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> If you install Windows, apparently Microsoft doesn't allow you to get updates (on W11) because of the Deck's lack of a "TPM". False for almost a year, a fTPM

> If you install Windows, apparently Microsoft doesn't allow you to get updates (on W11) because of the Deck's lack of a "TPM". False for almost a year, a fTPM was added in a system update in March 2022. It's even a note in Valve's Windows drivers page. > Heck even an M2 MacBook + Windows VM would do. I seriously doubt it, you have questionable GPU acceleration + 2 levels of binary translation + 3 GPU translation layers in the way. (I know VMware's DX virtualization is good but I have no experience with Parallel's) It's also at least 3x the price for meh gaming (on WOWARM64 on VM on DirectX on Parallels on Metal) performance. > Valve is almost as infamous as Google for abandoning their hardware and projects. Steam Link as an app is still fully supported and my Steam Link box not only works but gets updates, still. > Some Deck-exclusive features and API so that it can be an independent platform in its own right, instead of just a mobile PC. That's kind of the charm of it, though. It's meant to be a "play your existing games" type thing. Making more vendor-exclusive garbage won't drive adoption. The mouseaim-like trackpad, analogue triggers and haptics are useful exclusive features already, and they can be implemented by a user instead of relying on the dev. > The Deck's screen is not OLED, which is pretty dumb up here in 2023, especially when they have a "nano-texture" option for glare reduction; why not also provide an OLED option?? I wish mine was OLED too but I was thankful it wasn't when I had to keep it on for hours to download games. I could look around for a screen-off tweak but I didn't have to worry about pixel burn-in. Maybe someday a OLED screen mod will happen, the entire thing is super repairable and there's already hall effect joysticks available.

shanebellone 4y ago
"I wish mine was OLED too but I was thankful it wasn't when I had to keep it on for hours to download games. I could look around for a screen-off tweak but I didn't have to worry about pixel burn-in." Is this a real concern? I have a 55" 1st gen LG OLED and haven't had any issues. The tv is now 7ish years old and still delivers an amazing picture.
- smileybarry 4y ago
  Sort-of, a Galaxy S8 in our family had solitaire (and the software buttons) burned into the pixels. Of course, they had the screen brightness to high/max and I think screen off time was very high, so it's definitely an edge case. I know I'm overly paranoid about it, though. But also: OLED TVs don't have much persistent HUD/chromes compared to a PC taskbar, an FPS counter/overlay at the top corner, etc. It might also be a case of "burn-in isn't a concern if the panel is high quality enough", e.g.: iPhone OLED panels compared to $200 Android OLED phones.
  - shanebellone 4y ago
    "But also: OLED TVs don't have much persistent HUD/chromes compared to a PC taskbar, an FPS counter/overlay at the top corner, etc." This is a good point too. The UI does hide itself and persistent elements (screen saver like) migrate/bounce around the screen. Burn was a huge concern when these TVs were released. I assumed the threat was significantly less (across the class of screen) than originally thought.
    - smileybarry 4y ago
      It is, even "basic-quality" OLEDs nowadays are better than older panels, and TVs have a lot of burn-in mitigations like pixel shifting and the like. But that's also the kind of thing that I think would be more noticeable on a smaller screen, not to mention gaming's overall avoidance of display processing in general. (I wonder how much lag that would add, if at all?) Then again the Switch OLED exists; but it uses a very specific 720p OLED panel by Samsung so maybe it's made to withstand all those problems. (Maybe someone can "mod" it into a Steam Deck?)
TheRealDunkirk 4y ago
>> Heck even an M2 MacBook + Windows VM would do. > I seriously doubt it... And you're right to do so. I've been a pretty hard-core gamer for 30 years. I also ran Linux on the desktop for almost 20. I've tried every version of Wine and Crossover and Cedega and PopOS to play games. Let's put it this way: I never got rid of my Windows partition. Since buying a Mac, I've tried Parallels, bought an external GPU, and bought 2 MBP's with the highest-end graphics I could get. Let's put it this way: I sold the external GPU, and bought a Playstation. I've wasted a LOT of money on these experiments. TL;DR: Can confirm gaming on a Mac sucks. (I have a couple of games on the Mac, like Civ 5 and Gloomhaven. The first runs OK, but the second I have to detune to almost the minimums, despite having a "Vega 20" GPU. Bite me, Apple.)
- Razengan 4y ago
  > I've been a pretty hard-core gamer for 30 years. Same. Grew up on the Commodore 64 (long after its sun had set; it's just what my folks allowed me to mess around on as a kid) > TL;DR: Can confirm gaming on a Mac sucks. Nahh. I jumped ship from Windows around 12 years ago and never looked back. Sure I missed out on some stubborn AAA titles, but I've played a lot of great games on the Mac just as well, and between native ports, CrossOver/VMs, and my Vita/3DS/Switch and now the PS5, I've never once thought about booting into Windows.
  - smileybarry 4y ago
    CrossOver is great but in this comparison it's essentially a worse Proton, especially now on ARM. VMs I can forgive but now, between picking your poison of WOWARM64 vs Rosetta QEMU, I'm not sure it's as stable anymore.
- smileybarry 4y ago
  I currently use an eGPU with a Windows 11 PC and that's already with several caveats (and a couple specific games that really hate it). The 30-50% variable overhead absolutely sucks. But it's at least still much better than the throttling onboard GTX 1050 mobile (thanks to some questionable power circuitry from Lenovo).

