After months of rumors, Valve unveiled the Steam Deck, a handheld console that “brings the Steam games and features you love to a powerful and convenient form factor that you can take wherever you go.” Prices start at $399 for the 64 GB model. It includes a micro SD slot, but you need to transfer games on to the internal SSD storage in order to play them.
While the price for a Steam Deck goes as high as $649 for a 512 GB model, an entry point of $399 is competitive with the Nintendo Switch, which has stayed at $299 since 2017. It’s also only $50 more than the recently-announced Switch (OLED) model, which has a better screen and some other improvements but doesn’t improve the power or performance.
Valve’s new device is a potentially enticing proposition for people who have already amassed a large Steam library, and for players who want to play games never available on handheld before now. The Steam Deck starts shipping in December. You can reserve yours now.
