As a dad, the steam deck (or any handheld for that point) us perfect. Play everywhere, put it to sleep and go back gaming without any issues. Game changer.
If you plan to "only" play games then yeah handhelds make sense. But for someone like me who's away from home constantly and cannot set up a desktop while also doing cpu and gpu intensive tasks (I'm doing PhD in Bioinformatics) then gaming laptop is the only option.
Not bad to own one tho. I have a TINY room and use a laptop for more demanding games and a steam deck for easier to run stuff. I’d have a desktop but it’s too big
No absolutely, I think it’s totally fine and reasonable to have one regardless since beyond gaming, laptops are just useful. Plus you can crank the settings. Thanks for sharing!
I 100% agree with you. it's getting too expensive to upgrade desktops not only upfront but also power consumption. I have a 2080 atm and have had for a few years now but as soon as the 3000 series came out and I saw how big they were and how power hungry they were my mind went 2 places: 1 dear god those things are gonna sag and rip my motherboard in half and my power bill is gonna increase even more, then I saw 4000 series and started looking at AMD (did the same with 3000 series) and the prices and compared to the fps boost I already thought 2000 series was insane prices, and I would much rather buy a steam deck then buy a pc for the price of a car. most AAA aren't worth it anyway and indies are way more fun plus they run better the only real reason to upgrade for me is if I went to a higher resolution but in the future id rather just have my little handheld gaming device and I can still just plug a keyboard and mouse into it and game like that if I want to. Though at this point I may just wait for steam deck, been using my friends steam deck whenever I'm at his house and it feels amazing, somehow I don't really notice the lower settings and framerate on that small screen though jumping puzzles in FFXIV are a bit harder on controller, frame times might be smoother then on my desktop or something.
PC Handhelds don’t make any sense to me as a PC gamer. Also, why would you go intel for a gaming laptop? A Ryzen would have made more sense. And then you mentioned the SteamDeck and seemingly ignored the Ryzen based laptops which can handidly beat it. I mean, even if you ignore everything that PCs/laptops can do apart from gaming, the larger screen, the nature of PC games not necessarily focused on controllers and the fact that you can get a lot more screen on time with a laptop. SteamDeck seems like a good choice of your a console gamer and looking to get into PC gaming without all the fuss. Or a PC gamer looking to supplement your desktop gaming and use controllers almost exclusively in your gaming time. But otherwise, this viewpoint is nonsensical to me.
I switched from gaming laptop + Steam Deck to gaming desktop PC + Steam Deck combo. I used to play on my laptop connected to the TV, but it was sooooo loud, it was really annoying, but the portability was a plus. Now I have my desktop PC, which is so quiet, plays all my games without compomise, but I still love my Deck, and I am bringing with myself instead of the laptop for holiday for example. Another godsend feature of the Deck is the quick resume. Sometimes I play on it instead of my PC, because I want the ability to pause the game anytime I want. Never thought hanfheld gaming could be this much fun.
I like my Legion Go, but I don't think the points you made are that sound. PC-handhelds aren't portable at all, because in the end it doesn't matter whether you put a laptop or a handheld in your backpack - you will still need a backpack. "Truly portable" would be something like the PSP, which you can just slide in your pocket and actually hold in the air for more than 5 minutes without your arms getting tired. Same goes for the power-brick argument: Handhelds are drained rather quickly too if pushed to max frames. (And I'd recommend getting a new one anyway, no reason to carry around those oversized OEM bricks). Same for the accessory argument: While you might want a mouse to play better than on a touch pad, for some games you will literally need a whole keyboard or you cannot play them at all. A mouse seems like the lesser evil here. And for performance and heat: There is nothing stopping you to lower the resolution and settings down to the level of a handheld. I'm certain your laptop will perform much better and cooler if you turn everything down to 720p and low to mid settings as well. I won't start talking about the side effect of laptops also being actually useful for productivity, as even simple stuff like typing is still clunky as hell on the other side. So yeah. If I expect one hour to kill somewhere, I'd go for the Legion Go too. If I expect sitting >5h on a train, I'd rather plug in a 15" laptop into a socket and enjoy the dedicated GPU, without being limited to indies or low settings on a barely-larger-than-a-smartphone screen. And to finish: In my eyes you omitted the biggest pro argument for handhelds if compared to (gaming) laptops: The price. The decision isn't (e.g.) "Razer Blade or Legion Go", it is "Razer Blade or Legion Go + RTX4090 for the desktop + some hundred bucks to spare". If it truly is solely for gaming, then gaming laptops are magnitudes worse if we talk bang for the buck.
