Valve Handheld Gaming PC vs. Nintendo Switch | Which One is Better?

Urian B., Tech Times 26 May 2021, 01:05 am

Valve handheld gaming PC compared to the Nintendo Switch. Which one would win? Handheld gaming devices have been around ever since the Nintendo Game Boy during the earlier gaming period, the new Nintendo Switch has definitely turned things up a notch revealing how potentially profitable the market for devices capable of playing AAA titles even if just on low or medium settings.

Valve Handheld Gaming PC vs Nintendo Switch

That, in turn, has then created a whole series of devices and concept designs that were all inspired by the Nintendo Switch except the running PC hardware and even the PC games instead. Given the current trend, it's definitely no surprise that Valve, which is currently best known for the popular Steam PC gaming platform, is also planning to jump into that space some time no later than the end of this year.

According to the story by Slash Gear, to be fair, Valve technically won't be the very first company to commercialize handheld PC consoles. There was even a certain attempt to crowdfund a Steam Machine handheld version. Certain Chinese brands like GDP have also been doing this for a number of years now and have already iterated over a few designs during that span of time.

Portable Handheld Gaming PC

The likes of the Aya Neo, the GPD WIN 3, and even the ONEXPLAYER by One Notebook are only some of the newest entries in what's noted as a rather niche market. Of course, Valve's name will help with the device's endorsement in a category that could potentially boost the company sales and the company prominence.

Ars Technica, however, points out that the rumored Valve handheld PC, which already has a codename of SteamPal, won't have its own detachable controllers like the Nintendo Switch does. This would make the device more similar to the Nintnedo Switch Lite instead.

Valve 'SteamPal'

It is also expected to be wider compared to the Nintendo Switch and will mostly incorporate additional and also better controls. Of course, the device is also expected to run on either AMD or Intel chips and not the ARM-based NVIDIA Tegras that Nintendo currently uses.

This would reportedly be Valve's very first attempt at trying to produce a gaming PC product of its own either way. It's also understandable that the tip must be met with cautious optimism. While the Steam Machines try to launch in what is currently an already saturated PC and console market, handheld PCs are something that is still virtually unheard of despite the popularity of the companies.

The article by Slash Gear notes that Valve is reportedly sticking to Linux for the device but a potential partnership with Microsoft, as of the moment, is not completely off the table. The report also announces that a Valve-branded gaming handheld could be making its debut sometime later this year at the earliest. As to which is better, gamers will have to wait and see.

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Written by Urian B.