TL;DR: Antec is going to be selling a Steam Deck competitive device, based on the Ayaneo Slide. The device has a slide up screen that reveals a keyboard, which is good because using desktop windows is much easier with a keyboard. However the device’s lowest estimated power draw at low/no load is 15w, meaning it will use comparable power to the deck running at max power. This means the battery life will probably be pretty rough when compared to the Deck. It will also likely have a much higher price point.
Every single one of the competitors I’ve seen makes at least two of the following mistakes, each of which means they don’t stand a chance:
- Windows
- Display resolution > 720p
- No trackpads
- Awful layout
I could do without the trackpads but everything else I agree on.
Maybe you could, but the whole point of the steam deck is the ability to play any PC game, and most require mouse input to play well. Most people would be unwilling to make that tradeoff
That depends on what they bought the Deck for. Not everyone has much of an interest in playing games that require the trackpads, so there’s still a big market for handhelds that cover the rest.
IMO that’s just one of a hundred reasons that trackpads are better for the space they take. You can make them mouse input, that doesn’t mean you need to. That is level 1 trackpad use, using them as the hardware was inteded. The software it ships with heavily suggests making it your own. Having the ability to set up a pad specifically for map interaction, or for QAM buttons to have 16 extra virtual input buttons (really nice for RPG’s with lots of keyboard buttons for opening menus, such as Skyrim) or a button combination for auto-walk/sprint.
Without the trackpads you’re just missing a full spectrum of possible inputs that are free real estate for input remapping. On top of just the ease of use of not having to control a cursor with an analog stick… shudders. I personally would also argue that just because I only play Roguelites on the Steam Deck doesn’t mean that a dual-stick analog is all I need, as I’ve found many uses for the trackpads that enhance that experience.
Anyway, I’ll I’m positing is that trackpads have been slept on since the Steam Controller and people don’t realize all the ways that they can be easily incorporated without making it “just adding mouse input.” They have always been so much more than that, that relegating them to “just mouse input” is a bit of a disservice.
Unless it runs Linux it doesn’t stand a chance. The moment you decide to sell a handheld gaming console running Windows you doom it to failure. It’s the worst OS possible for that purpose.
Nope, there are plenty worse…
z/os, Temple OS, OpenBSD, React OS and others.
Sorry, I am just feeling pedantic, it is late and I am about to get some sleep…
Are you honestly telling me you wouldn’t buy a Temple OS handheld?
Only if it were bound handsomely in leather with gilt lettering, as befits its divine purpose.
I mean, not for gaming…
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Windows is the main reason I never got one of those PC handhelds even though they have been around for a very long time.
Never really felt like a handheld, more like an unwieldly laptop.
The thing is, none of the competitors and rivals are competitors and rivals to Valve. Every sold device that can play Steam games, is a win. Unlike traditional consoles, Valve only benefits from competition. The Steam Deck kicked off a trend and made handheld PCs popular for the “masses” (relatively speaking off course).
Besides that, any handheld PC with Windows is just not at the same level of Steam Deck. The few more games that are playable is a plus, but the entire system is such a downgrade for a gaming first device.
Valve has a larger goal though of making Linux a viable alternative to Windows for gamers. The whole reason valve has made some much effort on Linux gaming is because Microsoft scared them when Microsoft started making plans to block software installs from anywhere except the Microsoft store.
Microsoft has backed off from that plan some since, but many new new computers running windows are in “s mode” by default which limits software to Microsoft store only. It can be disabled if you have administrator privileges and know how, but it’s still an example of Microsoft trying to shift towards a future where all PC games have to be bought through their store.
This is also why steam jumped at the chance to work with Google on getting steam on Chrome OS.
Is S mode really that popular? I’ve never seen that in an enterprise setting. End users won’t want S mode because it will limit functionality.
Basically all cheaper laptops come in S mode now, and a lot of people don’t know that they can turn it off. They also made it where the only option for disabling it requires you to first create a Microsoft account and use the Microsoft store, so you’re required to use their preferred method for software distribution before you can choose to use something else.
It’s a lot better than Microsoft’s original plan for S mode, originally it was going to be a completely separate windows build, and end users would have to buy a new windows key and reinstall windows if they wanted to use steam.
I don’t think any of the enterprise builds of windows use S mode right now, but I’m not sure.
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Is Valve even truly interested in being part of the competition? All their hardware offerings seem more like prototypes or proofs of concept, and the details for other manufacturers to build on the idea are available. Like their strategy to inject competition in these spheres is more just lighting a fire under the asses of other manufacturers to get them making the hardware instead of Valve.
Yeah. I get the feeling that Valve would be more than happy for people to make competitors to the Steam Deck as long as it had the Steam store on it.
as long as it can run steam, its a win for them.
think of steam machines, steam controllers and steam links before the the deck.
the goal with most (excluding vr) of valves hardware has been to appeal to the console player audience.
it doesnt matter who builds those things at the end, as long as they bring more users Into their ecosystem
I had a Kyocera Slider, once. I loved to open and close that thing, and it was basically a fidget device. I also had an LG Chocolate 2 and 3, and the physical keyboard was fantastic.
