Tag Archives: Valve

Steam Deck OLED Limited Edition White priced $30 more than black variant is hard to resist

Posted on by

The Steam Deck came in early 2022, and the only update to the handheld gaming console came in the form of an OLED version last year. One thing common to all the previous models of the Deck handheld console has been their black color.

Valve has decided to break that tradition by releasing a Steam Deck OLED: Limited Edition White for a worldwide release to the amazement of fans who’ve witnessed the white color of the gaming device only in renders. This version is a break from the monotony of the dark hue, akin to the transparent shell limited-edition version in 1TB memory, released last year that we liked to the core.

Designer: Valve

The OLED version of the Steam Deck with HDR support looks bold compared to the LCD models, and wrapped in a white color will contrast the display colors even better. Valve is not playing down the possibility of even more bold color options coming in the future depending on the response for this current version. They categorically said that they will keep improving the Deck from a software and hardware perspective.

Just like the transparent shell one, this one will only be available in a 1TB model. The off-white shell of this limited edition has gray buttons and the power button in orange. This handheld will be paired with a white carrying case and a microfiber cloth which you’ll need more often than not, since it’ll get dirtier compared to the black version.

According to Valve, the Limited Edition Deck will be available worldwide from November 18 at 3 PM. The stock has been allocated to all the worldwide regions proportionally for equitable distribution and it’ll only be available until the stocks exhaust. “Once we’re out, we’re out,” Valve says.

One user can purchase only one unit with one Steam account, so now’s the time to mark your calendars to get hands on one for $679. This is $30 more than the 1 TB Steam Deck OLED.

The post Steam Deck OLED Limited Edition White priced $30 more than black variant is hard to resist first appeared on Yanko Design.

AYANEO NEXT Lite challenges the Steam Deck with a Steam OS handheld PC

Posted on by

The Nintendo Switch may have rebooted the whole handheld gaming craze, but it was the Steam Deck that brought that fever to PCs. It was a strange device from a company famed for its game distribution platform but notorious for its spectacular Steam Machine failure. The doubt was further increased by Valve’s decision to install its own Linux-based Steam OS on the handheld PC instead of a more gaming-ready Windows. That’s why it came as a bit of a surprise that the Steam Deck was a resounding success, enough for major manufacturers like Acer, Lenovo, and now MSI to follow suit. Although not a giant, AYANEO has been churning out handheld gaming PCs for quite a while now, and it now has its sights on challenging the one that started it all with what is the world’s second-ever Steam OS handheld gaming PC.

Designer: AYANEO

The Steam Deck was a rather odd and ambitious product. It was huge, especially compared to the lightweight and slim Nintendo Switch. It ran the Linux operating system, which meant some games from Steam’s own library might not even run on it. It partnered with AMD for a custom mobile chip that no one has heard of, let alone tested for gaming. And it launched with a $349 price tag, at least for the eMMC storage model, which sounded too good to be true. By all accounts, it would have been yet another failure like the Steam OS consoles Valve tried to turn into a business, and yet the Steam Deck will now forever be remembered as the one that started it all.

Although major PC makers like Acer and Lenovo weren’t quick to jump on the trend, other brands were already launching similar devices every year, sometimes even more than once a year. GPD, which started out with Android gaming handhelds, breached that market even before the Steam Deck came to be. AYANEO followed not long after and now has half a dozen models under its name with different designs and approaches to gaming. Of these, the AYANEO NEXT from 2022 was its flagship product, and it’s now following it up with a “Lite” version that is trying to beat Steam at its own game.

The company is playing coy with many of the device’s specs, revealing only its 7-inch 800p display and 47Wh battery which are exactly the same as the existing AYANEO NEXT. The design looks exactly similar as well, down to the color options. The only real difference is that it would be running that Linux-based Steam OS, which is actually quite a critical change. That means that software features will be worlds apart once you step outside the Steam interface for anything other than gaming. Given the popularity of the Steam Deck, you can at least be sure you’ll find solutions for most of the tasks and problems you might encounter, at least when it comes to software compatibility.

The AYANEO NEXT Lite and the Steam Deck, however, are also worlds apart because of the hardware. Valve has opted to keep its handheld PC quite modest and has yet to even talk about a Steam Deck 2. If its older Windows-toting sibling is to be considered, then the AYANEO NEXT Lite will house more recent, more powerful, more battery-hungry, and more expensive specs. That doesn’t bode well for the price, though AYANEO assures that it will be cost-effective, but that could still mean hundreds of dollars more than what the Steam Desk asks for.

The post AYANEO NEXT Lite challenges the Steam Deck with a Steam OS handheld PC first appeared on Yanko Design.

AYANEO NEXT Lite challenges the Steam Deck with a Steam OS handheld PC

Posted on by

The Nintendo Switch may have rebooted the whole handheld gaming craze, but it was the Steam Deck that brought that fever to PCs. It was a strange device from a company famed for its game distribution platform but notorious for its spectacular Steam Machine failure. The doubt was further increased by Valve’s decision to install its own Linux-based Steam OS on the handheld PC instead of a more gaming-ready Windows. That’s why it came as a bit of a surprise that the Steam Deck was a resounding success, enough for major manufacturers like Acer, Lenovo, and now MSI to follow suit. Although not a giant, AYANEO has been churning out handheld gaming PCs for quite a while now, and it now has its sights on challenging the one that started it all with what is the world’s second-ever Steam OS handheld gaming PC.

