New firmware has been released for Valve’s Steam Deck. The SteamOS 3.2 update brings new options for setting fan speed and refresh rate, among other things. Apart from this, the battery life can be extended and some other improvements can also be made.
With version 3.2, Steam Deck can be switched from the default 60Hz refresh rate to 40Hz. You can then set a frame limiter, usually at 40, 20 or 10 fps. These settings are per-game, so you can tune 60fps action games and slow titles at lower frame rates.
According to Valve, a new frame occurs every 33.33 ms at 30 fps and every 16.66 ms at 60 fps. At 40 fps, the frame time is 25 ms, right in the middle of between 30 and 60 fps. This means the game feels noticeably smoother and more responsive without a huge increase in processing power. However, Valve clearly states that image stability is very important. For processor-intensive games, locking the frame rate to 40 fps makes sense.
SteamOS 3.2 also brings an OS-controlled fan curve. It’s smarter than older BIOS-controlled systems, so the fan runs quieter, especially under low load conditions. If necessary, the old pattern can be reactivated in the system settings. Valve will continue to make changes to the fan controls and try to find more improvements.
Another way to reduce power consumption, noise, and heat is to lower the game’s internal rendering resolution. Version 3.2 also brings additional options for this. There are other improvements as well. For example, the maximum speaker volume has been raised, there’s an option to quickly format a microSD card, and more. More details can be found in full patch notes,
Last but not least is a new feature. Remote Play Together is part of the Steam client and is fully supported by Steam Deck. View full details Here, In short, this feature allows you to play local multiplayer games with your Steam friends remotely. This also works for titles that don’t support online gaming at all. In addition, the feature also supports cross-platform play, so that friends can play with them as well. cell phone either pills Participate even if the game is not available for that platform.