I understand. There’s definitely a lot of sides to the discussion here. And I agree with many of the points you bring up. But I’d say, other than the price, since handhelds have built in controllers, they’re much more convenient for playing on the go. I honestly hate playing games on the built in keyboard of laptops. So I’d probably end to wanting an external keyboard even with a laptop. Or I’d just take a separate controller since that’s an easier and smaller package. But thanks for offering all your thoughts to the conversation!
I got a desktop 4070ti and 2 gaming laptops(1 of the the g14 with 6700s), most of my single player games are played on steamdeck, just overwatch and apex on desktop and laptops
Very nice! I’m right there with ya though! I feel like the steam deck definitely just simplifies things a lot for playing single player games and more casual type games.
I don't have the living space right now. So desktop with a big desk and gaming chair is out of the question. Im constantly flipping back and forth between getting an ally since I have a decent laptop, or a gaming laptop like the new Zephryus G14.
good video, I was thinking about the same thing, I have a dell xps 17 with 60wats 4070 and i9 cpu..even tho its not a gaming laptop ,its still overkill and I dont even game on it,im thinking my next buy in 2025 is gonna be less performant but more portable for when I travel.mb the 2025 version of asus zenbook oled pro 14 or something.
I think we're possibly on the cusp of a real change. Just imagine the 3rd or 4th generation variants of these things. I have not taken the plunge just yet, but absolutely will at some point.
Love my handhelds, love my pc gaming, love streaming my pc games to my handhelds like the Odin, RP3+. If I was to get an X86 handheld it would be the steamdeck Oled for sure. Low TDP battery life is important and the other ones, you'd be lucky to get 2h+ playing high end games on it, at least with the deck you get GREAT low TDP performance for emulation, low powered games and a decent ceiling that gives us playable frame rates, for me, 30fps is fine. I grew up in the 80's, 30fps is fine.
I'd rather a hybrid handheld PC over a laptop, because i can dock it for a desktop experience when i need it. I'm more interested in a gaming PC tablet now, after seeing minisforum V3, i want to see what comes next with tablet PCs. You can still attach controllers or use in tabletop mode, But You get a bigger screen, best of both worlds. A fully fledged PC tablet basically combines your iPad/Android tablet with your steam Deck/handheld PC, an all in one device that can also be a laptop.
Nice Video. I think I agree with you. I have an HP Omen gaming Laptop, and I think it is better to go with a thin and light laptop which is actually a true laptop and not just a portable desktop replacement and buy a separate dedicated gaming device. Because Gaming Laptops are more a hassle as these are expensive yet very delicate machines which needs maintenance and care and are probably more of a niche device with significant drawbacks. For most people even a Laptop might not be required as phones are advance enough, and for those who need it, like for productivity and browsing, a simple mainstream laptop will do. I would say it is better to buy a separate gaming device (unless one likes to pirate games), and avoid gaming Laptops, as these are neither truly portable, nor last long on battery and the extra computing power can be offset by cloud, software optimisation or not needed at the first place.
Yeah, that is definitely a good point. I think in general, different types of machines appeal to different types of people but in general I feel you’re right, phones and more work-oriented laptops are pretty great for the majority of people. But definitely for those that want to game, having a dedicated gaming device is the way to go.
Another reason why handhelds are so good is because sitting at a desk after working at one for 8+ hours a day is filthy. You can get in bed, you can get in the bathtub, you can just game anywhere. Love the video, subbed!
Handhelds are just not powerful enough yet. I've dumped steam deck because it can't run cs2 properly. Asus rog is not much better. Only 100 fps on low on dust2.
All of your points are invalidated by the limited formfactor of most, if not all, of these handhelds. The Swtich formfactor most of these adhere to puts strain on your neck because you have to constantly look down. There is no elevation, and your hands are spread very far apart which affects coordination. Not to mention, they are all heavier than the Switch - some a lot more so. All this combined mak these the most unergonomic devices in existence. That's not even touching on the controller layout most of these use, which are also incredibly limiting. PlayStation is the most popular console in the world, and the symmetrical PS layout with the analog sticks on the inside is just something a lot of people are used to. For whatever reason (I'm guessing because these handhelds are by their nature closer to Microsoft than to Sony), they all use the Xbox layout which lands the experience anywhere between subpar and unplayable. They're just too gimmicky. A small laptop running an 8840U (see GPD Win Max 2 or even a ThinkPad Z13) is a vastly better, more versatile option with a better screen that doesn't weigh all that much more.
As a dad, the steam deck (or any handheld for that point) us perfect. Play everywhere, put it to sleep and go back gaming without any issues. Game changer.
Love that! Yeah, I feel like it would definitely be great for parents too. Thanks for sharing!
