SteamOS 3.2 Released With More Improvements For The Steam Deck

[phoronix]

Phoronix: SteamOS 3.2 Released With More Improvements For The Steam Deck

Valve this evening published SteamOS 3.2 as the newest version of their Arch Linux based operating system for the Steam Deck and currently running unofficially by passionate Linux gamers on other hardware too...

https://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=news_item&px=SteamOS-3.2-Released

[Quackdoc]

I wonder if steamos will work in crosvm, it works in qemu, but needs hw passthrough, getting it to work in crosvm would be really sweet for those chromeos gamers, (and the people who get it working on more traditional distros ofc) since it has vulkan support.

I could see chromeos doing this as a semi supported use case, would be a "game mode"

still dissapointed there is no VRR so I won't be getting a steamdeck myself

[Linuxxx]

still dissapointed there is no VRR so I won't be getting a steamdeck myself

Why not also demand a 4K screen while you are at it?

BTW, Valve's Gamescope really helps in the smoothness department with a fixed refresh-rate screen.

And here's a really good explanation by them why a stable (V-synced) framerate is infinitely better for a smooth gaming experience than uncapped framerates that swing & jump around wildly (take note, shmerl):

More nerdy details about the refresh rate change.
So 30hz = 33.33 ms/frame, and 60hz = 16.66ms/frame. Meanwhile, 40hz is 25 ms/frame. So while it might seem a bit counter intuitive,
40fps is exactly half-way between 30 fps and 60 fps in terms of update speed
, and as such looks and feels far more responsive than 30fps. Generally speaking you always want a very stable frame pacing. So having a rock solid 40hz is better than oscillating between 42 and 48 hz, especially if your screen refresh is 60hz. This is because you're only actually getting a new frame each 1/60th of a second, so every time you miss, you get a double frame, leading to judder.

So a rock solid 40fps in game, with a 40hz updating screen, means every frame is a new frame and as a result it can feel smoother than an inconsistent framerate with a higher screen refresh. In addition, locking framerate lower puts less demand on the system and thus saves battery. While 40hz will use more battery than 30hz, it will use less than a game capped at a higher refresh, while still giving a subjectively far higher quality of an experience comparitively.

[shmerl]

Adaptive sync with fluctuating framerate is better than forced vsynced one. But if you are dipping below values like 40 fps - it's pretty unpleasant no matter how you slice it. 30 Hz / 30 fps is not cool.

Stable frame pacing is something dependent on the game, you can't do anything about it from the outside if the game is written poorly.

[brucethemoose]

Why not also demand a 4K screen while you are at it?

BTW, Valve's Gamescope really helps in the smoothness department with a fixed refresh-rate screen.

And here's a really good explanation by them why a stable (V-synced) framerate is infinitely better for a smooth gaming experience than uncapped framerates that swing & jump around wildly (take note, shmerl):

In theory VRR should be cheap to implement, and would dramatically improve performance and even battery life.


I get that Valve probably couldn't source such a display, but I still agree with doc: lack of VRR in this device is just a massive missed opportunity.

[Quackdoc]

Why not also demand a 4K screen while you are at it?

BTW, Valve's Gamescope really helps in the smoothness department with a fixed refresh-rate screen.

And here's a really good explanation by them why a stable (V-synced) framerate is infinitely better for a smooth gaming experience than uncapped framerates that swing & jump around wildly (take note, shmerl):

is this a cope? It certainly feels like one.

40 FPS is not NEAR as smooth as 60fps with VRR and dips to within freesync range, or even so long as it isn't often, below. I don't know who thinks that's a better experience but IMO it is certainly not the case at all. not to mention you are still relying on vsync, which can add latency and are wasting some gpu horse power when you can easily exceed it, and if you just crank the settings to get to that range, you can still dip down below causing an even worse experience. or you use triple buffer vsync or mailbox, or whatever the API calls it, in which case you no longer gain the power savings or at least do to a much lesser extent.

also with VRR you can target 60fps with a lower power profile, so you are still saving power, without loosing the 60fps cap. the defense that is shown ONLY works WITHOUT VRR as he himself states "...especially if your screen refresh is 60hz. This is because you're only actually getting a new frame each 1/60th of a second, so every time you miss, you get a double frame, leading to judder." the entire second part of whats being said is about non VRR displays. this is not an issue with VRR. so while some people may see a rock solid 40hz with no judder better then 42-48hz with no judder I doubt highly the majority of people do.

I will say 40hz is way better then 30hz, but it's no where close to VRR.

not to mention, steamdeck could make a nice portable media device, something which is exponentially better with a VRR display. as freesync can play VFR, 24fps and 30fps content without needing to change display refresh rate.

and to top it all off, it's not like VRR and 40fps lock.

