Hasta La Gadget!

The amendment’s language was deemed too vague.

I legitimately feel bad for anyone who bought a Steam Deck right before Valve’s surprise reveal of the new and improved OLED model. The announcement came out of nowhere and the Steam Deck OLED is a better version of the LCD original, at roughly the same price point. So, I understand why the r/SteamDeck forum was immediately flooded with new owners lamenting their life choices. To these people, and to anyone with the debut hardware, I want to make it perfectly clear: The Steam Deck LCD is one of the best handheld PCs on the market.

Valve still thinks it’s pretty good, too. The company is continuing to sell the 256GB LCD version of the Steam Deck at a reduced price of $399, with two OLED models above it. This is the review for people eyeing Valve’s entry-level handheld, and for any original Steam Deck owners who could use a little reassurance these days. (It’s OK, buddy.)

My review of the Steam Deck in February 2022 started with a delirious metaphor: “The Steam Deck is what happens when the Vita and the Wii U get drunk on Linux and make a big baby together.” Nearly two years later, I stand by this sentiment completely. The Steam Deck is portable and it supports multiple input methods, much like the Vita, but it’s so bulky that it never leaves my house, just like ye olde Wii U. It also natively runs Steam, which is a massive boon for players who value ease-of-use.

The 256GB Steam Deck is powerful enough to run most Steam games, even AAA titles like Elden Ring, Armored Core VI and Cyberpunk 2077. It has a custom 7nm AMD APU, 16GB of fast RAM, a 40Whr battery, and a 7-inch, 800p LCD with a max refresh rate of 60Hz. The handheld offers a peak brightness of 400 nits, which is about the same as the Switch OLED.

The Steam Deck LCD performs like a champ. Visually striking games like The Cosmic Wheel Sisterhood, Dave the Diver and Rollerdrome look and play beautifully on the display. It has its limitations: blacks aren’t quite as black as they could be, and dark backgrounds stand out from the bezels with a gray tinge. The Steam Deck LCD’s constrained color gamut is perceptible, but it isn’t tragic, and it’s not even a consideration in the heat of a good game.

Alongside standard dual-analog inputs, the 256GB Steam Deck has a touchscreen, two haptic pads on either side of the display and four back-panel buttons that have a nice, bassy click. I tend to play indie games, generally ranging in size from 200MB to 80GB, and I currently have 22 titles installed on my Deck, with 9GB of room to breathe. Storage space hasn’t been a major issue.

Heat, on the other hand, has been an issue. The Steam Deck LCD generates enough heat to make my palms clammy after about 30 minutes, and it feels like a lot of warmth collects in the grips. The whole thing gets slightly toasty while running games, but it’s never become unbearably hot or overheated on me. The fan persistently blows warm air from the top of the machine, but not in an obnoxious way.

Battery life on the Steam Deck LCD isn’t stellar, but this also isn’t a huge issue for a device that stays in my home. Valve says the Steam Deck LCD can last up to eight hours on a single charge but, in practice, the longest run I’ve achieved is four and a half hours. Lowering brightness and refresh rate can of course help, but honestly, I’ve never had a battery emergency with the Steam Deck LCD — it’s always at home, close to a charging cable, safe and warm (probably thanks to the thermals).

Engadget

I’ve used various adjectives to describe the Steam Deck, including monstrous, massive, hefty, beefy and beastly. All of these words remain accurate, and I may even introduce some new ones today. The Steam Deck LCD is 11.7 inches long, 4.6 inches tall, 1.9 inches thick, and it weighs 1.5 pounds. For comparison, the Switch Lite and Vita each weigh about half a pound, and the Wii U gamepad weighs slightly more than 1 pound. My hands are smaller than average (but I’m not, like, toddler-sized), and the Steam Deck looks and feels freakish when I hold it. My palms get crampy after just 10 minutes of play, and even mid-game I find myself regularly searching for more comfortable ways to hold it. This is also true for the OLED model, which uses the same chassis and is essentially the same weight.

To counteract the Steam Deck’s heft, I’ve developed a strange habit. I have an assortment of stuffed animals (I like claw machines, sue me), and a few of them are perfect props for the Steam Deck, allowing me to rest the device on my lap without straining my neck. The stuffed roast chicken is particularly useful in this regard, and it’s rarely far from the Steam Deck.

