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this post was submitted on 02 Sep 2024
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PC is already larger than active users on both PlayStations combined, and it didn't used to be that way. Given the Steam Deck and what Microsoft have been saying about handhelds and their next console(s), you're looking at a very real possibility that the next Xbox is just a PC with a different UI, like the Steam Deck.
isn't the steam deck much closer to a console than a PC?
It's honestly the best of both worlds. A well built and tested hardware platform with well known specs and manufacturer support, that's capable of running any third party software at the drop of a hat
Not really? Conceptually maybe. But if you can install whatever OS you want and aren't forced to use official distribution methods then that seems pretty PC to me
Steam Deck is just Linux... It's the same as installing Linux with Steam. And run Proton via Steam.
Now we're in philosophical territory with questions like, "What is a console?" It runs PC games, but you can navigate it with a controller. It has most console features but is malleable enough to have most PC features.
sure, it's a spectrum. but to me the biggest defining feature of a console is being a self-contained wad of hardware, unable to be upgraded or repaired piece by piece.
Then it arguably isn't that either. They give you full instructions on how to repair and upgrade it, and they partnered with iFixIt. People have modded in more storage, battery life, and better screens. Personally, I think I draw the line at the part where it runs the same executables as any other PC, so I'll call it a PC.
Wow, it's been 40 years since I played on a spectrum.
Those are two different things
Steam Deck checks this, but so do laptops, raspberry pis and smartphones.
Again Steam Deck is almost as upgradable and repairable as a laptop, and more repairable than a raspberry pi or a smartphone.
So that definition of console doesn't work, otherwise raspberry pies, laptops, and especially phones would also be consoles. The differentiating factor is locking of the system with the hardware, in that sense Apple is more "console-like" than non-Apple competitors. Also The primary function of a gaming console must be gaming.
With those two extra points the Steam Deck hits one but misses the other. It is primarily for gaming, but the system is not locked down, you can change it how you want and even remove it entirely and put a different one.
So with any definition you can find the Steam Deck is not quite a console, but it does provide a console experience, so it's in a weird space.
I upgraded my Steamdeck joysticks to a 3rd party with hall effect sensors, the ssd to one with double the capacity, and the fan to one that is silent. There's people that have upgraded even more things, to the point of using a pcie flat cable to connect a full pcie GPU card.
The steam deck is a PC in a handheld form factor. It simply runs Linux and defaults to steams big picture mode (a console esque interface). You can still enter a desktop mode and use firefox and a word processor