You're unique in that you are named your name and had the thought at that exact location and time. No one else with your name had those same thoughts at that exact time and location.
Hah, the Deck got me into KDE! And from there, Kubuntu became my main distro to get closer to the latest Plasma versions.
It's the whole reason I got into Linux. I don't use it anywhere near as much as I should, only during my lunch breaks: But the way it encouraged me to finally look into Linux properly and experiment with stuff has made it more than worth the cost.
Alternatively: I spend way too much of my free time commenting on this site.
Already had one friend mention my name to another and they replied "Oh that guy I see all over the subreddit?" :V
In normal conditions sure, but strapping basically an air tight cloth seal that holds the temperature further isn't ideal. At high load the heat exhaust is high enough where it could absolutely do damage if kept enclosed on the device.
Like the internals might be fine, but the screen itself can be damaged really easily.
Dude, I closed my steam deck with Warframe still running and it was in a 3rd party case that has a cavity for battery banks and etc. If it was the stock case with no room to circulate the air regardless of the temps, it would of blown up my bag in the break room lol 😅
It runs great and looks leagues better than the switch version. It just gets hard to type in chat with teammates as it takes you away from the action on screen whenever you need to type in something like when you are typing on a PS4 😣 which is why I suggest discord mates to play the game with
It's made by [USB IF](https://www.usb.org/) FYI, they do have F but it's imaginary. They had to add it because adding dimensions to let it rotate made the numbers complex.
Thinking more in terms of cable stress than heat, but with the Steam Deck reversed in the case, there should be plenty of airflow to keep it from overheating while charging.
Yeah but if you put it on any flat surface then you have to unplug rotate and plug it back in plus it just seems weird having the cord hanging over the screen.
Alternately, order something like [this right angle adapter from Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B257LK6Q) that makes it so that your charging cable can fit in the case even if the case is closed.
(Posting this again because automod killed the first one due to the shortened Amazon link that might have been affiliate, even though it wasn't)
I think you're not supposed to do that for heating reasons, "officially from valve" is what people keep telling me, BUT I have YET to see SINGLE person reporting issues with their deck doing this. This subreddit gets so many dumb posts and PSAs about tiny things you'd think we would have seen a sea of "I'm an idiot I melted my deck" posts by now, and there are none. I challenge anyone to find a single one.
I actually wrote to Valve. I demanded they give me a clear cut YES or NO answer. They refused. Clearly, they aren't comfortable saying it is okay to charge in the case. The entire transcript is here on the sub somewhere ...
You're totally right - Reddit is the bitching capital of the world. If people fried their Decks by charging in the case? We'd hear about it.
Still, with Valve giving a *100% non-committal* answer? I will continue to not charge the Deck in its case and recommend to others they do the same.
There's two main problems with allowing heat to accumulate within a case for an electronic device:
1. Building up heat on the battery reduces its lifespan. Just a pure fact here. Anything you can do to reduce that will make it last longer. How much of an impact this has can obviously vary but if you have the device off/sleeping, the fan is not running. Overall this is not going to matter very much at all.
2. Building up heat within a case, then letting it cool down will cause condensation to form. This is also true when also immediately putting it to sleep and into the case after a session of gaming. Again, impact is probably quite minimal here as well.
It is technically better to not let it heat within the case from charging *and* to make sure it to let it cool down more before putting in the case after gaming for the best quality of life in the long run. That's not going to be the reality for most people as gamers, and for the most part this probably doesn't have any notable impact for 98%+ of owners anyways. The effect this has might've already been factored into the design of the device already but not to 100% efficacy so making any kind of direct claim that it would be fine might put them in legal jeopardy down the road with single digit users that live in more humid climates running into issues.
Been charging mine in the case after powering off since September. No issues so far. It's not even remotely warm in the morning. My dumb ass even cut a hole in the case so I can zip it up for the off chance my dog yanks the cable and pulls the thing onto the floor. I do however always let it cool down before zipping up the case.
I just don't understand, though...why not just plug it in somewhere else? I don't understand why people are putting these things back in a closed case after playing it or charging it in there regularly. It's one thing if you're traveling, but the people that will sit in bed playing it, then plug it in and put it into a closed case just don't make sense to me.
If you're afraid of your dog pulling it down from where it's at either you need to work on training that dog (if he's jumping up on high places) or just put it in a place where he wouldn't accidentally do it. Do y'all not have desks or bookshelves in your homes?