4k doesn't make sense for a gaming handled, VRR does especially on a low powered gaming device. and the lack of it, regardless of reason, sucks a lot, and is enough to make me not purchase the device.

[Adventurer_Kun]

is this a cope? It certainly feels like one.

40 FPS is not NEAR as smooth as 60fps with VRR and dips to within freesync range, or even so long as it isn't often, below. I don't know who thinks that's a better experience but IMO it is certainly not the case at all. not to mention you are still relying on vsync, which can add latency and are wasting some gpu horse power when you can easily exceed it, and if you just crank the settings to get to that range, you can still dip down below causing an even worse experience. or you use triple buffer vsync or mailbox, or whatever the API calls it, in which case you no longer gain the power savings or at least do to a much lesser extent.

also with VRR you can target 60fps with a lower power profile, so you are still saving power, without loosing the 60fps cap. the defense that is shown ONLY works WITHOUT VRR as he himself states "...especially if your screen refresh is 60hz. This is because you're only actually getting a new frame each 1/60th of a second, so every time you miss, you get a double frame, leading to judder." the entire second part of whats being said is about non VRR displays. this is not an issue with VRR. so while some people may see a rock solid 40hz with no judder better then 42-48hz with no judder I doubt highly the majority of people do.

I will say 40hz is way better then 30hz, but it's no where close to VRR.

not to mention, steamdeck could make a nice portable media device, something which is exponentially better with a VRR display. as freesync can play VFR, 24fps and 30fps content without needing to change display refresh rate.

and to top it all off, it's not like VRR and 40fps lock.

4k doesn't make sense for a gaming handled, VRR does especially on a low powered gaming device. and the lack of it, regardless of reason, sucks a lot, and is enough to make me not purchase the device.

it's kind of funny that because of one function you won't buy a great device for me, I think you're just looking for a reason not to buy, you might as well be whining here that the device doesn't have a 4k screen with 120 hertz.
It's certainly not good that there is no such technology, but the company simply optimizes the operation of the system with iron to achieve energy savings. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Or is it even possible that the company will add support
VRR with the following updates.

[ezst036]

I really hope we get a SteamOS ISO soon.

[Quackdoc]

I really hope we get a SteamOS ISO soon.

holoiso gets pretty close, it isn't official, but hey, it is linux afterall

https://github.com/theVakhovskeIsTaken/holoiso

[slalomsk8er]

is this a cope? It certainly feels like one.

40 FPS is not NEAR as smooth as 60fps with VRR and dips to within freesync range, or even so long as it isn't often, below. I don't know who thinks that's a better experience but IMO it is certainly not the case at all. not to mention you are still relying on vsync, which can add latency and are wasting some gpu horse power when you can easily exceed it, and if you just crank the settings to get to that range, you can still dip down below causing an even worse experience. or you use triple buffer vsync or mailbox, or whatever the API calls it, in which case you no longer gain the power savings or at least do to a much lesser extent.

also with VRR you can target 60fps with a lower power profile, so you are still saving power, without loosing the 60fps cap. the defense that is shown ONLY works WITHOUT VRR as he himself states "...especially if your screen refresh is 60hz. This is because you're only actually getting a new frame each 1/60th of a second, so every time you miss, you get a double frame, leading to judder." the entire second part of whats being said is about non VRR displays. this is not an issue with VRR. so while some people may see a rock solid 40hz with no judder better then 42-48hz with no judder I doubt highly the majority of people do.

I will say 40hz is way better then 30hz, but it's no where close to VRR.

not to mention, steamdeck could make a nice portable media device, something which is exponentially better with a VRR display. as freesync can play VFR, 24fps and 30fps content without needing to change display refresh rate.

and to top it all off, it's not like VRR and 40fps lock.

4k doesn't make sense for a gaming handled, VRR does especially on a low powered gaming device. and the lack of it, regardless of reason, sucks a lot, and is enough to make me not purchase the device.

I just got mine. Your reasoning is nice and well but I really enjoy my new toy and I think you will miss out. Let me tell you the best value for the bug is that I already have, 44 games that are certified to run great and 107 games that maybe need some interaction with the touchscreen, in my library. Because of this value proposition, I think they could easily ask for a bit more money for the next device and add VRR. As Valve commented, they aimed at a very competitive price point with the low end version and were surprised, that the high end model hat such a success - I guess I wasn't the only one who figured out, that one's existing library plays into the total cost of ownership

TLDR: If you have a Steam game library already, it's a great value, so don't miss out because of some specs - try to get your hands on one and try it out!