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i fucking love the impact the Steam Deck's already had on the industry in just 1 year.

64bitmodels

Reverse groomer.
Pre steam deck

GPD win's terrible handhelds, Retroid Pocket 2, Alienware UFO (never went anywhere).... uhh, that's it really.

GPD_Win_2.jpg
08-alienware-concept-ufo-gaming-device.jpg
retroid-pocket-2.jpg

POST Steam Deck
The Deck itself, AYN Odin (actually good PS2 emulation on a 200 dollar device!!!), AYN Loki, retroid pocket 3, Asus ROG ally, Ayaneo 2, etc etc etc

220304115751-steam-deck-review-lead.jpg
maxresdefault.jpg
ayn-loki-1.jpg
IMG_9568.jpg
asus_rog_ally_pic_3.jpg
27a77150-9cfc-11ed-ba4f-26b571369f57.cf.jpg

ALL of this. in 1 year.

This is exactly what I predicted when the system was first unveiled. It hasn't been a year and everyone's scrambling for a piece of the action. As the years pass, these devices will only get better and better, cheaper and smaller.

The future of gaming handhelds is looking bright.
 
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64bitmodels

Reverse groomer.
I will wait for steam 2 deck.
Current steam deck is a risky purchase for me, due to the graphics.
you don't need to do that, this is what my post was highlighting
With so much competition that is coming out you can get a better device now. The Asus ROG Ally seems especially like a great pick
 

Filben

Member
Damn, the Ayaneo Air looks sick and fucking amazing! If it wasn't that pricey with shipping and all those import fees I would have ordered one. But I would've ended up at 750 EUR compared to 420EUR of the Deck.
 

Black_Stride

do not tempt fate do not contrain Wonder Woman's thighs do not do not
Thank you Nintendo!
KingTendo!!!!!

P.S
Booming isnt exactly what I would call it.
The not-Nintendo Switch PC......sell pretty much exactly what they used to sell post SteamDeck.
And have always used the latest most cost effective APUs and technology available at the time.
So saying the devices were shitty because they were using 2020 spec hardware in 2020 vs the SteamDeck and other 2022 spec not-Nintendo Switch PCs in 2022 is kinda silly.

Cant believe you gonna credit the SteamDeck for Retroid, GPD, Ayaneo etc etc etc when most of them are literal Switch-lite clones.
And they existed well before the SteamDeck and are on their 3rd or 4th iterations.
 

ssringo

Member
And why do you think Valve made the Deck?
Because the Steam Machines failed and the Steam controller was a great idea that wasn't quite up to snuff. This was the next iteration that combined those ideas. Plus technology, and their own OS, moved to the point they could make a proper handheld computer for gaming on the go.

Others tried the idea before Nintendo with various levels of success. Unless you're gonna point to Game Boy and such in which case I'll go ahead and say "thanks Microsoft" for putting Gabe on the holy path that led us to today.

Mostly tongue in cheek. Obviously no one thing is responsible. Thanks for your role Nintendo!
 

64bitmodels

Reverse groomer.
The not-Nintendo Switch PC......sell pretty much exactly what they used to sell post SteamDeck.
it's not about the sales but the competition. More companies are jumping into the market after the Steam deck proved an X86 handheld could be done well. Valve is the first company to make an X86 PC handheld as good as the Deck.

Cant believe you gonna credit the SteamDeck for Retroid, GPD, Ayaneo etc etc etc when most of them are literal Switch-lite clones.
I'm not crediting GPD, i think they're an awful company and their products are shit. They had a genuine tantrum when the Deck first released and nuked their market share since they were the only people doing this handheld PC thing consistently before 2022. One of the reasons i credit the steam deck is because it got us away from GPD.

The others are fine but Ayaneo's product quality jumped exponentially when the Deck released- the Ayaneo 1 vs the Ayaneo 2 and all the little spinoffs they've made since the Deck's release... that's a response to competition
 
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MikeM

Member
I find the irony strong in that PC is embracing a handheld console so hard given the PCMR narratives.

