Steam Deck OLED Release Timings Revealed by Valve Ahead of Launch

Steam Deck OLED, Valve’s updated handheld gaming device, is launching later this week. Ahead of the Steam-powered console’s release, Valve has unveiled release timings. The handheld gaming device will be available to purchase November 16 at 10am PST in the US, Canada, the UK, and Europe via the Steam store. To combat scalpers who purchase newly launched devices in bulk to resell them at a markup, the company has limited purchases so each customer can only buy one model per week. Additionally, the company has announced a limited-edition version, featuring a smoky translucent case, available for $679 (about Rs. 56,500). This is available only in the US and Canada.

The stipulations for getting a Steam Deck OLED remain the same, with Valve demanding that the buyer’s Steam account be in good standing (no bans), and that some form of purchase must be made on that account before November 2023. Given the company only announced this device earlier this month, no newly created bot accounts will be able to swipe them from legitimate customers. It is also worth mentioning that at the same time — 10am PT — players in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and Hong Kong can buy the Steam Deck OLED through its authorised Asian store site Komodo. Just like the limited-edition variant, Valve hopes to experiment with more colourways in the future — who knows, we might get to purchase the cover separately and swap it by ourselves.

Serving as an overhauled version of the Steam Deck, this refresh understandably comes with a 7.4-inch HDR OLED display with a 90Hz refresh rate and promises up to 50 percent longer battery life. This is an improvement over the 60Hz 7-inch screen on the base version. The new OLED variant also supports Wi-Fi 6E for faster downloads and adds a larger heatsink and a quieter fan for better heat dissipation across the board. Temperature issues on handheld consoles have been a hot topic for a while, with several modders cutting holes into their Steam Deck case to enable better airflow. Hopefully, this refresh solves some of those problems when playing on higher graphical settings. In general, though, the processor and performance remain the same, albeit the 16GB RAM sees a slight uptick in frequency, going from 5500 MT/s to 6400 MT/s.

It is worth mentioning that the base 256GB Steam Deck with LCD screen is still up for sale, albeit at a lower price tag of $399 (about Rs. 33,200). Meanwhile, the OLED versions start coming with a 512GB NVMe SSD, along with the other improvements that raise the console’s battery life from 2–8 hours to 3–12 hours. Indeed, it all depends upon the in-game settings and what kind of game is running on the Steam Deck. The kit also comes with a carrying case, a 45W power supply with a 2.5-metre-long charging cable, and a Steam profile bundle to customise stuff to your liking. It’s priced at $549 (Rs. 45,700). Then there’s a 1TB Steam Deck OLED variant, which as the name suggests, comes with more storage, a premium anti-glare glass, and a virtual keyboard theme. It costs $649 (Rs. 54,000).

As before, there’s no word on Steam Deck OLED being officially available in India, so your best bet is to overpay for an imported one from online retailers.