Gaming handhelds are most likely getting too large—the large lad that’s the Acer Nitro Blaze 2 being an ideal instance—however how far would you be prepared to go to make one slot in your backpack? DIYer crastinator-pro created the Steam Brick, a Steam Deck that has no mouth and it should scream, however I’m weirdly into it.
“The Steam Deck has been a recreation changer for journey,” crastinator-pro wrote in a GitHub submit documenting the challenge. “But I discovered myself leaving it behind as a rule, because it would not slot in my backpack, took up an enormous quantity of carry-on area, and was a problem to convey down from the overhead compartment after I needed to make use of it.”
Crastinator-pro additionally has essentially the most area of interest use-case I’ve heard for Valve’s handheld: Mostly protecting it plugged right into a TV or a pair of AR glasses, the type that may challenge a big display in your area of view. “So I bought to considering,” crastinator-pro wrote. “It might be a lot smaller and lighter with out the built-in controller and display, however that may be ridiculous, proper? …proper?”
Ridiculous it might be, however by god, it really works. The Steam Brick will nonetheless boot and connect with exterior peripherals with its display and all controls save the facility button eliminated. Tragically, crastinator-pro notes that the newer revision Steam Deck OLED is preferable for the mod—RIP to that lovely display us Steam Deck early adopters would kill for.
Crastinator-pro saved the motherboard, battery, WiFi antenna, storage, USB-C out, energy button, and cooling fan solely—say goodbye to the quantity buttons and headphone jack within the ultimate construct along with the controls and the display. Crastinator-pro trimmed down the Deck’s inner aluminum body and seated it in a easy 3D-printed enclosure, ensuing within the ultimate Steam Brick. Crastinator-pro cautions that that is actually taking the lifetime of the machine in your personal palms, and there isn’t any assure it will not cook dinner itself or expertise another unexpected failure down the road. But for the creator’s very particular use case? It appears roughly good.
I like how crastinator-pro primarily reversed at 60 miles per hour into making a Steam Machine, Valve’s abortive first try at making its personal console within the early 2010s, although with the ability to run off a battery definitely helps the Steam Brick run laps round its housebound predecessor. The course of of constructing the Steam Brick additionally paradoxically shares rather a lot in widespread with console “portablizing” initiatives like these documented by GingerOfOz on YouTube. For years, fans have been discovering methods to trim console motherboards to the minimal dimension the place they’re going to nonetheless perform, permitting them to fit into handheld enclosures and run video games off a battery and inner storage, however nonetheless on authentic {hardware}.