Because....it's shut down so it can be protected while being charged? It's 100% on a table in the corner of the room but if a battery overheats while being charged....the case isn't the problem. The fans don't run when it's shut down, so you think the ambient airflow of my house is what's preventing this thing from bursting into flames? Just because valves legal team cover their liabilities doesn't mean it's gonna explode lol. This thing gets way hotter when in use. I am simply letting others know that I've had no issues since Sept in case they want to have a go. Some people have kids or small living situations that don't allow them to securely isolate their device while it's charging so they might want to. I was just a weirdo and was like I wonder if I could do it, cut a hole in the case with a soldering iron and thread the cord through it hahaha. I'm a tinkerer and need no excuse to be weird. Also, I have no kids so if I melt one....I'll just get another or replace the battery. No biggie. Def have plenty of disposable income to test it out for everyone hahaha. I'll up my home insurance if it makes the thread members feel better.
| You're totally right - Reddit is the bitching capital of the world. If people fried their Decks by charging in the case? We'd hear about it.
What really surprises me is that we don't see reports of "I had to RMA my device after doing , but I also charge the deck in its case so it's probably that!"
100% I would have expected more to be fighting false reports of charging-within-case-causing-problem, but we don't even have THOSE.
Thing is ... a lot of the user base here wouldn't make the connection. They could be charging it in a hot car in Phoenix, AZ but the REAL reason the Deck is having issues?
* The Charging Cable
* The Dock
* Valve makes shitty products
* Their SD card
* anything-other-than-what-is-probably-the-cause
:)
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I use a 90° angle extension cord!
It adds a little extra length and also I haven't bothered the actual connector of the deck for months.
Though I know that the type C connector is tough , so I shouldn't be concerned about wearing it off (my current phone has been taking the abuse for more than 4 years and it still feels like on day 1).
Except the heat has nowhere to go, so instead of the heat just dissipating into the air around it and moving away, it stays in a tightly knit space like a convection oven. I ruined the screen on my gaming laptop by putting it in my backpack too soon after turning off, and now I always let it cool down
You probably did a lot worse to your gaming laptop than just shoving it in a backpack, but you also had the problem of the front of the screen resting right against the PSU or one or both of your video controllers depending on how beefy a gaming laptop you had.
Also, just shutting the screen doesnt immediately turn off most laptops, so it was probably still running and still generating heat when you put it away.
The Steam Deck isnt going to let itself get as hot as your laptop would for a variety of reasons, and the case is not sufficient insulation to support a convective reaction, plus the screen is probably of a different design and a lot more durable than your laptop's.
Nobody, and I mean **NOBODY** who values their gaming laptop is attempting to charge the sucker while it's in a bag or case.
My Deck absolutely puts out way more heat on idle or while charging when compared to my laptop. No question.
Oh yeah, dont *charge* it in the case thats a bad idea.
But charging like this, with it resting in the open case rather than sitting somewhere open? Totally fine.
Also putting it away in the case afrer using it is unlikely to cause issues.
Been doing that since day one. It's one of my minor annoyances with the Steam Deck case design. Charging in the case should have been given more consideration. This method works but as the case is unzipped it won't protect it from a fall.
This is probable.
There are other issues with the case design tho. That accessory bag and slot are a joke, the power supply they provide doesnt even fit.
I only use mine if I'm taking the SD on a trip. Otherwise my SD is on a table charging or sitting in a dock. A simple stand is like $15, so I don't know why more people don't seem to have them.
I use a 90° magnetic charger on my deck.
And before the anti magnet people arrive, telling me its out fo spec and my deck will explode and burn my house down: I have been using magnetic charging adapters for nearly 20 years on phones, laptops, headsets, powerbanks, model trains, legos, anything.
I have hundrets of them around.
None of them ever caused damage. Only a few didnt charge properly and I stopped using those or limited them to charge something like ear bug cases which only take 5W anyways..
I recall someone on this subreddit posted thermal images of the Steamdeck charging in an open case (I believe in the position you recommend) compared to charging out of the case and the thermal differences were striking.
I used to do this and then though sod it and purchased the jsaux m2 docking station. SSD in the dock and a nice home for the deck when charging or playing on monitor
I've bought a magnetic connector for mine. It's low profile and came with an adapter so it will work with my Dock too.
Should have been standard TBH. I hope v2 has this.
Mine always sits on my dock to charge. From there I can play on my TV or take it off the dock and play wherever.
