Due to problems with the supply of Steam Deck, then on the market, there are more and more different clones, which can be even better quality than the original. However, this is not all, as soon competitors may appear using SteamOS.
Many users are wondering if they should buy a Steam Deck clone now or if should they wait for the original to become available. There is still no definite answer to this question, but I can give you some information to think about.
Why you may need a Steam Deck clone?
I’m sure some people who decided to look through this article are wondering if they really need a Steem Deck clone when they can buy a Steem Deck itself. I can tell you that if you have a chance to buy Steam Deck itself, you better get it. For the moment it works better than most clones.
The fact is that clones are essentially very small mini PCs. They usually have a Windows OS and can be more productive in games than a Steam Deck. However, not all games are optimized for them. Many projects simply do not work on these consoles.
I’d say you need a Steam Deck clone if you don’t want to wait for the original consoles to run out of money. You may also need it if you’re looking for more premium and performance devices. Stim Deck is positioned as a mid-range device that is affordable to everyone. If you are not satisfied with its performance, you can always find more powerful analogs. Otherwise, you can safely pre-order the Steam Deck and expect it in the coming months.
What is SteamOS?
We should also not forget that SteamOS – Steam Deck’s operating system was too good. Valve did a very good job of optimizing its operating system. They made it so that most games on a rather weak Steam Deck work just fine.
The first attempt to run the Steam OS was when Valve tried to launch its own Steam Machine. At that time SteamOS was still a pretty early build and worked pretty badly. However, it turned out that nobody needed this console and it did not become popular.
Now Steam OS looks like quite a powerful operating system. It can run most games for Stim library even on fairly weak hardware. This system is built on Linux and can be installed basically anywhere. Since Valve announced that Steam OS will be an open operating system, we can expect to see more and more mobile consoles with SteamOS in the near future.
When SteamOS devices will be available?
So far, there is no information about when the new devices that support SteamOS will be released. It has been too little time since the success of Steam Deck. Besides, the financial crisis might also slow down the process.
However, since Valve announced that their Steam OS will be an open operating system it is just a matter of time. In my opinion, by the second half of 2023, there will be many tutorials that will allow installing Steam OS on mobile consoles which were previously running on Windows.
We are also most likely at the beginning of a new wave of portable consoles. Even Logitech and Tencent have already announced that they are working together on a small mobile console. This gives hope that soon there will be another powerful player on the market.
What portable consoles are available right now?
If you do not want to wait and you need a portable console right now, then there are several proposals on the market that can meet your demand. Depending on what you are looking for, I can advise you on two very promising options for mobile consoles.
The Nintendo Switch is the most popular handheld console on the market today. This console however is quite old and you can run mostly exclusive Nintendo games on it. However, it is quite inexpensive and works very well.
If you are looking for something like a mini PC as a handheld console, then you should take a closer look at Aya Neo consoles. These are handheld consoles in a similar fashion to the Steam Deck. However, these consoles run Windows by default. With their help, you can also run games from other launchers besides Steam.