There’s another, non-stuffed solution for Steam Deck neck and sweaty, crampy palms — the Docking Station. Put simply, it’s brilliant and I love it. With the Docking Station and recent software updates, Valve is leaning into the at-home nature of the Steam Deck, allowing players to connect the device to external displays, like gaming monitors and TVs. On external screens, the Steam Deck LCD supports HDR and VRR, even though the device’s display can’t sustain these features. I’ve mainly used the Docking Station in the living room, turning my Deck into a revamped Steam Machine, and every game I’ve booted up looks lovely on the larger screen. In docked mode, there’s no difference between the OLED and LCD Steam Decks — they have the same performance targets and they can both handle external HDR and VRR.

Bluetooth is hit-or-miss on the Steam Deck LCD. In my recent testing, I was able to easily pair an 8bitdo Ultimate Controller and my old Galaxy Buds Plus with the handheld, but I still haven’t been able to get my new Galaxy Buds2 Pro to connect. This has been an issue with the Steam Deck LCD since day one, so while it’s not surprising any longer, it’s still frustrating at times.

The biggest difference between the Steam Deck at launch and today is Steam itself. There are four labels for games signifying how well they’ll perform on the handheld: Verified, Playable, Unsupported and Unknown. When the device first landed, only about 10 percent of my Steam library was Verified to run on Deck, and it was hard to tell what that meant, anyway. Nowadays, 30 percent of my library is Verified, and 74 percent of it is Verified or Playable. Verified titles work seamlessly on the Steam Deck, and Playable games aren’t far off — they often have small optimization requirements that don’t interrupt the actual gameplay, like needing to use the on-screen keyboard. According to a quick Steam search, there are currently 11,229 Verified or Playable Steam Deck games. That’s a larger library than any console that’s been released to date.

Valve

Today, most mainstream games are Verified or Playable on Steam Deck at launch (RIP Starfield and Star Wars Jedi: Survivor). Generally, if a new game supports gamepad input, it tends to translate well to the handheld. Having a robust, built-in game store is huge for people who just want to pick up a portable PC and start playing, and it’s an edge that the Steam Deck specifically has over the rest of the handheld market.

The handheld PC segment has exploded over the past two years and there’s now a constant stream of new devices rolling out from the likes of Ayaneo, Lenovo, Ayn and ASUS. The Steam Deck has traditionally been cheaper than the others, with the $399 model offering unbeatable value. In the Steam Deck’s initial rollout, Valve offered just 64GB of storage at that price point, making the current deal even sweeter. While competitors are closer than ever on price — and at the high-end, ahead on performance — a handheld like the Steam Deck LCD still typically costs around $600.

Its clearest contender is, of course, the Steam Deck OLED. I’m not trying to undo all the work I’ve done here, but if you have the extra cash, go ahead and grab the OLED version. The Steam Deck OLED comes in two flavors: 512GB for $549 and 1TB for $649. These are fantastic price points, especially considering the new model features a 7.4-inch OLED display with native HDR, faster frame rates, pure blacks and a peak brightness of 1,000 nits. The new model has improved Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, better thermals and weight distribution, a longer battery life, and cute orange accents. The OLED version is the same size as the LCD edition, and it doesn’t offer upgrades in terms of actual processing power, but it is simply better inside and out. Just remember: This does not mean the LCD model is trash.

Compared with the wider handheld sector, the Steam Deck LCD offers a fantastic return on investment. It’s easy to use out of the box, it offers a variety of input methods and it’s cheaper than anything comparable in its category. The main drawbacks are its size and battery life — but if it’s not too big for you, and if you plan to play at home most often, it’s an excellent bit of hardware.

Two years on, and I’m still using my Steam Deck LCD in the same way, as an in-home portable device. My Steam Deck travels from the living room, to the office, to the bedroom, and back again throughout the week, just like it did when I first got my tiny hands on it. The main differences are that, nowadays, its library is much larger and I always have a suitably sized stuffed animal in tow.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/steam-deck-lcd-review-2023-still-one-of-the-best-handheld-pcs-140044516.html?src=rss

I legitimately feel bad for anyone who bought a Steam Deck right before Valve’s surprise reveal of the new and improved OLED model. The announcement came out of nowhere and the Steam Deck OLED is a better version of the LCD original, at roughly the same price point. So, I understand why the r/SteamDeck forum was immediately flooded with new owners lamenting their life choices. To these people, and to anyone with the debut hardware, I want to make it perfectly clear: The Steam Deck LCD is one of the best handheld PCs on the market.

Valve still thinks it’s pretty good, too. The company is continuing to sell the 256GB LCD version of the Steam Deck at a reduced price of $399, with two OLED models above it. This is the review for people eyeing Valve’s entry-level handheld, and for any original Steam Deck owners who could use a little reassurance these days. (It’s OK, buddy.)

