Photo: Philip Tracy/Gizmodo
The Steam Deck is Valve’s portable handheld console, often compared to the Nintendo Switch due to its familiar form factor. However, another similarity we shouldn’t overlook is that both consoles can be connected to a dock for charging and playing on the larger screen.
Or, in the case of a steam deck, will be able to connect to one. When Steam Deck launched, the companion Docking Station Valve promise was nowhere to be found. Even today, nearly two months after its release, you still can’t buy accessories or even join another lengthy waitlist by pre-ordering. Valve promised to start shipping in “late spring,” but to whet our appetite, the company made some minor upgrades to the accessories.
Spotted by Review Geek, the update to the Steam Deck docking station specs revealed some minor but notable changes. The dock was previously set up to accommodate one USB 3.1 port and two USB 2.0 ports, but now all three inputs are USB 3.1. Considering that USB 2.0 only allows data transfer speeds of 480 Mbps, while USB 3.1 can reach 5Gbps, this is a fairly significant improvement.
Image: Valve
We also now know that the Ethernet jack will support gigabit speeds, so those with fast home internet shouldn’t experience any lag. As of now, the maximum speed supported has not been specified. As Valve previously detailed, the dock also comes with a DisplayPort 1.4 port, HDMI 2.0, and a USB-C cable to the Steam Deck.
Like the Nintendo Switch dock, the Steam Deck accessory is designed to allow gamers to easily play games on external monitors (monitors, TVs, etc.) while using connected peripherals and a wired internet connection.you do not need Use a dock; a powered USB-C hub will work just fine as long as it’s compatible. But when you’re gaming on the big screen, the dock provides a comfortable home for your new console.
In my Steam Deck review, I praised the device for bringing PC gaming to a portable platform, but couldn’t overcome software bugs and poor battery life. Still, Steam Deck has a lot to offer, including a strong library of launch-day games, enough power to run most games on medium settings, and a flexible operating system with a desktop mode. Gamers clearly see the potential: Earlier this week, the handheld rose to the top of Steam’s top-grossing charts by revenue.
