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[IntentionalPun]

Valve is going to try to make it as console like / seamless as possible.

So I'd say yeah; they are likely working with 3rd parties to make it more console-like than current Steam-OS experience as well.

My expectation is that they are trying to get 3rd party devs/pubs to make the UX better than previously possible, with specific hooks to ensure games launching don't break the console-like experience.

 

[Iamborghini]

It’s a console.
If it was a PC you could upgrade the GPU, the CPU, the Motherboard, the PSU, the RAM etc (maybe you can but it’s won’t be easy)

But I agree, it’s a PC too, you could install W10 and do whatever you want.

 

[DigitalScrap]

Better question, why people that play on PC need to install windows? That becoming less and less of a necessity for gaming. A lot of users won't be installing windows simply because there's no need to.

Also, Gabe Newell said pricing was "painful", we don't actually know what he meant by it.
By the context it seems they think the price was higher than what they'd conside ideal, rather than them having to sell it at a loss.

Yeah, a device doesn't have to be running Windows to be a computer...

If they wanted to make it a "console", they would have simply made it where the only thing it could do without hacking it is launch Steam in Big Picture mode. They literally made the KDE Plasma desktop available so you could use it however you want. So, it is a Linux PC - if you install Windows, it becomes a Windows PC. I'm not sure where all the confusion around semantics is coming from when Valve has repeatedly called it a PC as well...

 

[kingpotato]

If you want a laptop that can't do anything other than gaming, the Steam Deck is the device for you.

Just because some people aren't capable doesn't mean everyone isn't.

 

[Guilty_AI]

A device doesn't have to be running Windows to be a computer...

If they wanted to make it a "console", they would have simply made it where the only thing it could do without hacking it is launch Steam in Big Picture mode. They literally made the KDE Plasma desktop available so you could use it however you want. So, it is a Linux PC - if you install Windows, it becomes a Windows PC. I'm not sure where all the confusion around semantics is coming from when Valve has repeatedly called it a PC as well...

In fact, i actually think popularizing non-windows pc gaming devices might be part of Valve's strategy, since having windows dominate so much of the gaming space isn't very good for third party gaming software/service providers like valve.

The whole problem here is because OP btw.
Idk if he hates valve or just felt like saying "this is a console not a PC!!!!" for console-warring reasons, but it isn't the first time he makes dumb threads like this.

 

[DigitalScrap]

If you want a laptop that can't do anything other than gaming, the Steam Deck is the device for you.

Uhh... I think you haven't been paying attention.

 

[Spukc]

No, it is a PC​

 

[jroc74]

I'm gonna go with yes too.

Gotta say, these were not the poll choices I expected. I thought it was gonna be from the console vs handheld point of view. I had a whole different answer prepared, lol.

After reading steamdeck.com....I'm not sure....lol.

Undecided.

 

[Hinedorf]

there is no difference between a console and a pc other than in terms of selling merchandise

all just PC hardware with different OS, what exactly is the point here

 

[Mr Moose]

It's a PC. Literally says it on their webpage:

Once you've logged into Steam Deck, your entire Steam Library shows up, just like any other PC.

Do I need a Steam account to use Steam Deck?
The default Steam Deck experience requires a Steam account (it's free!). Games are purchased and downloaded using the Steam Store. That said, Steam Deck is a PC so you can install third party software and operating systems.

I'm going to trust them on this one.

 

[RaySoft]

Yeah and you could play Linux games on the PS3 and most old consoles could easily be hacked for other uses. Xbox Series X can run lots of other gaming software through emulation easily as well and it is basically sanctioned by Microsoft.

While the PS3 supported a Linux install, the distro still ran under a hypervisor wich didnt allow full access to the GPU. Sony did this to save themselves from people releasing games on it that they couldnt get royalties from. THAT’S a «tied storefront» as you put it.
This, on the other hand, is fully open hardware; no bootstrap or anything. It’s a PC, you can do whatever you want with it.

 

[RaySoft]

Valve is going to try to make it as console like / seamless as possible.

So I'd say yeah; they are likely working with 3rd parties to make it more console-like than current Steam-OS experience as well.

My expectation is that they are trying to get 3rd party devs/pubs to make the UX better than previously possible, with specific hooks to ensure games launching don't break the console-like experience.