This handheld incorporates both, but I really don’t know if it can work in this form factor. Part of the reason it worked on the phones is they were relatively small, but with a wide handheld with joycons on either side, it seems like it would be clunky.
I miss sliding/rotating phones. In general new phones were really exciting back then.
Yeah, I’m not sure how to actually use this keyboard. You can’t type with two hands and hold it up with two hands at the same time, and it’ll be easy too wife to thumb type while holding it.
I’m skeptical. The dual-trackpad typing on the Deck is pretty slick, too. With each thing controlling half the keyboard, it feels very similar to “real” typing, and it’s fast enough for the light use that’s needed for most gaming-related tasks. So, this is a very big (and therefore expensive) component to be including fire very limited value.
If I really need to type a lot or quickly, I can grab my cheap Bluetooth keyboard (that would cost way less than the marginal cost of including a sliding keyboard like this one!)
To be honest, any hardware company can’t really compete with valve toe to toe since valves can cut cost and sell at a loss. But I am interested in how the so-called steam competitor would make the same handheld device. I’m waiting for you Tim Epic.
Please for the love of God no Whatever epic released would be half baked and make the entire gaming ecosystem worse
See I’m really split on Epic.
The corporate side is absolute trash, but UE5 is genuinely one of the most advanced game engines currently in existence and will massively push the industry forward in terms of standards as everyone rushes to compete (except for Unity who are sticking with their old strategy of doing nothing at all).
Microsoft will probably come out with an Xbox branded device some day, but I expect it will be restricted to Microsoft store games and game pass.
Yep, this is more in line with what I expect as a steam deck competitor. We’ll just see if they can provide more value to customers than steam while also making good hardware to support it.
To be honest, any hardware company can’t really compete with valve toe to toe since valves can cut cost and sell at a loss.
So far most of the companies that have tried it could have taken the same approach. They just haven’t, like MSI and ASUS. I’m guessing because they know they don’t need to, since there’s a demographic of people who will buy “the best” as long as it’s marketed at them. Why sell it at a loss when someone will pay over full price for something like the ROG Ally.
Yeah, the market for those handhelds seems to be people who either specifically want Windows or want better specs (or think they want that), but don’t mind the trade-offs.
No, MSI or ASUS or really any other hardware company (that primarily sells hardware) makes money from selling hardware. Valve main source of income is their steam service, not the deck. For any deck they sold, they could make a loss but they gain revenue by a first time gamer. Much like how console can be sold at a loss but making the profit from the game they sold. The primary difference between traditional console and steam deck is that any hardware competitor to steam deck is still a win for valve since they also mostly profit from sales on their steam service. Thus my point, any hardware company is not valve primary rival since if a consumer chose steam deck, valve wins, but if they chose the competitor, valve wins too. Epic, Ubisoft, and EA or whoever else that tries to provide the same service like valve should be their primary competitor.
Edit: my point being, the deck doesn’t need to be faster, or more power efficient, or more ergonomic. They just need to popularize the form factor. The fact that valve makes the deck so awesome on release, only to be overtaken by another hardware is not a loss for valve.
Honestly, I’m not too sure how much price goes into it. I’ve used several of the Steam Deck competitors, each with better specs. But each has a worse overall experience. Each of the people I know with one of the competitors seldom uses it. But even the people with Steam Decks who planned to use theirs only for travel have ended up using them far more than they intended. My Steam Deck has become my primary gaming machine. I’m not sure how a hardware company competes there without working with a major game store, but I don’t really see Valve being particularly opposed to working with hardware companies to provide Steam OS builds for competing hardware since it pushes their platform.
Personally, I don’t think Epic is in a position to make a really feasible Steam Deck competitor, partially because they’ve gone all-in on Windows, and the break from Windows is one of the things that’s allowed the Steam Deck to have its great experience. The only company who can really customise Windows to that extent is Microsoft, and they’d likely rather make an Xbox handheld than work with Epic on a Windows-based one.
It’s crazy that Microsoft hasn’t made an interface for Windows for handhelds like this. They’re leaving money on the table.
I mean, Ive been begging for a new media and gaming mode since the failed Windows XP Media Center Edition.
The W-Box. Walk while you game!
It’s gotta have a massive battery unless it’s running AAA games for like 15 minutes…
I got a onexplayer for like $600 and it has the 7840u in it. No matter how you slice it, the 7840u is much more powerful than the steam deck. However, it doesn’t do well in low tdp. That’s what the steam deck is best at - low tdp gaming and battery life.
But so long as I’m near an outlet, I can play more AAA games and on much higher resolution and graphics than the steam deck for however long I’d like. On battery, only about 3-4 hours vs 6-8 hours on a steam deck.