Designer: AYANEO

The Steam Deck was a rather odd and ambitious product. It was huge, especially compared to the lightweight and slim Nintendo Switch. It ran the Linux operating system, which meant some games from Steam’s own library might not even run on it. It partnered with AMD for a custom mobile chip that no one has heard of, let alone tested for gaming. And it launched with a $349 price tag, at least for the eMMC storage model, which sounded too good to be true. By all accounts, it would have been yet another failure like the Steam OS consoles Valve tried to turn into a business, and yet the Steam Deck will now forever be remembered as the one that started it all.

Although major PC makers like Acer and Lenovo weren’t quick to jump on the trend, other brands were already launching similar devices every year, sometimes even more than once a year. GPD, which started out with Android gaming handhelds, breached that market even before the Steam Deck came to be. AYANEO followed not long after and now has half a dozen models under its name with different designs and approaches to gaming. Of these, the AYANEO NEXT from 2022 was its flagship product, and it’s now following it up with a “Lite” version that is trying to beat Steam at its own game.

The company is playing coy with many of the device’s specs, revealing only its 7-inch 800p display and 47Wh battery which are exactly the same as the existing AYANEO NEXT. The design looks exactly similar as well, down to the color options. The only real difference is that it would be running that Linux-based Steam OS, which is actually quite a critical change. That means that software features will be worlds apart once you step outside the Steam interface for anything other than gaming. Given the popularity of the Steam Deck, you can at least be sure you’ll find solutions for most of the tasks and problems you might encounter, at least when it comes to software compatibility.

The AYANEO NEXT Lite and the Steam Deck, however, are also worlds apart because of the hardware. Valve has opted to keep its handheld PC quite modest and has yet to even talk about a Steam Deck 2. If its older Windows-toting sibling is to be considered, then the AYANEO NEXT Lite will house more recent, more powerful, more battery-hungry, and more expensive specs. That doesn’t bode well for the price, though AYANEO assures that it will be cost-effective, but that could still mean hundreds of dollars more than what the Steam Desk asks for.

The post AYANEO NEXT Lite challenges the Steam Deck with a Steam OS handheld PC first appeared on Yanko Design.

dbrand’s latest potentially-illegal vinyl wrap ‘Switches’ up your Valve Steam Deck

Posted on by

It even has a dubiously pixelated Nintendo Switch logo on the back that definitely won’t make Nintendo’s lawyers happy!

It’s officially been nearly 6 years since Nintendo dropped the Switch (it launched in March of 2017), and to be absolutely honest, while the Switch has been wildly successful as a console… it’s kind of getting a little old. The company also released a Switch Lite and a Switch OLED, although everyone’s eyes are on the rumored Switch Pro, which doesn’t seem to be arriving soon. Deciding that it wasn’t worth the wait, the folks at brand launched a vinyl that, well, seems to be a thinly veiled jab at Nintendo. The SwitchDeck is a special-edition vinyl wrap that turns your Steam Deck into a makeshift Nintendo Switch. Complete with color-matching wraps for the left and right sides of the Steam Deck (and even a plausibly-deniable pixelated Switch logo on the back), dbrand’s kit really converts your Valve gaming device into some MacGyver-ish Switch Pro.

Designer: dbrand

This isn’t the first time dbrand’s done something mildly controversial yet incredibly tongue-in-cheek. The company also launched ‘Something’ skins for Samsung Galaxy, iPhone, and Pixel phones to make them look transparent like the Nothing phone (1). It seems like the SteamDeck hopes to evoke the same sense of childish joy by firing shots at Nintendo and Valve’s legal teams in a way that gives its customers the last laugh. I’ll be honest, I find it fun, even if it’s at the expense of an entire company’s legal department!

While the Steam Deck has loads of buttons and triggers, nothing’s quite as triggering as that pixelated logo on the back!

For people looking for extra protection for their Steam Deck, the company even offers a hard-shell cover that’s hilariously called the Killswitch Case. Designed to provide ‘military-grade impact protection’, the case covers the back and handles, leaving all vents and ports unencumbered. It even features a mechanically-mounted kickstand that lets you prop your console up while gaming or watching videos.

The post dbrand’s latest potentially-illegal vinyl wrap ‘Switches’ up your Valve Steam Deck first appeared on Yanko Design.

Valve’s ‘DOTA: Dragon’s Blood’ teaser unsurprisingly includes dragons

Posted on by
Valve has shared the first teaser for its upcoming Netflix Dota 2 animated series. The trailer for Dota: Dragon's Blood introduces us to Davion, who fans of the company's MOBA will know as the Dragon Knight. Here, he's voiced by Yuri Lowe...

Valve won’t help Apple defend against Epic’s antitrust lawsuit

Posted on by
Apple is using every tool at its disposal to fight Epic Games' antitrust lawsuit over the App Store, and that apparently includes recruiting one of Epic's rivals... or rather, trying to recruit one of them. As iMore reports, Apple and Valve h...