My review of the Steam Deck in February 2022 started with a delirious metaphor: “The Steam Deck is what happens when the Vita and the Wii U get drunk on Linux and make a big baby together.” Nearly two years later, I stand by this sentiment completely. The Steam Deck is portable and it supports multiple input methods, much like the Vita, but it’s so bulky that it never leaves my house, just like ye olde Wii U. It also natively runs Steam, which is a massive boon for players who value ease-of-use.

The 256GB Steam Deck is powerful enough to run most Steam games, even AAA titles like Elden Ring, Armored Core VI and Cyberpunk 2077. It has a custom 7nm AMD APU, 16GB of fast RAM, a 40Whr battery, and a 7-inch, 800p LCD with a max refresh rate of 60Hz. The handheld offers a peak brightness of 400 nits, which is about the same as the Switch OLED.

The Steam Deck LCD performs like a champ. Visually striking games like The Cosmic Wheel Sisterhood, Dave the Diver and Rollerdrome look and play beautifully on the display. It has its limitations: blacks aren’t quite as black as they could be, and dark backgrounds stand out from the bezels with a gray tinge. The Steam Deck LCD’s constrained color gamut is perceptible, but it isn’t tragic, and it’s not even a consideration in the heat of a good game.

Alongside standard dual-analog inputs, the 256GB Steam Deck has a touchscreen, two haptic pads on either side of the display and four back-panel buttons that have a nice, bassy click. I tend to play indie games, generally ranging in size from 200MB to 80GB, and I currently have 22 titles installed on my Deck, with 9GB of room to breathe. Storage space hasn’t been a major issue.

Heat, on the other hand, has been an issue. The Steam Deck LCD generates enough heat to make my palms clammy after about 30 minutes, and it feels like a lot of warmth collects in the grips. The whole thing gets slightly toasty while running games, but it’s never become unbearably hot or overheated on me. The fan persistently blows warm air from the top of the machine, but not in an obnoxious way.

Battery life on the Steam Deck LCD isn’t stellar, but this also isn’t a huge issue for a device that stays in my home. Valve says the Steam Deck LCD can last up to eight hours on a single charge but, in practice, the longest run I’ve achieved is four and a half hours. Lowering brightness and refresh rate can of course help, but honestly, I’ve never had a battery emergency with the Steam Deck LCD — it’s always at home, close to a charging cable, safe and warm (probably thanks to the thermals).

Engadget

I’ve used various adjectives to describe the Steam Deck, including monstrous, massive, hefty, beefy and beastly. All of these words remain accurate, and I may even introduce some new ones today. The Steam Deck LCD is 11.7 inches long, 4.6 inches tall, 1.9 inches thick, and it weighs 1.5 pounds. For comparison, the Switch Lite and Vita each weigh about half a pound, and the Wii U gamepad weighs slightly more than 1 pound. My hands are smaller than average (but I’m not, like, toddler-sized), and the Steam Deck looks and feels freakish when I hold it. My palms get crampy after just 10 minutes of play, and even mid-game I find myself regularly searching for more comfortable ways to hold it. This is also true for the OLED model, which uses the same chassis and is essentially the same weight.

To counteract the Steam Deck’s heft, I’ve developed a strange habit. I have an assortment of stuffed animals (I like claw machines, sue me), and a few of them are perfect props for the Steam Deck, allowing me to rest the device on my lap without straining my neck. The stuffed roast chicken is particularly useful in this regard, and it’s rarely far from the Steam Deck.

There’s another, non-stuffed solution for Steam Deck neck and sweaty, crampy palms — the Docking Station. Put simply, it’s brilliant and I love it. With the Docking Station and recent software updates, Valve is leaning into the at-home nature of the Steam Deck, allowing players to connect the device to external displays, like gaming monitors and TVs. On external screens, the Steam Deck LCD supports HDR and VRR, even though the device’s display can’t sustain these features. I’ve mainly used the Docking Station in the living room, turning my Deck into a revamped Steam Machine, and every game I’ve booted up looks lovely on the larger screen. In docked mode, there’s no difference between the OLED and LCD Steam Decks — they have the same performance targets and they can both handle external HDR and VRR.

Bluetooth is hit-or-miss on the Steam Deck LCD. In my recent testing, I was able to easily pair an 8bitdo Ultimate Controller and my old Galaxy Buds Plus with the handheld, but I still haven’t been able to get my new Galaxy Buds2 Pro to connect. This has been an issue with the Steam Deck LCD since day one, so while it’s not surprising any longer, it’s still frustrating at times.

