3rd party Steam Decks? SteamOS update hints at official ASUS ROG Ally support

SteamOS beta update hints at 3rd party hardware support – Steam Deck OS on ASUS’ ROG Ally?

SteamOS could be coming to ASUS’ ROG Ally! Valve’s new SteamOS 3.6.9 beta update has hinted at potential support for 3rd party devices, opening up Valve’s non-Windows PC gaming OS to the masses.

What does Valve’s new SteamOS update do? It adds official support for ASUS’ “ROG Ally keys”. This is something that only makes sense if Valve intends to run SteamOS directly from an ASUS ROG Ally (or ROG Ally X) handheld.

When compared to Valve’s Steam Deck, ASUS’ ROG Ally is a more powerful handheld gaming device. It features a larger CPU and GPU, and uses newer AMD CPU/graphics architectures. The device also features a higher resolution screen that runs at a higher maximum refresh rate of 120Hz. Performance-wise, the ROG Ally is a stronger device than Valve’s Steam Deck, creating demand for official Steam Deck OS support for the device.

Valve has plans to create a  next-generation “Steam Deck 2” device. That said, the company may also be planning to create a broader Steam Deck hardware/software ecosystem. With Steam Deck OS support, ASUS’ ROG Ally devices could be the first 3rd party devices to enter this hardware/software ecosystem. That would be great news for PC gamers, as Steam Deck OS is much easier to use than Windows on these compact/handheld gaming devices.

You can join the discussion on ASUS’ ROG Ally potentially supporting SteamOS on the OC3D Forums.