Valve Switches to Gen3 x2 SSD for Some 256 & 512 GB Steam Deck Models

Valve’s Steam Deck is a highly advanced mobile device suitable for heavy-duty gaming at your convenience. There are three variants for users– 64 GB, 256 GB, and 512 GB. While the devices are running smoothly, some might have a few hiccups.  

A few Steam Deck models were reported to have slower storage than specified after Valve quietly switched to PCI Express 3.0 x2 SSD from the default x4 SSD for some devices.  

Valve Switches To Gen3 x2 SSD For Some 256 & 512 GB Steam Deck Models
Steam Deck

The 256GB and 512GB models were affected, but only a couple of those were affected. The devices now have half the bandwidth compared to a four-lane PCIe interface, slowing down the x2 SSD even more.  

The official website has also been updated since.  

Valve Switches To Gen3 x2 SSD For Some 256 & 512 GB Steam Deck Models
Steam Deck Storage

Reportedly, this change was added after 28th May. However, Valve has been clear that this won’t affect the overall gaming performance, except for “extremely uncommon cases.”  

Here’s how you can check your Steam Deck storage specs: 

  • Hold down power button 
  • Select Desktop Mode 
  • In the Applications Menu search bar, type in ‘Device Viewer’ 
  • Under Devices, select Storage Drives 
  • Click on Hard Disk Drive 
Valve Switches To Gen3 x2 SSD For Some 256 & 512 GB Steam Deck Models
Steam Deck

The right panel will consist of a code. If the code is similar to “-E08,” the device runs on a PCIe 3.0 x2 connection.  

This change was sudden and unexpected. If users start noticing a visible drop in the drive’s writing performance, Valve might have to roll back the update.  

Steam Deck 2 Could Utilize AMD’s RDNA 3 Graphics, Claims Report 

About Valve Software

Valve Corporation, also known as Valve Software, is an American video game developer, publisher, and digital distribution company based in Bellevue, Washington. Valve is best known for the software distribution platform Steam, along with gaming franchises such as Half-Life, Counter-Strike, Portal, Day of Defeat, Team Fortress, Left 4 Dead, and Dota.

Epic Dope Staff

Epic Dope Staff

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