The biggest difference between the Steam Deck at launch and today is Steam itself. There are four labels for games signifying how well they’ll perform on the handheld: Verified, Playable, Unsupported and Unknown. When the device first landed, only about 10 percent of my Steam library was Verified to run on Deck, and it was hard to tell what that meant, anyway. Nowadays, 30 percent of my library is Verified, and 74 percent of it is Verified or Playable. Verified titles work seamlessly on the Steam Deck, and Playable games aren’t far off — they often have small optimization requirements that don’t interrupt the actual gameplay, like needing to use the on-screen keyboard. According to a quick Steam search, there are currently 11,229 Verified or Playable Steam Deck games. That’s a larger library than any console that’s been released to date.

Valve

Today, most mainstream games are Verified or Playable on Steam Deck at launch (RIP Starfield and Star Wars Jedi: Survivor). Generally, if a new game supports gamepad input, it tends to translate well to the handheld. Having a robust, built-in game store is huge for people who just want to pick up a portable PC and start playing, and it’s an edge that the Steam Deck specifically has over the rest of the handheld market.

The handheld PC segment has exploded over the past two years and there’s now a constant stream of new devices rolling out from the likes of Ayaneo, Lenovo, Ayn and ASUS. The Steam Deck has traditionally been cheaper than the others, with the $399 model offering unbeatable value. In the Steam Deck’s initial rollout, Valve offered just 64GB of storage at that price point, making the current deal even sweeter. While competitors are closer than ever on price — and at the high-end, ahead on performance — a handheld like the Steam Deck LCD still typically costs around $600.

Its clearest contender is, of course, the Steam Deck OLED. I’m not trying to undo all the work I’ve done here, but if you have the extra cash, go ahead and grab the OLED version. The Steam Deck OLED comes in two flavors: 512GB for $549 and 1TB for $649. These are fantastic price points, especially considering the new model features a 7.4-inch OLED display with native HDR, faster frame rates, pure blacks and a peak brightness of 1,000 nits. The new model has improved Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, better thermals and weight distribution, a longer battery life, and cute orange accents. The OLED version is the same size as the LCD edition, and it doesn’t offer upgrades in terms of actual processing power, but it is simply better inside and out. Just remember: This does not mean the LCD model is trash.

Compared with the wider handheld sector, the Steam Deck LCD offers a fantastic return on investment. It’s easy to use out of the box, it offers a variety of input methods and it’s cheaper than anything comparable in its category. The main drawbacks are its size and battery life — but if it’s not too big for you, and if you plan to play at home most often, it’s an excellent bit of hardware.

Two years on, and I’m still using my Steam Deck LCD in the same way, as an in-home portable device. My Steam Deck travels from the living room, to the office, to the bedroom, and back again throughout the week, just like it did when I first got my tiny hands on it. The main differences are that, nowadays, its library is much larger and I always have a suitably sized stuffed animal in tow.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/steam-deck-lcd-review-2023-still-one-of-the-best-handheld-pcs-140044516.html?src=rss

The holiday shopping period is a great time to stock up on things you might need for yourself in addition to gifts for other people. Charging cables, adapters and other handy accessories are good items grab while they’re on sale, and Anker’s got a lot of deals for you to choose from for this Black Friday shopping season. A ton of charging gear has been heavily discounted, including this USB-C to HDMI Adapter, which is a whopping 60 percent off. Anker Black Friday deals cover portable chargers, cords, wall plugs, surge protectors and basically every item needed to keep your devices functioning. Here are the best Black Friday deals on Anker devices that you can still get today.

Anker Magnetic Power Bank

Anker’s 20W Magnetic Power Bank provides up to 22 hours of extra battery life for the iPhone 12, 13, 14 and 15. It’s compatible with MagSafe and has a 10N magnetic force, stronger than the initial MagSafe charger. Its grip makes it super easy to use your iPhone as usual while still giving it a boost. Get the magnetic power bank in Black, White, Purple or Pink — all for the same price.

Anker Prime 100W USB-C Charger

This 100W Anker Prime USB-C Charger is great to have near your desk or bedside table when you want to juice up multiple devices. It comes with one USB-A port and two USB-C ports, with 100W of power evenly distributed when you use two of them (though using all three will still produce a fast charge). It’s compatible with every iPhone since the iPhone 12, along with recent MacBooks, Galaxy Tabs, the HP Chromebook 14 and more. 

