SteamOS 3.2 update adds refresh rate settings, quieter fan curve to the Steam Deck

27 May 2022
You can now set the display to 40Hz instead of 60Hz to improve battery life. Also, the fan is now controlled by the OS instead of the BIOS and makes less noise.

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Fearghast, 27 May 2022It won't be, and luckily for Valve it does not have to... moreThe Nintendo Switch has sold more units than the combined sales of: Xbox One, Xbox One S, Xbox One X. So I wouldn't call it a niche.

The Nintendo Switch hardware and specifications is over-powered against the Xbox 360, PS3, and Wii U. But it was grossly under-powered against the XB1 and PS4. At least when looking at it as a Home Console. As a Handheld Console it was a pretty good uplift over the capabilities of the PS Vita, and the laughable new-3DS.

The Valve Steam Deck is very over-powered when you look at it from the lens of a Handheld Console. If you look at it as a Home Console, it is pretty much on-par with the PS4 Pro. So it is under-powered compared to the Xbox series S.

The reason I say these is for context. The Valve Steam Deck is arguably cheaper than the Nintendo Switch (free online, cheaper games, more titles). It is more capable. And the hardware is much more competitive than the Nintendo Switch was. So it seems pretty immature to call it a failure, when it has so many things going for it. It basically made another company (GPD) go bankrupt, and the AYA Neo is vastly obsolete, and it has spawned a new wave of competition from the likes of Retroid and AYN Loki.

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    • 27 May 2022

    Still waiting off official release of steam os 3 to the desktop pc :(

      Still not sure if I should buy one. I think I'll wait for the second iteration.

        Yukvgffh, 27 May 2022Valve is heading in the right direction, the steam deck wil... moreIt won't be, and luckily for Valve it does not have to be one.
        It's a really good, portable PC, for a small "niche" audience.

          That's fan curve update is a literal god send.
          In idle to low load, it's whisper quiet.
          Considering the refresh rate settings, Digital Foundry made a really good video explaining this topic in regard to battery life and input lag.

            you have to suffer, 27 May 202240hz refresh rate??? but why thoughIt literally says it there, to save power. If you're playing something like Civilization on it or I don't know, Anno, you don't particularly care about refresh rate if you can extend the gameplay time.

              you have to suffer, 27 May 202240hz refresh rate??? but why thoughBecause is faster than 30FPS and more battery efficient than 60FPS and also a middle ground for games that can't maintain steady 60FPS.
              But this is very old news.
              Digital Foundry tested this features on YouTube two weeks ago...

                Valve is heading in the right direction, the steam deck will be a huge success

                  40hz refresh rate??? but why though