Either way, i’m glad its doing well. Hopefully it makes Nintendo put out better hardware.
 

calistan

Member
There was this one from about 15 years ago - the Pandora. I remember following it with interest but it seemed a risky buy in case the hobbyists who were putting it all together couldn't get it manufactured. I believe they did in the end, it exists (existed?). A lot more expensive than the Steam Deck, though.

YvZEvsF.jpg
 
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rodrigolfp

Haptic Gamepads 4 Life
Looks like all of them took inspiration from the UFO design and not Steam Deck, including the Deck, so...
 
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64bitmodels

Reverse groomer.
There was this one from about 15 years ago - the Pandora. I remember following it with interest but it seemed a risky buy in case the hobbyists who were putting it all together couldn't get it manufactured. I believe they did in the end, it exists (existed?). A lot more expensive than the Steam Deck, though.

YvZEvsF.jpg
never heard of it. Looking at this OS it seems to be powered by Linux so ig Valve wasn't the first to make a linux powered handheld PC.
 

calistan

Member
never heard of it. Looking at this OS it seems to be powered by Linux so ig Valve wasn't the first to make a linux powered handheld PC.
Yeah, it was Linux and ARM. About the size of a Nintendo DS. I really wanted one, but I think the pre-order cost escalated to around £800 and Wikipedia says the company selling UK versions went bust.
 

Drell

Member
Well if it can be the machine that will motivate more devs to port their games outside of Windows that's good. The thing is, proton was mandatory for it to be a success, and then it can also be seen as a necessary evil because devs, aren't in the end encouraged to port their games.
 

64bitmodels

Reverse groomer.
Well if it can be the machine that will motivate more devs to port their games outside of Windows that's good. The thing is, proton was mandatory for it to be a success, and then it can also be seen as a necessary evil because devs, aren't in the end encouraged to port their games.
Proton means that devs don't need to devote their time and resources to making a Linux port... they can design the game for Windows and be absolutely sure it will work on Linux because of how accurate and great proton is. Native ports don't exactly guarantee better performance either.
The issue comes with idiots like Bungie and Epic who can support proton by modifying their anticheat (a single toggle in the settings and a whole new audience gets to play Fortnite and Destiny 2 on Linux), but refuse to for literally 0 reason.
Destiny 2 is the one thing keeping my friends from jumping over to Linux and it's a game i do miss playing sometimes. Bungie choosing to actively not support it is a dick move
 
I find the irony strong in that PC is embracing a handheld console so hard given the PCMR narratives.

Either way, i’m glad its doing well. Hopefully it makes Nintendo put out better hardware.
Why would Nintendo put out better hardware? Their hardware is selling astoundingly well despite having outdated and conservative specs. The Steam Deck hasn't made a dent to their sales?
 

ssringo

Member
I find the irony strong in that PC is embracing a handheld console so hard given the PCMR narratives.
It's a companion device and fits that role better than other available products. I doubt many are using it as their primary PC.

The whole "PCMR narrative" seems to get pushed more by those on the outside looking in than anything.
 

ToTTenTranz

Banned
Switch 2 gonna light another fire under everyone's ass next year.
No way Nintendo's future hardware is going to keep up with the Phoenix-based handhelds of 2023, let alone all the yearly iterations we'll have throughout the years.

Nintendo will be launching child toys in comparison, which is totally fine if all you want are Nintendo games (not that Nintendo consoles ever get any substantial 3rd party support).
 
On what industry? The handheld PC-lite industry, yes of course it's made a big impact?

The gaming hardware industry as a whole? Much, much smaller, almost negligible.
 

SmokedMeat

Gamer™
I find the irony strong in that PC is embracing a handheld console so hard given the PCMR narratives.

Probably because it’s not a specialized device playing proprietary Steam Deck games.
It played a large chunk of my PC library out of the box, and every time I get a new PC game, it’s more than likely that I can take it with me via Steam Deck. Since there’s no extra cost to anything, I think people are going to be more accepting of any shortcomings.
 
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