What Delay? Valve Adds Steam Machine Support To SteamOS In New Preview
Valve continues to inch toward the inevitable Steam Machine release confirmed for this year, now by adding "initial support" for the hardware in the latest SteamOS preview update. That's the most newsworthy part right there, but the rest of the SteamOS update patch notes indicate a lot of work being done at Valve to prepare for Steam Machine, all while FOSS developers continue to build upon the KDE Plasma desktop environment used for SteamOS Desktop Mode.
New SteamOS updates also address numerous third-party handhelds with modern AMD and Intel platforms, including major devices from OneXplayer, Lenovo, ASUS, MSI, and Zotac. The underlying Linux kernel has been updated to version 6.16, making this update the biggest leap yet toward a Steam Machine truly ready to be used as a desktop replacement.
We'll talk about the rest of the SteamOS updates in a moment, but we should also mention that new firmware updates for Steam Deck add a Memory Power Down option for Deck LCD to improve power consumption at idle, as well as "preliminary support for hibernation." Meanwhile, the Steam Deck OLED BIOS update ensures that the charging LED now changes color when the charge limit is reached, not just at 100%.
So, what are the major improvements we're looking at for SteamOS beyond device-specific patches? The following caught my eye the most:
- Improved variable refresh rate (VRR) frame pacing in Game Mode, and added VRR support for Desktop Mode.
- Desktop Mode improvements include fixes to "several cases of reduced performance" compared to Game Mode, support for HDR displays, improved scale factor for TVs, support for rotated displays, and keyboard settings following Game Mode settings.
- Improved support for USB racing wheels and other USB devices that boot in a non-standard mode, improving support for unique USB input devices.
- Fixed incorrect window positioning and session crashes for various games, including SpongeBob SquarePants: Titans of the Tide and Star Wars Jedi Survivor, respectively.
- Various audio improvements, including surround sound support, Bluetooth mic support, and improved suspend timeout for HDMI devices.
- Even dual-boot use has been improved, with a fixed compatibility issue that could cause problems with "some desktop systems with recent UEFI firmware".
The full patch notes go into a little bit more detail (particularly for non-Steam handhelds) but those are certainly the highlights. Now, we're just waiting for the other foot to drop on that long-awaited Steam Machine price and release date announcement. Will the price be inflated by the current supply issues, or will Valve be more willing to tank a loss for low pricing, as it did with the initial Steam Deck LCD launch?
Will the Steam Machine actually launch with Half-Life 3, as numerous industry sources keep indicating is the plan? Hopefully next time, we'll have an answer for one or more of these questions, but for now it does seem that Valve is intent on improving SteamOS whether or not you'll be running it on its own hardware.
