Valve has already made it clear that with the release of a Steam Deck which can be classified as next generation and with a significant increase in performance. This lack of haste is reflected in other aspects, such as the implementation of something like a screen OLEDalthough the company has concluded that incorporating said technology is not as simple as it seems.

Pierre-Loup Griffais, one of Valve’s most visible engineers in the media and one of the visible faces when it comes to Steam Deck-related issues, said the company understands the limitations of the deck’s current state. console/ mini-PC in terms of display, but there are other factors to consider besides just replacing the panel.

Pierre-Loup Griffais explained that far from what many thought, “the screen is the core of the device. Everything is anchored in it. When we’re talking about such a small device, basically everything is designed around everything. I think it would be more work than people think. I don’t think we’re discounting anything, but the idea that it could just go to a new screen and go would need more to be feasible.”

To reveal specific details, flexibility of the current LCD panel was one of the priorities when the Steam Deck was designed, mainly to produce as dim as possible backlight for more comfortable gaming in low-light environments and the ability to change the refresh rate to save battery. While Pierre-Loup Griffais acknowledges that such things could be possible with an OLED panel, the process would require specific settings.

Adding an OLED panel to a future version of Steam Deck is something Valve needs to “plan ahead. When we worked on this display (LCD), we made sure that it could be supported even if the refresh rate change was not ready at launch. It was very important for us that all this was supported. Therefore, it must be taken into account when evaluating and choosing possible options. But there’s nothing about LCD vs OLED, it’s about how you design the whole system and what’s between the screen and the SoC (system on a chip)”.

Despite being a standard x86 PC at the architectural level, the Steam Deck’s design isn’t as modular as a desktop PC, but each component can ultimately have a significant impact on the whole. This means that changing the screen would not only affect what the user sees with his eyes, but also the overall experience gained through the device, especially considering the autonomy offered by the battery.