I seriously doubt it. This is not meant to be a «console», but rather an extension of your gaming PC, or an entry point to PC gaming.
Why would they include mouse pads if the point was to make it more of a «console» experience?
The problem with this handheld is game sizes. There won’t be any specialized game builds for this specific hardware even though you have a smaller screen and lower resolution. All the highres assets ends up just taking more disk space than needed.

 

[Astral Dog]

No, and i don't consider the Switch a traditional console either, its a tablet at most an 'hybrid' device

 

[Brofist]

It's a PC in a different form factor that's all.

Consoles are locked down in a proprietary OS and limited in what peripherals and devices you can connect.

The PS3 was probably the closest a console has come to blurring the line, but still wasn't a PC. You couldn't load any OS.

 

[kingpotato]

 

[MrFunSocks]

No, and neither do Valve. It's a PC.

 

[Denton]

You must have missed the "dedicated gaming device" part of my definition.

No one gives a fuck about your moronic definition. Words have meanings, Steam Deck is a PC.

 

[packy34]

Valve says it's a PC. Not really much room for debate on this.

 

[Xbudz]

If Switch is a console, so is this.

 

[M.W.]

No. I'm not retarded.

 

[Speedwagon]

Valve says it's a PC. Not really much room for debate on this.

But they said you can't upgrade the internal storage either.

 

[old-parts]

It can be both console like and a PC, provided valve are treating it like a console

That means
1) Dev kits sent out to game publishers to create optimized ports (steam deck profile in game).
2) A secondary team acts like back compat and uses proton to make both old/current games playable on it.

Hardware being upgradeable does not count as a PC, there are plenty of PC's that cannot be changed in any way.

What matters to it being a PC is you can use any OS you want on the device and it being X86 based, it meets both of those criteria.

 

[Robb]

After watching some previews and hearing ValvE talk about it, I think I'm leaning more towards PC. But it seems more like it's something in-between.

 

[packy34]

But they said you can't upgrade the internal storage either.

You can't without voiding your warranty and taking serious risks with the hardware, so that statement wasn't entirely incorrect.

 

[Fredrik]

No, It’s a handheld PC preinstalled with SteamOS.

 

[GymWolf]

It's an hybrid but when it is in docked mode it's pretty much an home console (or a mini pc)

 

[Brofist]

But they said you can't upgrade the internal storage either.

So this is a console too then?

 

[Gaelyon]

Steam Deck is a console by definition.

It's a computing device who by design and form factor is dedicated to playing video games. THAT is a console, whatever marketing say "it's a PC".

 

[TLZ]

A consolized, portable, plug n play PC. And I love it.

 

[kingpotato]

Steam Deck is a console by definition.

It's a computing device who by design and form factor is dedicated to playing video games. THAT is a console, whatever marketing say "it's a PC".

According to Wikipedia:

"A video game console is an electronic or computer device that outputs a video signal or visual image to display a video game that one or more people can play through some type of game controller."

So almost every electronic device these days is a console according to that definition. Including PCs.

The points are all made up and the rules don't matter friends. The only think I know for certain is that GuinGuin is wrong

 

[Gaelyon]

So either everything is a PC ; A console is a PC, a smartphone is a PC, an apple computer is a PC... Because they all can play games, have some apps, use an OS, can be hacked or mod, use the same base spec of having a processor, a dedicated graphic chip, ram and storage etc. so everything is a PC.

Or each device is specialized to a specific main purpose via design and form factor. And you have a name for each of these specialized devices.

So a smartphone can play games or a TV show or use google, but it's neither a console or a PC, it's still a smartphone because of the design/main purpose/form factor
And a console can launch Netflix or browse internet, but it's still a console for the same reasons.
And a PC can launch games, be used to listen radio or even phone, but it's still a PC.

The Steam Deck has bonus features, but it's still designed to be a console. Even if you can launch Word or Disney+.

 

[Sybrix]

I can see the appeal, i'm not of the handheld market, i have a switch but i never use it handheld mode, only on my TV.

 

[CeeJay]

Both a console and a pc are a union of hardware and software. A pc usually comes with a desktop os making it a pc but you could turn it into a console by installing Steam os, a console is classed as a device that has a fixed function. This means Steam deck arrives as a console but you can easily turn it into a pc. So, it's both a console and a pc depending on what os it has installed.


Edit: fun fact, you can put windows onto console mode and lock it down to a specific task such as ATM, shop cash register, museum interactive terminal etc.

 

[GuinGuin]

Steam Deck is a console by definition.

