Valve delays Steam Deck launch by two months

[Shawn Knight]

Why it matters: Valve cut right to the chase in its latest message regarding the Steam Deck – the handheld PC gaming system has been delayed by two months. While unfortunate, it’s not entirely surprising given the current climate we're in with the chip shortage and supply chain issues.

Valve announced the Steam Deck to much fanfare in mid-July. The portable gaming PC, which starts at $399 for a model with 64GB of eMMC storage and scales up to $649 for a version with a 512GB NVMe SSD, proved to be an early hit as reservations were quickly spoken for and estimated shipment windows slipped into 2022.

Through it all, Valve stood firm by its assertion that early adopters would receive their systems this December.

In today’s announcement, Valve said it did its best to work around the global supply chain issues. Ultimately, material shortages meant components weren’t able to reach their manufacturing facilities in time to meet the initial launch date.

Based on updated build estimates, Valve now believes the first Steam Deck units will depart in February 2022. The company notes that all reservation holders will maintain their place in line, but should shift their estimated ship date back accordingly.

Virtually everything with silicon inside has been impacted by the ongoing chip shortage, and the holidays are only going to exacerbate the situation. Heck, even shipping materials are proving tough to come by as we head into the tail end of the year.

As one consulting manager recently put it, the holiday season is going to be an eye-opener for everyone.

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https://www.techspot.com/news/92175-valve-delays-steam-deck-launch-two-months.html

 

[Dimitriid]

Valve time done did it again!

Seriously however you feel about previous issues with delays, who honestly thought they were capable of delivering brand new hardware by announcing it in the middle of the worst of the shortages? I'm even skeptical they can make February beyond maybe a tiny fraction of like the first thousands of preorders and reviewers, no real volume until like late 2022 or early 2023.

You know, like everybody else releasing hardware keeps on predicting and have been for months yet only Valve had the hubris to go through with a brand new release under such conditions (Well Valve and AMD with their 6600 xt and 6600 releases)

 

[QuantumPhysics]

Gotta make sure the scalpers are well prepared?

 

[dangh]

No problem, I can wait 2 months more, holiday season will be nice anyway.

 

[Rayneofpayne]

Gotta make sure the scalpers are well prepared?

Good luck with that, you would have to make many accounts and have them active for a year or so to even buy into the preorder

 

[Irata]

Well, I‘m still trying to find an XsX since last Christmas…maybe ording a Steam Deck now will be faster ?

 

[Yenega]

Only 2 months? Everyone saw this coming

I bet the stock is going to be incredible low, people that pre-ordered will be waiting for months and months. Deep into 2022 I expect.

Release a Pro version with 90 Hz OLED + VRR and HDR, and I might be interrested.

 

[AMN3S1AC]

It will be like 2023/24 by the time this device is readily available...by which time it will be horribly outdated, and many will be waiting for a Steam Deck 2 announcement. Why can't these companies actually just sell **** they can actually make and supply within an acceptable timeframe?

 

[Watzupken]

I suspect there will be further delays. Considering that every company out there are trying to get their hands on more AMD chips so that they have more products to sell during the festive seasons, Steam's order is likely too small at this point to be prioritised, when compared to the likes of Sony, Microsoft, etc...

 

[Puiu]

I suspect there will be further delays. Considering that every company out there are trying to get their hands on more AMD chips so that they have more products to sell during the festive seasons, Steam's order is likely too small at this point to be prioritised, when compared to the likes of Sony, Microsoft, etc...

I doubt that it's the chip itself the bottleneck. The orders were already given a long time ago. There is currently a huge issue with logistics (speaking from the perspective of a European). There aren't enough drivers and not enough space in ships. Truck driver salaries have grown by a factor of 2-3x. If they have a delay in materials needed for production then they might be forced to wait a few months until they can get a new slot in the production line.

When a truck driver now makes several times what I do as a programmer with years of experience... then you know there is a shortage of manpower. A distant relative of mine works as one now.