Steam Deck OLED review – what the Steam Deck should have been at launch
The Steam Deck OLED is a fantastic piece of kit that would've rendered every other handheld useless, had it hit the market two years ago.
As someone who has never been a huge fan of the Steam Deck since its launch back in February 2022, which led to the device only picking up three stars in our review, I believed it just felt unfinished and didn't bring enough to the table. As a result, I was hesitant about the Steam Deck OLED when it was announced, assuming that Valve would just take it's pretty mediocre device and stick an OLED screen on it.
But I have very quickly, and firmly, been proved wrong. The Steam Deck OLED has finally swayed me towards team Valve in the handheld wars and earned a spot in our best gaming handhelds round-up. Not only does it feature a brand new OLED display, as the name suggests, but the other quality-of-life changes made here, particularly the battery improvements, have really and truly brought this device into 2024. If you want to take a look at the full rundown of all the changes made between the two devices, you can find them all summarised in our Steam Deck OLED vs Steam Deck piece.
The Steam Deck OLED comes in at £479 / $549 / AU$865 for a 512GB edition and £569 / $649 / AU$1020 for a 1TB version. These models will be replacing both the 256GB and 512GB versions of the Steam Deck LCD. For reference, the Steam Deck LCD was priced at £459 / $529 / AU$795 for the 256GB edition and £569 / $649 / AU$975 for the 512GB version, both of which are now discontinued.
Steam Deck OLED Design
The Steam Deck OLED improves the screen and battery life of the original Steam Deck now referred to as the Steam Deck LCD. (Valve)In terms of design, the Steam Deck OLED looks pretty much identical to the original. You get a sleek and pretty simple black casing, and of course, this is the only option in terms of colour. You also don't get any RGB on the device (booo). But for what the Steam Deck OLED lacks in aesthetics, it makes up for in build quality and design.
Valve is already replacing its Steam Deck with an OLED model
You get a handheld which is ergonomically built to ensure easy grip and comfort during long play sessions, including slanted edges and inputs which are all housed at the top of the chassis and rounded triggers. A major issue I had with the original Steam Deck was feeling like it was just ever so slightly too big for me to hold comfortably and it feels like this issue has been rectified with the Steam Deck OLED. The device is also 30 grams lighter than the previous iteration, which despite sounding like a minor change, makes a big difference when holding the device.
I'm a major fan of OLED panels and I firmly believe this technology should be included in everything, and the Steam Deck OLED proves why. The screen is great; the depth of colour, the crispness, and the true blacks are fantastic. It makes the device feel far more premium.
Steam Deck OLED Specifications
Similar to the original Steam Deck, the specifications on the Steam Deck OLED are pretty beefy, with some improvements made to the device all around to allow for better performance and efficiency. This includes a smaller APU and faster memory.
Processor: 6nm AMD APU: CPU: Zen 2 4c/8t | GPU: 8 RDNA 2 CUs
Operating System: SteamOS 3.0
Memory: 16GB LDDR5 RAM
Storage: 512GB NVMe SSD or 1TB NVMe SSD
Weight: 640 grams
Display: 7.4-inch, 90hz, 1280 x 800p, touchscreen
Audio: Front-facing stereo speakers
I feel betrayed that the Steam Deck OLED is here – but can’t stay mad for long
As well as the display now being OLED, you also get a 0.4-inch larger screen and a bump from 60Hz to 90Hz. This lets you take advantage of the better performance on offer here.
Steam Deck OLED Performance
The Steam Deck OLED will have a slightly larger HDR OLED display. (Valve)I was really impressed with the performance of the Steam Deck OLED. The biggest difference I noticed, as mentioned above, was the improved battery life. I got around 80 mins of AAA gameplay out of the Steam Deck LCD version but found this bump up to closer to 2 hours when running the same title, Cyberpunk 2077, on my Steam Deck OLED.
The inputs were registered instantly, making for a great time playing fighting titles like Street Fighter 6 and Mortal Kombat 1. This also made shooters like Counter-Strike 2 feel pretty smooth after getting used to playing it on a handheld of course.
Playing a game which is ripe with colour, like Street Fighter 6, was a treat on the Steam Deck OLED. This was also the case with darker games like Little Nightmares, where the true black element of the OLED panel was able to shine.
One thing to keep in mind is that despite the improvements, the Steam Deck OLED still isn't a AAA machine. You can certainly run more intensive titles on it, but you're going to have to turn your graphics settings down by quite a fair margin, particularly if you want the battery to last. One of the best parts of Cyberpunk 2077, for me anyway, is how gorgeous the graphics are, especially when exploring the city, and you can't experience this as intended on the Steam Deck, even on the OLED.
Playing less intensive titles, like Islanders or Calico makes for a much better experience, as expected. The OLED panel makes the colours portrayed in these cartoony games pop and the device itself just runs a lot smoother when it's not having to render the insane graphics in something like Starfield. You also get a much longer battery life when playing these types of titles, with my Steam Deck OLED lasting closer to around 6 to 7 hours on a single charge, a major leap from the under 4 hours I got on the Steam Deck LCD.
Overall thoughts on the Steam Deck OLED
The Steam Deck OLED brings a much-needed upgrade to the original Steam Deck. This feels like a more complete, well-rounded version of the handheld, and is what I believe the first iteration of the Steam Deck should have been on launch. Although it's somewhat devastating to early adopters of the Steam Deck for Valve to bring out a shiny new edition less than two years after its initial launch, the Steam Deck OLED has brought the handheld into the present day and now allows it to compete with the likes of the Asus ROG Ally.
For those who are looking for a reliable gaming handheld, with the best battery life of any handheld I've tested so far, that will aksi run the majority of games at a playable rate, then the Steam Deck OLED is the one for you.
Score: 5/5
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