New Steam Deck Update Gives Millions Of Users Improved Battery Life – Forbes
Steam Deck: Always improvingThe Steam Deck is three years old, so kudos to Valve for continuing to issue regular software and firmware updates to improve the overall user experience. The latest is a small but meaningful update that aims to stretch your Steam Deck’s battery life even further.This comes in the form of a Steam Deck Beta Client update with some very brief release notes. But here’s the one that matters:“Reduced polling rate while the Steam Frame Limiter is active to save additional power. This can save up to 6% on battery life when running at 30fps in a low-power game like [Half-Life 2].”The Frame Limiter mentioned is a utility you can access from the Steam Deck’s Quick Access menu in the Performance tab. You use the slider to cap the current game’s maximum frame rate, which can be incredibly effective in extending battery life.And the polling rate is basically how often SteamOS (the Linux-based operating system powering the Steam Deck) checks to ensure the max frame rate you’ve set is being enforced. When implemented properly, this can help to further reduce your handheld’s CPU use and power consumption.So, if you’re already enjoying less demanding games like Half-Life 2, Vampire Survivors, Balatro, and many other battery savers, this update effectively gives you a minor battery life upgrade for free. Steam Deck OLED users will see the greatest benefit, thanks to that model’s more power-efficient processor and battery-saving OLED panel.To get the update now, you’ll need to be opted in to the Steam Deck’s Beta channel, but the battery improvement will make its way to the Stable channel in the coming weeks.Steam Deck System SettingsThis update is merely the latest in a marathon of welcome improvements Valve has shipped since the Steam Deck launched February 2022. In early 2022, Valve issued a firmware update to improve the Deck’s sleep/wake power efficiency, followed by optimized fan curves to curb some unnecessary power draw.We also saw an early implementation of the frame limiter that same year, and the ability to set custom TDP levels and GPU clocks on a per-game basis, which is something I’m still using on a daily basis to maximize time away from an outlet. Valve’s also constantly refining SteamOS itself, and those optimizations benefit battery life, too.It’s honestly remarkable to think about how dramatically the Steam Deck experience has leveld up in the past 3 years with this steady supply of software updates. Keep it up, Valve!One Community. Many Voices. Create a free account to share your thoughts. Our community is about connecting people through open and thoughtful conversations. We want our readers to share their views and exchange ideas and facts in a safe space.In order to do so, please follow the posting rules in our site’s Terms of Service. We’ve summarized some of those key rules below. Simply put, keep it civil.Your post will be rejected if we notice that it seems to contain:User accounts will be blocked if we notice or believe that users are engaged in:So, how can you be a power user?Thanks for reading our community guidelines. Please read the full list of posting rules found in our site’s Terms of Service.
