Summary
- Steam Deck users can now officially load Windows onto their device with Valve's supported drivers for a full gaming experience on the go.
- While Windows is an option, the responsiveness and gaming experience of SteamOS may still make it the better choice for many users.
- Microsoft is adapting Windows for smaller screens, but Valve's expansion of SteamOS to other handhelds may challenge Windows in the portable gaming market.
Steam Deck comes with SteamOS by default, which does a great job at letting you play your PC games while on the go. However, it's also entirely possible to load Windows onto it instead. For a while, getting Windows working on SteamOS was a fan-driven project. However, Valve has supplied WinDeck fans with officially supported drivers for using Windows on their Steam Deck.
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The Steam Deck OLED dropped by surprise recently, and it's a fantastic handheld that's more than just a screen upgrade.
Valve brings official drivers to Steam Decks running Windows
As spotted by Neowin, Valve has taken to X to make a post about Windows on Steam Deck OLED. If you prefer Microsoft's operating system over Valve's, you can now grab a wide range of drivers for all of the Steam Deck's components, downloadable from the Steam website.
So, is this a sign to ditch SteamOS and move to Windows? Maybe not. As our writer Joe Rice-Jones discovered, it's entirely possible to install Windows, but you really shouldn't. As Joe points out, SteamOS is still more responsive and a better pick for gaming. However, some people enjoy using Windows on their Steam Decks to make it more than a gaming device, so more power to you if that's what you want.
Still, getting Windows onto handheld devices isn't such a bad idea. After all, Microsoft is doing its best to support smaller screens, such as a new compact mode for the Game Bar. But Microsoft has to hurry up, as Valve is also bringing its SteamOS to other handhelds which may end up pushing Windows out of the portable gaming scene. And if you want neither Windows nor SteamOS, why not try something a little different? For example, you can use Proton as an operating system instead - the world is your oyster.