shanebellone 4y ago

"I wish mine was OLED too but I was thankful it wasn't when I had to keep it on for hours to download games. I could look around for a screen-off tweak but I didn't have to worry about pixel burn-in." Is this a real concern? I have a 55" 1st gen LG OLED and haven't had any issues. The tv is now 7ish years old and still delivers an amazing picture.

smileybarry 4y ago
Sort-of, a Galaxy S8 in our family had solitaire (and the software buttons) burned into the pixels. Of course, they had the screen brightness to high/max and I think screen off time was very high, so it's definitely an edge case. I know I'm overly paranoid about it, though. But also: OLED TVs don't have much persistent HUD/chromes compared to a PC taskbar, an FPS counter/overlay at the top corner, etc. It might also be a case of "burn-in isn't a concern if the panel is high quality enough", e.g.: iPhone OLED panels compared to $200 Android OLED phones.
- shanebellone 4y ago
  "But also: OLED TVs don't have much persistent HUD/chromes compared to a PC taskbar, an FPS counter/overlay at the top corner, etc." This is a good point too. The UI does hide itself and persistent elements (screen saver like) migrate/bounce around the screen. Burn was a huge concern when these TVs were released. I assumed the threat was significantly less (across the class of screen) than originally thought.
  - smileybarry 4y ago
    It is, even "basic-quality" OLEDs nowadays are better than older panels, and TVs have a lot of burn-in mitigations like pixel shifting and the like. But that's also the kind of thing that I think would be more noticeable on a smaller screen, not to mention gaming's overall avoidance of display processing in general. (I wonder how much lag that would add, if at all?) Then again the Switch OLED exists; but it uses a very specific 720p OLED panel by Samsung so maybe it's made to withstand all those problems. (Maybe someone can "mod" it into a Steam Deck?)

TheRealDunkirk 4y ago

>> Heck even an M2 MacBook + Windows VM would do. > I seriously doubt it... And you're right to do so. I've been a pretty hard-core gamer for 30 years. I also ran Linux on the desktop for almost 20. I've tried every version of Wine and Crossover and Cedega and PopOS to play games. Let's put it this way: I never got rid of my Windows partition. Since buying a Mac, I've tried Parallels, bought an external GPU, and bought 2 MBP's with the highest-end graphics I could get. Let's put it this way: I sold the external GPU, and bought a Playstation. I've wasted a LOT of money on these experiments. TL;DR: Can confirm gaming on a Mac sucks. (I have a couple of games on the Mac, like Civ 5 and Gloomhaven. The first runs OK, but the second I have to detune to almost the minimums, despite having a "Vega 20" GPU. Bite me, Apple.)

Razengan 4y ago
> I've been a pretty hard-core gamer for 30 years. Same. Grew up on the Commodore 64 (long after its sun had set; it's just what my folks allowed me to mess around on as a kid) > TL;DR: Can confirm gaming on a Mac sucks. Nahh. I jumped ship from Windows around 12 years ago and never looked back. Sure I missed out on some stubborn AAA titles, but I've played a lot of great games on the Mac just as well, and between native ports, CrossOver/VMs, and my Vita/3DS/Switch and now the PS5, I've never once thought about booting into Windows.
- smileybarry 4y ago
  CrossOver is great but in this comparison it's essentially a worse Proton, especially now on ARM. VMs I can forgive but now, between picking your poison of WOWARM64 vs Rosetta QEMU, I'm not sure it's as stable anymore.
smileybarry 4y ago
I currently use an eGPU with a Windows 11 PC and that's already with several caveats (and a couple specific games that really hate it). The 30-50% variable overhead absolutely sucks. But it's at least still much better than the throttling onboard GTX 1050 mobile (thanks to some questionable power circuitry from Lenovo).