SteamOS update preview brings "initial support" for the Steam Machine, plus new power and Bluetooth tricks for Steam Decks

Valve’s RAM-troubled PC is still in the works

The SteamOS 3.8.0 update is available to try now on the Preview branch, and it’s the first to bring "initial support for the upcoming Steam Machine hardware." That is, of course, merely a passing mention of Valve’s reborn PC box in the 3.8.0 patch notes. Am I going to engage strong, some might say excessive optimism that this suggests its recent delay and subsequent release date uncertainty aren’t as damning as they look? Sod it, it’s Friday.

Those in search of more practical updates, and presumably own a Steam Deck, have much more to chew on. This is a wide-ranging patch, spanning a new graphics driver, improved support for OBS and Discord, better frame pacing with Variable Refresh Rate (VRR) tech, crash fixes, and a bunch of tune-ups for non-Valve handheld PCs, with plenty more besides. I’m most intrigued by the bullet point that promises "Preliminary support for hibernation," which – assuming it works like hibernation on a Windows laptop – would drastically reduce the frequency with which I pick up my Deck to find its battery dead, drained to emptiness by my thoughtless misuse of Sleep mode. Yes, Valve. Continue to enable my shortcomings.

For now, both hibernation and a "Memory Power Down" setup option are listed specifically for the original LCD Deck, leaving the Steam Deck OLED to make do with its own security updates and battery charging LED fix. Alas. Though LCD hibernation support does seem very preliminary indeed – I've installed the 3.8.0 preview and a hibernate option doesn’t appear as a separate mode to Sleep, either in the main power settings or the menu that appears on holding the power button. Still, promising.

Another highlight is the handful of Bluetooth connectivity upgrades. Besides "Re-re-enabling" Bluetooth Wake for the LCD Steam Deck, so it could – for instance – be woken from Sleep mode with a BT remote while docked up to a TV, there’s a new setting to enable the microphones on connected Bluetooth headsets. I will still mutter something about 2.4GHz wireless earbuds being a better choice, mind.

You can test out the update by moseying over to your Deck’s System settings menu and changing the OS Update Channel to the Preview branch. At least, in theory. The patch notes also detail a known issue where attempting to do this might just boot you into the Beta branch instead, an issue that will need fixing in a future update. Ah, irony: my favourite flavour of software update.