If you plan to "only" play games then yeah handhelds make sense. But for someone like me who's away from home constantly and cannot set up a desktop while also doing cpu and gpu intensive tasks (I'm doing PhD in Bioinformatics) then gaming laptop is the only option.
The Rog Ally battery is terrible, so this isn’t saying much
Not bad to own one tho. I have a TINY room and use a laptop for more demanding games and a steam deck for easier to run stuff. I’d have a desktop but it’s too big
No absolutely, I think it’s totally fine and reasonable to have one regardless since beyond gaming, laptops are just useful. Plus you can crank the settings. Thanks for sharing!
I 100% agree with you. it's getting too expensive to upgrade desktops not only upfront but also power consumption. I have a 2080 atm and have had for a few years now but as soon as the 3000 series came out and I saw how big they were and how power hungry they were my mind went 2 places: 1 dear god those things are gonna sag and rip my motherboard in half and my power bill is gonna increase even more, then I saw 4000 series and started looking at AMD (did the same with 3000 series) and the prices and compared to the fps boost I already thought 2000 series was insane prices, and I would much rather buy a steam deck then buy a pc for the price of a car. most AAA aren't worth it anyway and indies are way more fun plus they run better the only real reason to upgrade for me is if I went to a higher resolution but in the future id rather just have my little handheld gaming device and I can still just plug a keyboard and mouse into it and game like that if I want to.
Though at this point I may just wait for steam deck, been using my friends steam deck whenever I'm at his house and it feels amazing, somehow I don't really notice the lower settings and framerate on that small screen though jumping puzzles in FFXIV are a bit harder on controller, frame times might be smoother then on my desktop or something.
PC Handhelds don’t make any sense to me as a PC gamer. Also, why would you go intel for a gaming laptop? A Ryzen would have made more sense. And then you mentioned the SteamDeck and seemingly ignored the Ryzen based laptops which can handidly beat it.
I mean, even if you ignore everything that PCs/laptops can do apart from gaming, the larger screen, the nature of PC games not necessarily focused on controllers and the fact that you can get a lot more screen on time with a laptop.
SteamDeck seems like a good choice of your a console gamer and looking to get into PC gaming without all the fuss. Or a PC gamer looking to supplement your desktop gaming and use controllers almost exclusively in your gaming time. But otherwise, this viewpoint is nonsensical to me.
I agree with you, handheld gaming is definitely more convenient and the burden on the battery is much less. Good conversation.
Thanks for the comment! Yeah, it’s something I’ve found to be pretty convenient and fun recently. Glad your experience has been similar.
I switched from gaming laptop + Steam Deck to gaming desktop PC + Steam Deck combo. I used to play on my laptop connected to the TV, but it was sooooo loud, it was really annoying, but the portability was a plus. Now I have my desktop PC, which is so quiet, plays all my games without compomise, but I still love my Deck, and I am bringing with myself instead of the laptop for holiday for example. Another godsend feature of the Deck is the quick resume. Sometimes I play on it instead of my PC, because I want the ability to pause the game anytime I want. Never thought hanfheld gaming could be this much fun.
Subscribed!👍🏻
Thanks for the sub! Glad to have you here!
I like my Legion Go, but I don't think the points you made are that sound. PC-handhelds aren't portable at all, because in the end it doesn't matter whether you put a laptop or a handheld in your backpack - you will still need a backpack. "Truly portable" would be something like the PSP, which you can just slide in your pocket and actually hold in the air for more than 5 minutes without your arms getting tired. Same goes for the power-brick argument: Handhelds are drained rather quickly too if pushed to max frames. (And I'd recommend getting a new one anyway, no reason to carry around those oversized OEM bricks). Same for the accessory argument: While you might want a mouse to play better than on a touch pad, for some games you will literally need a whole keyboard or you cannot play them at all. A mouse seems like the lesser evil here.
And for performance and heat: There is nothing stopping you to lower the resolution and settings down to the level of a handheld. I'm certain your laptop will perform much better and cooler if you turn everything down to 720p and low to mid settings as well.
I won't start talking about the side effect of laptops also being actually useful for productivity, as even simple stuff like typing is still clunky as hell on the other side.
So yeah. If I expect one hour to kill somewhere, I'd go for the Legion Go too. If I expect sitting >5h on a train, I'd rather plug in a 15" laptop into a socket and enjoy the dedicated GPU, without being limited to indies or low settings on a barely-larger-than-a-smartphone screen.
And to finish: In my eyes you omitted the biggest pro argument for handhelds if compared to (gaming) laptops: The price. The decision isn't (e.g.) "Razer Blade or Legion Go", it is "Razer Blade or Legion Go + RTX4090 for the desktop + some hundred bucks to spare". If it truly is solely for gaming, then gaming laptops are magnitudes worse if we talk bang for the buck.
