A small Steam Deck update has been released, aiming to fix a number of bugs, including a boot issue that has been bothering a few users for a while. With Steam Deck easily being the most popular PC gaming handheld currently available, this fix is an important change that will affect many players.
Problem solved
While work continues on SteamOS 3.6, the development team over at Valve has finally listened to fans struggling with a boot game mode issue. The latest update targets three main areas. Firstly, it has fixed the startup in game mode which would intermittently begin hanging on the boot logo. Secondly, it fixed problems with detecting the touchpad button on Qanba PS4/PS5 arcade sticks.
Lastly, the issues revolving around an 8BitDo Wireless 2.4G controller showing up as two controllers on Linux have now been updated. As a stable update, all users will have access to the latest changes on the System Settings page of their Steam Deck.
SteamOS 3.6 Preview changes
The SteamOS 3.6. Preview has introduced some of the latest changes Valve intends to bring to the Steam Deck once the update is fully ready to launch. If you want to try it out, you’ll need to manually change over to it on System Settings page and reboot your Steam Deck. Here are some of the most notable changes that could really make a difference:
- Updated to a more recent Arch Linux base
- Improved pairing experience with Apple AirPods
- Improved speed of subsequent OS updates
- Fixed game session cursor offset alignment
- Improved session recovery speed after GPU crashes
- Improved connection speed of some Bluetooth devices
- Improved display color balance
- Added overclocking controls on Steam Deck LCD
For a full rundown of the changes, head over to the official SteamOS 3.6 update page.
Other issues reported with the latest preview
As stated, work is continuing on SteamOS 3.6, though the new update remains in Preview mode currently. While fans are usually a little easy on patches in Preview mode, some have already begun to worry about what’s to come.
One issue of note is that unplugging from an external display will not turn the internal display back on, something that has been irritating users. One user also found more general problems with CEC features on the OS 3.6 Preview. It is important to note that Valve is aware of these problems and will likely solve them before the SteamOS 3.6 update is released in full.
