My Steam Deck is arriving soon so...

[EzeKieL]

Anything that I need to do to make the whole experience better/easier?
Any must have accessories?
I'm planning to take it on my 12-hour flight and my steam library is about 600 games

[Punisher]

For a 12 hour flight. Probably a couple of battery backups. I just can't remember if mine is USB or only regular outlet. If regular outlet it wont last.

Also make sure that you install everytjing well ahead of time and check for updates daily.
At times it can seem to take extra long to download.

[Anonymous Bosch]

Anything that I need to do to make the whole experience better/easier?
Any must have accessories?
I'm planning to take it on my 12-hour flight and my steam library is about 600 games

You'll be surprised how rapidly you can run out of space on your Steam Deck. So I would highly recommend a 1TB or 512GB micro SD card. Do not cheap out on this though, U3 and A2 symbols will indicate it should provide the necessary speed and performance for your Deck. Also, if purchasing through Amazon, do not risk purchasing a counterfeit from a third party merchant. Stick to name brand micro SD cards shipped and sold directly by Amazon.

I would also suggest getting a GaN charger along with a longer, removable type-C cable. If you are travelling internationally, I recommend the Zendure Universal Travel Adapter Fast Charger. Because it provides 65-watt PD fast charging, and easily plugs into outlets in the US, UK, Europe, Canada, Japan, Mexico, Asia, the Middle East, and more besides. Also, if you travel a lot or are planning to, a 65-watt output external battery bank is mighty useful when playing without a nearby outlet. Because playing more intensive games will go though the internal Steam Deck battery in about two hours.

If you intend to play games at home on a TV, a dock and bluetooth controller will greatly improve your experience. A small bluetooth keyboard and trackpad combo are invaluable for desktop mode and games that require mouse and keyboard input. I use an iClever foldable bluetooth keyboard and touchpad, but the Rii i4 mini bluetooth keyboard with touchpad is an affordable alternative.

[Blackhawk]

Also, if purchasing through Amazon, do not risk purchasing a counterfeit from a third party merchant. Stick to name brand micro SD cards shipped and sold directly by Amazon.

FWIW, this isn't a guarantee anymore. If you order something direct from Amazon and they have a third-party copy of the same item at a warehouse closer to you, you get the third-party item and Amazon marks it down as coming from their own inventory (IE - they sell you the third-party item and transfer to the Amazon item to the third-party seller, as they're both only numbers on a screen.)

This has screwed Amazon customers who think they're ordering from Amazon directly, and it has screwed legitimate third-party sellers when Amazon has taken an order for an item from Real Company A and fulfilled it with an item from Counterfeiter B.

There is literally no way to guarantee you're getting an item from any specific company when ordering from Amazon.

[Anonymous Bosch]

Also, if purchasing through Amazon, do not risk purchasing a counterfeit from a third party merchant. Stick to name brand micro SD cards shipped and sold directly by Amazon.

FWIW, this isn't a guarantee anymore. If you order something direct from Amazon and they have a third-party copy of the same item at a warehouse closer to you, you get the third-party item and Amazon marks it down as coming from their own inventory (IE - they sell you the third-party item and transfer to the Amazon item to the third-party seller, as they're both only numbers on a screen.)

This has screwed Amazon customers who think they're ordering from Amazon directly, and it has screwed legitimate third-party sellers when Amazon has taken an order for an item from Real Company A and fulfilled it with an item from Counterfeiter B.

There is literally no way to guarantee you're getting an item from any specific company when ordering from Amazon.

Indeed, this is a valid point. There is a 30 day window to return or refund your purchase, but that's not much comfort should you end up receiving a counterfeit product. So to avoid the hassle of dealing with counterfeit Amazon merchandise, you may be better off purchasing directly from Samsung and the like, or buying your micro SD card locally.

[Blackhawk]

I've taken to purchasing directly from manufacturers and/or other established retailers whenever possible, unless the item in question isn't likely to be counterfeit (and doesn't need to be fresh - you'd be surprised how much expired food, medicine, and supplements Amazon ships people.)

In other words, it's good for books.

If you can't find them anywhere else.

[Punisher]

You can also go to places like Best Buy, Walmart, and if you are lucky enough to have one near you, Microcenter. That last one has been my favorite for a very long time.

[Jaymann]

Funny that the unreliability of Amazon could lead to a resurgence of brick and mortar.

[Punisher]

For the record I get a TON of stuff from Amazon and I can't recall ever being on the receiving end of a bait and switch like mentioned above.
Not saying it never happens just that I haven't had it happen to me in decades of ordering.
I've had misdeliveries though. Made up example.
Things like ordering a an Apple branded phone charger and receiving an Apple or Samsung branded phone case. Something sort of related but far from what I ordered or a similar order but receiving a generic toaster.
I attributed these to.
A. A lazy employee
B. An overworked employee
C. A mislabeled or mistagged item. Which could be caused by A or B.
D. Bad robot picker

My son worked in an Amazon warehouse for a while and saw things like this occasionally.

[ImLawBoy]

I pretty much use my Steam Deck as-is without accessories or modifications, but keep in mind that I'm extremely lazy when it comes to that kind of stuff. I don't want to jump through hoops - I just want to play a game for a bit.

If you're going to be on a 12 hour flight, I'd definitely have a way to recharge. The battery can go quickly, and some games are worse than others.

Since not all games will work properly on the Steam Deck, I'd probably think about what you're planning on playing and making sure you know how to run the games. Steam's ratings for whether something will work tend to err on the side of caution, but Anonymous Bosch tipped me to ProtonDB a while back in another thread as a good source for reliable info on what works, what doesn't, and how to tweak settings to get something to work.

[stimpy]

2 words.......
Vampire Survivors

[Anonymous Bosch]

Since not all games will work properly on the Steam Deck, I'd probably think about what you're planning on playing and making sure you know how to run the games. Steam's ratings for whether something will work tend to err on the side of caution, but Anonymous Bosch tipped me to ProtonDB a while back in another thread as a good source for reliable info on what works, what doesn't, and how to tweak settings to get something to work.

Yeah, this is an excellent point. I would also highly recommend watching the following helpful video from Shane Monroe, as this will provide you with a much better understanding of how games work on your Steam Deck in a way that is extremely easy to comprehend for any PC gamer:



It's also well worth checking out his Steam Deck playlist for a slew of additional useful Steam Deck tips, reviews, and guidance.

[EzeKieL]

Thanks everyone! Really appreciate all of the answers, you rock!

[Carpet_pissr]

For the record I get a TON of stuff from Amazon and I can't recall ever being on the receiving end of a bait and switch like mentioned above.
Not saying it never happens just that I haven't had it happen to me in decades of ordering.

Same.

[LawBeefaroni]

2 words.......
Vampire Survivors

And it's clone, Army of Ruin.

Definitely load Aperture Desk Job.

[Anonymous Bosch]

Definitely load Aperture Desk Job.

Amen.

Aperture Desk Job is a definite must-play freebie for any new Steam Deck owner. Think of it as an amusing interactive tutorial of sorts, showing what your Steam Deck is capable of and demonstrating its control layout without becoming a dull chore.