Steam Deck Owners Can Replace Existing SSD, Though It Isn't Recommended

Valve made big waves this week after announcing their Steam Deck. Previously rumoured back in May, Deck is designed as a more affordable entry point into PC gaming, a pricing process Valve's described as "painful". Designed as a portable Switch-like console, that comes in three models with increasing storage.

Starting at £349 with 64GB eMMC storage and going up to 512GB NVMe SSD at £569, Steam Deck features expandable storage through an SD Card slot. However, many had wondered if you can swap out the SSD for your own, and Valve's confirmed you can.

Read More: Valve's Steam Deck Was "Painful" To Price

Steam Deck Owners Can Replace Existing SSD, Though It Isn't Recommended

In response to questions from fans yesterday to Newell, they've updated Steam Deck's official hardware specifications, confirming that “all models” use socketed 2230 m.2 modules. However, this page makes a very clear point that these are “not intended for end-user replacement”, so it's at your own risk.

That said, the possibility that even the cheapest £349 model can be upgraded to include an SSD drive may prove appealing for some, better fitting Steam Deck's open nature. As one of the smallest SSD modules currently going, 2230 m.2 models are currently limited to 512GB, so if you're purely doing it for storage over faster load times, SD cards remains a more practical alternative.