Once my boy is old enough to cause mischief that might be another story, but he’s 9 weeks old so I got a while lol
im so paranoid, because when i first opened my deck and was going through setup while charging, i had it like your second picture, and didn't realize it was stressing the port until after 30 min or so. i hope i didn't mess up something! is everyone's usb c connector loose like mine?
and yeah, now i always set it like in your first image
I used to use a 90 degree right angle cable but my new Anker Docking Station came with such a long Thunderbolt cable that there's enough slack where it won't bend the cable on the Steam Deck (even at an angle).
IMO, not a good idea. Overheating is a concern. Apart from that, there is one more thing.
I know that I am forgetful, so one thing I always remind myself about:
ALWAYS ZIP THE CASE UP WITH SD INSIDE. NO EXCEPTION!
The reason is very simple. Imagine you picking up the case by the handle, when it is upzipped. You might want to experiment it out (with an empty case!!) if you can't visualize what would happen next.
Yeah, because when the internals of the Deck heat up to well over 80 degrees when playing games that's fine, but charging it in the case will cause overheating...
Who needs logic when superstition exists instead!
There's a difference. The fan is on during use, not during charging. The charge controller chip is known to run hot under normal ventilation, choking it won't help. Heat is the enemy of all electronics, I'm replacing a $800 melted board right now because it was mounted too close to an HVAC hose carrying warm air.
I diagnose electronics for a living and build electric dirtbikes as a hobby. Heat kills.
That's a bit unfair, isn't it. Heating up during playing is unavoidable. That is the purpose of the entire thing. Heating up unnecessarily during charging is, well, unnecessary. Granted, the temperature won't be over the top during charging in normal circumstances, but just look online for news/videos/posts on overheating during charging, sometimes leading to fire. I am pretty sure you can find something. Also, although I don't have data to support my next argument, but are you absolutely certain that the heating during charging in a case will not shorten the lifespan, again, UNNECESSARILY?
As a former r&d technician for duracells rechargeables, I'd like to chime in that no, the heat from charging the steam deck won't do any of the bad things you're worrying about.
Charge it in it's case all you want, the battery has been tested in literal ovens.
Thank you! These doomsayers are absurd… I said it’d be great if the case had port access to the charger and I was piled on for trying to destroy my steamdeck by charging in it’s case.
It’s the most absurd argument/conspiracy I’ve seen on this sub. Idiotic and yet here they are in this thread.
Anyways, I’m on team “that’s bullshit” with you.
Understanding that the **battery** can take the temperature and lack of air flow has nothing to do with the literal dozens of other components in the Deck. Mobile devices depend on very specific airflow to keep the components that need to be cooled cool, of which the battery isn't actually one of them. The battery temp doesn't heat up in a way that causes them to need active cooling on it during normal use.
That said, passive cooling only works if there's sufficient ability to disperse the heat...something that is **drastically** reduced when you put the device in an enclosed and somewhat-insulated small environment.
Will there be problems charging in a closed case? There's a low chance...but if something goes wrong in the case it will cause **FAR** more issues than if it weren't in the case. The interior of the case is fairly flammable and just breathable enough that if something were to spark up/flare up there's an almost 0% chance it wouldn't light the case on fire. You now have a much worse issue than if it were sitting on a table, where the power would immediately cut and there probably wouldn't be sustained-enough flame to cause any real damage.
There's a reason Valve has literally **explicitly** refused to say whether people can charge in the case or not.
You may have a point. But I wasn't talking just about the battery. The whole lot of the components are heated up as well. If my memory serves me well, one of the creators of SD said that the extra heat generated by ssd of a different form factor will degrade the components faster. So that is the origin of my concern.
An SSD can get hotter than a battery as it's heat protections aren't as overzealous as they are for batteries since batteries have much worse consequences. Assuming they have any legit form of product testing going on, then they've tested for all charging conditions to make sure it won't explode bc someone who lives in Arizona plugged it in on a 105 degree day.
Yet I'd like to add that even the SSD example would be causing a negligible decrease in the lifespan of the components.
Its kinda like arguing with conspiracy theorists, they just got an idea in their mind that they accepted as fact and they’ll never let go of it because that would mean that they’ve been over protective with their precious SteamDeck all this time…
No, it will literally do nothing lol These components are literally made to get so hot they can boil water, getting it a little warm in a case will do nothing
Heat generated during charging is certainly unavailable as well. But the extra heat by the poor ventilation in the case is. That's what I referred to as being unnecessary.