I understand. There’s definitely a lot of sides to the discussion here. And I agree with many of the points you bring up. But I’d say, other than the price, since handhelds have built in controllers, they’re much more convenient for playing on the go. I honestly hate playing games on the built in keyboard of laptops. So I’d probably end to wanting an external keyboard even with a laptop. Or I’d just take a separate controller since that’s an easier and smaller package.
But thanks for offering all your thoughts to the conversation!
I got a desktop 4070ti and 2 gaming laptops(1 of the the g14 with 6700s), most of my single player games are played on steamdeck, just overwatch and apex on desktop and laptops
Very nice! I’m right there with ya though! I feel like the steam deck definitely just simplifies things a lot for playing single player games and more casual type games.
Depends on your resources!
I don't have the living space right now. So desktop with a big desk and gaming chair is out of the question.
Im constantly flipping back and forth between getting an ally since I have a decent laptop, or a gaming laptop like the new Zephryus G14.
good video, I was thinking about the same thing, I have a dell xps 17 with 60wats 4070 and i9 cpu..even tho its not a gaming laptop ,its still overkill and I dont even game on it,im thinking my next buy in 2025 is gonna be less performant but more portable for when I travel.mb the 2025 version of asus zenbook oled pro 14 or something.
I think we're possibly on the cusp of a real change. Just imagine the 3rd or 4th generation variants of these things. I have not taken the plunge just yet, but absolutely will at some point.
Love my handhelds, love my pc gaming, love streaming my pc games to my handhelds like the Odin, RP3+. If I was to get an X86 handheld it would be the steamdeck Oled for sure. Low TDP battery life is important and the other ones, you'd be lucky to get 2h+ playing high end games on it, at least with the deck you get GREAT low TDP performance for emulation, low powered games and a decent ceiling that gives us playable frame rates, for me, 30fps is fine. I grew up in the 80's, 30fps is fine.
I'd rather a hybrid handheld PC over a laptop, because i can dock it for a desktop experience when i need it. I'm more interested in a gaming PC tablet now, after seeing minisforum V3, i want to see what comes next with tablet PCs. You can still attach controllers or use in tabletop mode, But You get a bigger screen, best of both worlds. A fully fledged PC tablet basically combines your iPad/Android tablet with your steam Deck/handheld PC, an all in one device that can also be a laptop.
How about GPD WIN2?
Nice Video. I think I agree with you. I have an HP Omen gaming Laptop, and I think it is better to go with a thin and light laptop which is actually a true laptop and not just a portable desktop replacement and buy a separate dedicated gaming device. Because Gaming Laptops are more a hassle as these are expensive yet very delicate machines which needs maintenance and care and are probably more of a niche device with significant drawbacks. For most people even a Laptop might not be required as phones are advance enough, and for those who need it, like for productivity and browsing, a simple mainstream laptop will do. I would say it is better to buy a separate gaming device (unless one likes to pirate games), and avoid gaming Laptops, as these are neither truly portable, nor last long on battery and the extra computing power can be offset by cloud, software optimisation or not needed at the first place.
Yeah, that is definitely a good point. I think in general, different types of machines appeal to different types of people but in general I feel you’re right, phones and more work-oriented laptops are pretty great for the majority of people. But definitely for those that want to game, having a dedicated gaming device is the way to go.
Another reason why handhelds are so good is because sitting at a desk after working at one for 8+ hours a day is filthy. You can get in bed, you can get in the bathtub, you can just game anywhere. Love the video, subbed!
Handhelds are just not powerful enough yet.
I've dumped steam deck because it can't run cs2 properly. Asus rog is not much better. Only 100 fps on low on dust2.
All of your points are invalidated by the limited formfactor of most, if not all, of these handhelds.
The Swtich formfactor most of these adhere to puts strain on your neck because you have to constantly look down. There is no elevation, and your hands are spread very far apart which affects coordination. Not to mention, they are all heavier than the Switch - some a lot more so. All this combined mak these the most unergonomic devices in existence.
That's not even touching on the controller layout most of these use, which are also incredibly limiting. PlayStation is the most popular console in the world, and the symmetrical PS layout with the analog sticks on the inside is just something a lot of people are used to. For whatever reason (I'm guessing because these handhelds are by their nature closer to Microsoft than to Sony), they all use the Xbox layout which lands the experience anywhere between subpar and unplayable.
They're just too gimmicky. A small laptop running an 8840U (see GPD Win Max 2 or even a ThinkPad Z13) is a vastly better, more versatile option with a better screen that doesn't weigh all that much more.
I only play PubG. I’m gonna buy a desktop since my 3060 HP omen decided to die after 3 years.. Pain in the ASS