I’m getting a 64gb steam deck probably next month. It will be used as a portable console and a desktop PC for work (desktop reliant websites). The most heavy game I’ll play is Stray (no 1st person shooters, MMOs or huge open worlds) with an hour or two of play time a day.

I plan to get a 3rd party dock, a screen protector and a case. I will wait until around black friday for those.

Is it necessary to get a ssd? Or will the 128gb micro SD card I have will be okay for one downloaded game at a time?

Main issue is the heat. Will a case make the SD hotter? Will having a JSAUX backplate or a fan matter to keep the console cooler during playing? From what I’ve read, people say the backplates will still get heated after so many minutes of playing. The fans seems to put vaccume pressure on the actual fan and will cause it to stop working in the near future. I want to prioritize coolness before getting everything else.

  • howler@lemmy.world
    1·
    11 months ago

    I dont think anything is necessary, other than upgrading your storage. I considered an SD card, and decided the price break was just better overall for an ssd. I got a western digital 512 for like 55 bucks I think.

    The hardest part of the swap was getting the case apart. I did watch a couple of videos for tips before I did it though… it made it pretty painless. the biggest pro tip was to start the separation of the case by one of the trigger buttons, and just run a credit card along it to pop the tabs. Another suggestion is if you dont have a set of tiny screwdrivers, i would recommend getting a cheapo kit. I had one I made due with, but even it was slightly too big for the task.

    Like I said, I would watch a couple of vids so you know what to do as you proceed, how to flash the new ssd with the os, etc. It really isnt that hard. I am not too terribly of a tech savvy person and was able to do it.

    I just got the bottom dollar deck, and it came with a case btw. I bought a cheap dock off of Aliexpress and it works fine. I think I paid under $25 for it… i am certain you could probably get the same one on amazon for ~the same price. I definitely wouldnt buy the valve dock. If you dont have a controller, the world is your oyster. I bought a cheapo $30 bitdo.

    I think the brand of screen protector I bought was Ivoler, and it was a very easy install… it came with a “frame” to square the glass install.

    Good luck, i have been enjoying mine.