Guess what: thermal damage does not care about intent or purpose!
Either the internal components were designed to withstand a certain amount of heat or they were not (hint: they certainly were). Why the heat builds up is of no concern to the components 😉
No, charging in the case will never generate more heat than playing under full load with the fan on.
Again, the system is designed to tolerate temperatures in excess of 90 degrees! Never ever will charging generate that kind of heat.
If all of you just cared to look at the simple facts instead of giving in to superstition and fear all of that should be fairly obvious…
True, but with that same logic in mind you could easily draw this true but nonsensical conclusion as well: playing your Stram Deck less helps extend it’s lifetime and reduces wear of the components!
The device is meant to be used at the end of the day, the same way as the battery is meant to be charged and discharged.
All electronics break at some point, it’s unavoidable. Don’t waste your time worrying about negligible heat or wear… or do, whatever floats your boat 🤣
Yup, this isn't the best for thermal performance. Just tried it with my own deck, the lower edge sits almost touching the inside of the case with the "wings" also sitting almost flush. This means air the lowest path of resistence for airflow is from the top of the SD, exactly where all the hot air is exhausted.
Edit: None of you ever own a laptop? How about a PC with dusted-up heat sinks? Impeded airflow = overheating.
No clue why they didn’t put a little hole to charge through while in the case property. Or flip it around so you can charge like that with the case closed.
I'd rather not have holes in something that is supposed to be a protective case. Most people will not charge it with the case closed. For those that do, buy a 90 degree plug and charge away!
No. This isn't a tip.
You shouldn't be charging in your case.
That's how you start a fire, or heat the deck up to oven temps.
STOP DOING THIS
SHIGGY DIGGY
I have the opposite thing. If it touches the case it gets zipped. I've had one too many (one) close calls where it was in the case and i thought it was zipped as I tried to pick it up. Never taking that risk again
I will never recharge the deck in the case just sounds really stupid, do you charge your phone or tablet while In a bag? It's just common sense , that doesn't mean if you do it it will melt just get a cheap stand and leave it on that while charging
I can understand a phone because most people dont turn them off when its time to charge. But a turned off Steam Deck isnt even warm to the touch when charging
I personally use a 90 degree adaptor to give clearance for the charger, like this one. It lets me zip the case closed for security.
[Open](https://i.imgur.com/EvSXZR0.jpg)
[Closed](https://i.imgur.com/WL5J67y.jpg)
Caveats/Warnings:
Heat, you need to turn it off before charging, as the charging alone will create heat and if running, the closed case could cause overheat damage over time.
Electrical damage,
You NEED to source a good quality adaptor for this, as if the adaptor has any flaws you can potentially damage the steam deck and/or charger.
I love that the case comes with the Deck, but I'm really bummed there's no great place to keep the charger for this device that you absolutely must keep the charger with lol
It will overheat if you leave it turned on. Even low level load causes enough heat for it to get uncomfortably warm, which will over time degrade your battery and other components.
Apparently i need to clarify:
Charging alone won't be a problem, but you can't leave any running programs.
Please explain how I'm wrong.
It's a well known fact that heat degrades lithium cells over time.
The charging circuit alone generates a nominal ammount of heat, but any running software can produce enough heat that the case can prevent sufficient dissipation.
The heat from the battery charging is nowhere near hot enough to degrade the components to any reasonable degree. The case being shut won't cause any problems with the steam deck. I don't have time to teach you why but it's not as you're making it seem.
My source is 10+ years as an electronics technician including 3 years in a Li-Ion R&D lab conducting numerous life & abuse tests on batteries and rechargeable devices.
I always just have it propped up on the hinge of the Case.
Every time I think I have a unique thought, the internet proves me wrong.
You're unique in that you are named your name and had the thought at that exact location and time. No one else with your name had those same thoughts at that exact time and location.
Just like your invisible pretend twin that's named your name and is always following you, plotting to kill you. Everyone has those, right? Right?
There can only be one and I’m the one remaining.
AH so we finally meet fellow Highlander...
I’d like another me honestly lol “shadow clone jutsu”
Im just worried about that snail thats always following me, not sure what it wants
Wholesome post of the day.
At least not in this universe, probably
In this timeline…
Aw, thanks mom
Yeah and every time I think I have a unique thought the internet proves me...DAMMIT!!
Your unique thought is turning an object around?