It's a computing device who by design and form factor is dedicated to playing video games. THAT is a console, whatever marketing say "it's a PC".

Exactly. The gaming buttons are practically useless for any other use case. It's a console.

 

[Shai-Tan]

i voted yes, assuming the interface is seamless

 

[FranXico]

fun fact, you can put windows onto console mode and lock it down to a specific task such as ATM, shop cash register, museum interactive terminal etc.

It's called "kioske mode" if I recall correctly. But it can only be used with UWP Apps, which are sandboxed.

 

[GuinGuin]

Its neither a walled garden, by any definition, nor its any more of a "dedicated gaming device" than a normal Gaming PC is.
So you don't have a point

A laptop comes with a keyboard. This thing comes with video game face buttons. A laptop is a general computing machine. This is dedicated gaming hardware. Could you duct tape a keyboard to it? Sure but that isn't the device being sold.

 

[Fredrik]

I can see the appeal, i'm not of the handheld market, i have a switch but i never use it handheld mode, only on my TV.

Just plug it into the TV and game on with your Deck on the Dock

 

[PhaseJump]

A laptop comes with a keyboard. This thing comes with video game face buttons. A laptop is a general computing machine. This is dedicated gaming hardware. Could you duct tape a keyboard to it? Sure but that isn't the device being sold.

The device also comes with a Linux desktop on it, dummy. Plug a mouse and keyboard into it like any other PC.

 

[Haggard]

I consider it not worthy thinking about. It will vanish just as fast as the stream machines before it.

 

[Daymos]

Physically it's a console, but for marketing purposes it's a PC. The draw isn't exclusive games that run well on the machine, instead the draw, or selling point, is as a mini-PC thats customizable.

 

[Fredrik]

Physically it's a console, but for marketing purposes it's a PC. The draw isn't exclusive games that run well on the machine, instead the draw, or selling point, is as a mini-PC thats customizable.

Yeah I think that’s a fair summary. A mini PC with built in controller, trackpad and touch screen.

 

[Speedwagon]

The device also comes with a Linux desktop on it, dummy. Plug a mouse and keyboard into it like any other PC.

But it doesn't have full-size USB ports unless you connect it to the optional dock.

 

[PhaseJump]

But it doesn't have full-size USB ports unless you connect it to the optional dock.

It has a standard USB C port, and USB can be daisy chained to peripherals without a dock.

 

[M1chl]

It's just a PC in a different form factor. Do you consider laptops as consoles? Steam Boxes as consoles? You shouldn't because they aren't. This is the same thing as those.

But this has custom made OS, I am sure you can install windows other linux distro, but still they went further than just do a small PC.

 

[CeeJay]

It's called "kioske mode" if I recall correctly. But it can only be used with UWP Apps, which are sandboxed.

Kiosk/console.... Yeah I may have taken some liberties with the name but my point still stands. To determine whether something is a console or not you have to take into account both the hardware and software together as a whole. The Steam deck is already open to having whatever os you want on there right or the gate rather than Gabe saying it's a closed system that then gets hacked to take any os like a lot of closed systems do. So, it comes as a console but can easily be turned into a PC.

In the end, does it really matter? It's a nicely specced handheld device primarily aimed at gamers that can be easily changed to do whatever you want it to do.

 

[PhaseJump]

But this has custom made OS, I am sure you can install windows other linux distro, but still they went further than just do a small PC.

It is arch based and already has KDE Plasma desktop on it.

For a similar experience, you can also tell "windows" PCs to launch Steam on startup and have it boot into Big Picture Mode. It doesn't negate the point that you're using open PC hardware.

 

[MightySquirrel]

If MS allowed Windows to be put on SX they wouldn't be able to supply the demand for years.

 

[Fredrik]

It is arch based and already has KDE Plasma desktop on it.

For a similar experience, you can also tell "windows" PCs to launch Steam on startup and have it boot into Big Picture Mode. It doesn't negate the point that you're using open PC hardware.

Yeah this is the way to go. Windows OS, Steam on autostart, Gamepass sub, Retroarch install, GOG, maybe Epic.

I bet we’ll see lots of guides how to do cool OS/software combos, dual boot systems, all in one emulator beasts, etc. There is lots of potential here. Goes outside of gaming too, run desktop Cubase on this thing, put it in the case and throw it in the gig bag and use it as a portable mini studio for the band. Do whatever you want. It’s a PC. Just unusually portable.

 

[Kilau]

Valve: “it’s a PC”

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