Steam Deck Impressions: Size, Weight, and Controls Deep Dive

I finally have a Steam Deck in hand, and so in this video I will walk you through the experience of holding this popular new device. Is it too big? Why are the controls so high up? Why did they use so much space for those trackpads? Let's find out together.

Timestamps:
00:00 introduction
01:33 unboxing
02:08 size & weight comparisons
05:46 d-pad deep dive
07:33 face buttons and analog sticks
09:54 trackpads and other buttons
11:41 shoulders, triggers, and back buttons
13:40 overall ergonomics
16:28 audio and trackpad testing
19:52 summary and conclusion

Theme song sampled from "Rosetta" by T-120:

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This video is for entertainment and educational purposes only.

#Valve #SteamDeck #PCgaming

[FanTheDeck]

Your friend has done the community a great service!

[SolarLight]

Some protips regarding the trackpads:
• You can remap them on a game to game basis.
• There are control templates you can pick from, you don't need to stick to the default ones. If you're playing a shooter, consider picking a template for shooters, and the Deck will set its controls up in a more suitable way.
• If you just fire up a game without using a template, the Deck won't know what you're playing and will make assumptions, which may work good, but may not, so you should probably choose a template.
• In Doom Eternal, it looks like the right pad was mimicking a Joystick. This is a bad setting, but this was set because the Deck doesn't know if the game allows for using a mouse and a joystick at the same time. To play it safe, it made both act as a joystick, so you need to manually change this setting or choose a template.
• Making the pads mimic a joystick means you have to deal with the same quirks as a joystick, like deadzones and maximum speeds. That's why it's bad. Make it mimic a mouse instead.
• Use the gyro for aiming in a shooter (don't forget - as a mouse, not a joystick). The pads and sticks are more for turning your character, and shouldn't really be used for aiming.
• Doom Eternal is a good test candidate, as it allows a mouse and a controller at the same time. Pick the gyro as mouse template, and it should work.
• Editing a template has tons of settings to tinker with. You can also make the gyro enable or disable with a button, for example.
• You can make the pads create radial menus to press different keyboard keys, useful for games that weren't designed with a controller in the first place.
• Thanks for listening to my TED Talk

[ThePhawx]

I found myself nodding and agreeing to your take on inputs. Great job on the quick impressions. Part of the charm of the Steam Deck is how much continually gets revealed as you use it. Steam Input takes a beat to fully appreciate.

[Sheeit]

This is the style of overview video I've been waiting to see since early review systems went out. Makes sense I'd have to wait for a retro review channel to really go in depth about the "feel". No one else has given as many detailed measurements and comparisons to drive home something as essential but as hard to communicate, thank you.

[HiTechLoLife]

Love hearing it from one of the big daddies in the Handheld Emulation Device scene.

Also worth mentioning is that Gyro is a *major* game changer in games like Doom Eternal and other FPSes.

[thedesucomplex]

Coming from my girlfriend's years of experience with the Steam Controller, the trackpads and the versatility of Steam Input are the secret sauce that makes this handheld worth it. It takes a lot of setup and tuning, so you may not be able to cover it after only a week, but using the trackpads for mouse emulation is magical.

It's also worth noting how much work Valve is putting into SteamOS. Theres so many creature comforts that make it probably the best bespoke gaming OS, and we are barely out of the gate. Global FPS limiters and FSR implementations, letting you tune the hardware to favor battery life or performance, just having a a toggle in the menu to enable a performance benchmark. And thats on top of the years of Proton work that went into making it work with so many games that may never see a dedicated Linux port.

Theres still a few issues and bugs and kinks to work out, but I am itching for my Q2 reservation, because this is my hardware of the year, if not the generation.

[billweirdo]

I think those track pads are made more to mimick an mouse. I think it'd be most useful in games like ark or Diablo where you have big inventory systems.

[MattDAudiofile]

The reviewer I've been patiently waiting for.

[billweirdo]

Most honest detailed reviews. Ever since I stumbled upon your channel I don't need any other. Great job
Ps I hope this lives up to the built up hype I would love to order one if it's worth it.

[defectiveup]

I love my deck so much, it's so much fun to tinker with Linux and the games run great. Battery life is the only issue I have, but I use it at home primarily so not really a problem. Best handheld I've ever owned.

[Belgarathe]

I think most people kinda forgot that something like a game boy was something very pocketable and quick to pick up games. You could be sitting in a bench waiting for you parents to pick you up from school or you could sneak a game during break. These use cases I agree with you about the abernic and others have a different use case vs a steam deck. The steam deck is awesome but you have to really be intentional to use it. You can’t quickly snap it out of your pocket and play while you wait in grocery line to pay.

[Cisco]

Tell your friend we said, "Thank you!".

[sme]

Based on my Steam Controller experience, getting a good trackpad shooter experience absolutely requires tuning it to your preference, I recommend trying trackball emulation with higher sensitivity setting.

[NeedVitaminD]

Can't wait for your emulation testing vids on this!! the whole reason I even want one.

[olizelda]

I'd love to see how emulation is through retroarch on steam, and possibly a direct comparison of the emulation on the Odin. Currently torn between the two!

[adneybr]

Make sure to thank your friend in the mame of all subscribers for this. That's the best video so far about the Steam Deck. I was eager to have one, unfortunately Valve didn't sell for Brazil.

[rickmcintosh]

After watching what feels like millions of unboxings and steam deck reviews I must admit your review feels like I am seeing it again for the first time. I look forward to your take on performance on both OSs. Good job!

[TNeltron]

Your friend is a champion! Hope you buy him a beer for helping you (and us!) out by being so generous with the Steam Deck. Can't wait to hear more from you about this device, but hardware wise sounds like we're off to a great start!

[etharp]

Waiting for more from this from you, cant wait to see your emulation advise, love the content!

[JoeGess]

Been lookin forward to this deep dive! :D