the first units will be sent to clients, and we aim to send out additional order email batches on a weekly basis "According to Valve.

On the 25th, we should have additional information about when Steam Decks will be available: Valve's current shipment estimate for pre-orders is "After Q2 2022," which could be many months away.

Currently, a $5 (£4) deposit is required to reserve a Steam Deck. If you opt to order a Steam Deck, the $5 deposit will be applied to the cost of the deck. If you change your mind and decide to cancel, you will receive a refund.

"When inventory becomes available, consumers will be notified in the sequence in which reservations were made," Valve states.

The Steam Deck is currently only available for reservation in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and the European Union, but Valve has stated that it plans to expand its availability to more countries as soon as possible. For the time being, there are no plans to sell the Steam Deck in stores, so purchasing it directly from Valve will be your only option.

how much does Steam Deck cost?

The cost of the Steam Deck is determined by whatever version you choose, and there are three options based on storage capacity. The Steam Deck is priced at: -The 64GB version costs $399. -The 256GB variant costs $529. -The 512GB version costs $649. The Steam Deck's more expensive models have faster NVMe SSD storage, while the cheapest has a 64GB eMMC (embedded multi-media card) storage solution. At the very least, all three variants will allow you to expand your storage space using a MicroSD card.

If you wish to increase the storage capacity, you will probably want to invest a little extra money on a faster MicroSD card. It will also be able to replace and upgrade the SSD with a larger one, though this may not be the best option—Valve claims that the SSD in the Deck was chosen for its performance and to minimize electromagnetic interference with other components, so do not expect any off-the-shelf part to measure up.