Following the debut of the Steam Deck OLED in late 2023, the $399 Steam Deck now comes with 256 GB of inside storage. That’s much more than the 64 GB it used to return with at this worth level, nevertheless it nonetheless is probably not sufficient storage on your gaming wants. Don’t stress, as upgrading the Deck’s storage is each simple and comparatively inexpensive.
Just like the Nintendo Swap, each Steam Deck helps microSD playing cards for storage growth, and people playing cards are available in a variety of capacities — a lot of that are commonly discounted. A microSD card is one of some must-have Steam Deck equipment that we advocate for most individuals.
Whether or not you desire a modest improve to 256 GB, an even bigger 512 GB card, or the final word 1 TB enhance, we now have some suggestions that’ll allow you to get to downloading extra video games from the Steam retailer. These choices meet the Steam Deck’s pace necessities (extra on that under). When you insert your new microSD card, you’ll simply must undergo a fast formatting course of so you’ll be able to retailer video games on it.
Is pace essential?
Whereas some pricier microSD playing cards promote quicker switch speeds than others, which ought to equate to quicker sport set up instances, the final consensus is that the majority fashions ship the same expertise on the Steam Deck. In comparison with operating video games off the $399.99 mannequin’s SSD inside storage, utilizing a microSD card might lead to barely slower loading speeds, however an identical efficiency.
The console’s microSD card slot helps UHS-1 class playing cards, a spec that tops out at a 104 MB/s switch fee. That’s fairly a bit slower than the marketed switch pace that a lot of at this time’s run-of-the-mill microSD playing cards boast. So, our suggestion is to give attention to getting as a lot storage as you’ll be able to afford as a substitute of worrying about pace.
Replace (Jun. 10): Checked retailer hyperlinks for accuracy