Anker 563 10-in-1 USB-C Hub

MacBooks are great, but their lack of an HDMI port can sometimes be frustrating. Anker’s 563 10-in-1 USB-C Hub solves that problem (and with a 4K display) while giving you plenty of extra ports along with it. The device has two HDMI ports, a USB-C port to connect your laptop, a USB-C data port, two USB-A data ports, an Ethernet port, a 100W max PD-IN port, an SD card slot and a microSD card slot.  

Anker iPhone Fast Charging Cable 2-pack

One charging cable is enough in theory, but it always leads to instant regret the moment you realize it’s still at work or even all the way downstairs. Anker’s iPhone Fast Charging Cable 2-pack is nearly half off, making it an easy decision to spring for the extra. The 10-foot-long braided cables can charge an iPhone 14 Pro to 50 percent in 30 minutes (if you have a compatible plug, of course). Either way, their length and overall high-speed charges make them a good option to pick up.

Anker Prime Power Bank 200W

Anker’s 200W Prime Power Bank is the one to buy if you want super fast charging in a compact device. It comes with one USB-A 200W port and two USB-C 100W ports. The included 100W charging base brings the power bank back up to full charge in just an hour and 15 minutes. 

Surge Protector Power Strip

The last thing you want for your nice gaming desktop or console (besides getting very wet) is for it to face a power surge. For $22, Anker’s 12-outlet Surge Protector Power Strip gives you peace of mind that all your devices and game progress are protected. 

Anker SOLIX F1200 Portable Power Station

Are you already dreaming about warmer weather and beautiful camping excursions? If you need a new portable power station for that adventure, now is the time to get it. Anker’s SOLIX F1200 Portable Power Station is half off, bringing it from $1,400 to $700. It’s still quite a chunk of change, but it’s a steal in comparison. It can recharge to 80 percent in just one hour, checks its temperature up to 100 times every second and has a five-year warranty. Plus, it comes with car, AC and solar charging cables. 

Your Black Friday Shopping Guide: See all of Yahoo’s Black Friday coverage, here. Follow Engadget for Black Friday tech deals. Learn about Black Friday trends on In The Know. Hear from Autoblog’s experts on the best Black Friday deals for your car, garage, and home, and find Black Friday sales to shop on AOL, handpicked just for you.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/anker-black-friday-deals-2023-portable-charges-cables-and-surge-protectors-are-still-on-sale-for-up-to-60-percent-off-151931824.html?src=rss

Samsung’s Frame TV has hit record low prices thanks to Black Friday deals at Amazon and Samsung, with discounts on every size available. The 55-inch Frame TV is $520 off — a 35 percent discount — bringing it down to just $978. If you want to go big, the 85-inch Frame is a full $1,000 off, for a sale price of $3,298. With seven different size options starting at 32 inches, there’s something for everyone. The Frame is designed to complement its surroundings when it’s not in use, displaying art rather than standing out as the black mirror eyesore we’ve become accustomed to with standard TVs.

The discounts apply to the most recent 4K QLED Frame TVs, all of which feature Samsung’s anti-reflection matte display. The Frame comes with a slim-fit wall mount so it can be hung flush with the wall, just like any painting or framed picture, and offers 100 percent Color Volume with Quantum Dot technology to make colors pop. When it’s not in use, you can put it in Art Mode, which will display the art of your choosing. The Frame is a game-changer for anyone who detests how TVs clash with their home decor.

Samsung offers 10 free artworks to choose from, or you can subscribe to the Samsung Art store for access to curated collections from its museum partners, like The Louvre. You can also upload your own images to display, and use it like a massive digital picture frame. When the TV is in Art Mode, it can be programmed to display artwork based on whether you’re in the room. With motion sensing, The Frame can identify when you’ve left and turn off the display so it isn’t projecting to an empty room. It’ll come back on when you return.

Like Samsung’s other smart TVs, The Frame is powered by Tizen, and it’ll have all the apps you need for your streaming purposes. You can also stream Xbox games to your TV through Samsung’s Gaming hub if you have Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. The Frame comes in seven sizes: 32-inch, 43-inch, 50-inch, 55-inch, 65-inch, 75-inch and 85-inch. It might normally be a bit of a splurge, but there’s potential to save hundreds of dollars with the current Black Friday sales.

Your Black Friday Shopping Guide: See all of Yahoo’s Black Friday coverage, here. Follow Engadget for Black Friday tech deals. Learn about Black Friday trends on In The Know. Hear from Autoblog’s experts on the best Black Friday deals for your car, garage, and home, and find Black Friday sales to shop on AOL, handpicked just for you.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/black-friday-tv-deals-the-samsung-frame-tv-is-still-on-sale-for-up-to-1000-off-193053842.html?src=rss