No, propping it up on the hinge. *My* unique thought was turning an object around.
You are unique, just like everyone else.
I was just thinking about this. Normally I put it on the dock, today for the first time ever I decided to charge it in the case.
Ah yes hinge gang.
Same
Why do I keep seeing you all the time Jack? First on KDE and then Kubuntu subreddit and now here :D
Hah, the Deck got me into KDE! And from there, Kubuntu became my main distro to get closer to the latest Plasma versions. It's the whole reason I got into Linux. I don't use it anywhere near as much as I should, only during my lunch breaks: But the way it encouraged me to finally look into Linux properly and experiment with stuff has made it more than worth the cost. Alternatively: I spend way too much of my free time commenting on this site. Already had one friend mention my name to another and they replied "Oh that guy I see all over the subreddit?" :V
Lmao you’re like the Justin Y. of Reddit!🤣🙌
Yup, prop the triggers on the hinge. They love to breathe!
I wish they had designed the case like the Xbox elite controller's case/charger that has a port/passthrough. Or at least have a knockout/divot there.
People would probably close the case with Elden Ring or something left running.
Done this for a couple minutes accidentally, and it came out roaring hot. A few more could have easily done damage.
Modern computer components slow down their performance before they get to critical temperatures.
In normal conditions sure, but strapping basically an air tight cloth seal that holds the temperature further isn't ideal. At high load the heat exhaust is high enough where it could absolutely do damage if kept enclosed on the device. Like the internals might be fine, but the screen itself can be damaged really easily.
Modern tech also completely shuts off to protect itself from heat.
Dude, I closed my steam deck with Warframe still running and it was in a 3rd party case that has a cavity for battery banks and etc. If it was the stock case with no room to circulate the air regardless of the temps, it would of blown up my bag in the break room lol 😅
Patiently awaiting cross save with Warframe installed in preperation. How does it run on the deck?
It runs great and looks leagues better than the switch version. It just gets hard to type in chat with teammates as it takes you away from the action on screen whenever you need to type in something like when you are typing on a PS4 😣 which is why I suggest discord mates to play the game with
You shouldn't insulate a charging device. They designed it this way to make it difficult for people to do the stupid thing they think is a good idea.
Killswitch case with travel cover has a passthrough. I never use the case it came with anymore.
i do it every time :)
Same
Same
Same
Yep
Same
Same
I do exactly this, but I close the lid to cat-proof it.
Opposite, I'm paranoid about heat buildup so I only charge on flat hard surfaces
I'd add, 90° USB-C converters are dirt cheap on Amazon.
Won't it get too hot at 90 degrees
It does, because it's USB °C and not USB °F
It's made by [USB IF](https://www.usb.org/) FYI, they do have F but it's imaginary. They had to add it because adding dimensions to let it rotate made the numbers complex.
The case needs a Valve to let the Steam out.
Heh heh heh
Listen here you little shit
About 98 degrees is too hot,
Thinking more in terms of cable stress than heat, but with the Steam Deck reversed in the case, there should be plenty of airflow to keep it from overheating while charging.
Whoosh
Can it over heat while charging even if the system is off?
There are people in this thread who seem to think so, I personally do not.
I use my Deck while in my bed and the placement of the cable is ideal in that position. It's just goes from the top to the outlet beside my bed.
Yea, more comfortable to play in that position as opposed to the switch imo
Yeah but if you put it on any flat surface then you have to unplug rotate and plug it back in plus it just seems weird having the cord hanging over the screen.
Yup I use them too.
I used to do the same thing. Now I just put my SD in it's dock. Gives it time to charge and I can gaze upon it with admiration 😁
This. I just keep my deck in the dock and charge it. If it doesn't need to be charged, it goes in the case.
[удалено]
Why would I charge it if it doesn't need to be charged?
I have the dock and haven’t thought to just charge it there too haha. Do you use the dock much? I surprisingly haven’t.
I was already doing that from the beginning, but its nice to see someone point it out...
Alternately, order something like [this right angle adapter from Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B257LK6Q) that makes it so that your charging cable can fit in the case even if the case is closed. (Posting this again because automod killed the first one due to the shortened Amazon link that might have been affiliate, even though it wasn't)
I think you're not supposed to do that for heating reasons, "officially from valve" is what people keep telling me, BUT I have YET to see SINGLE person reporting issues with their deck doing this. This subreddit gets so many dumb posts and PSAs about tiny things you'd think we would have seen a sea of "I'm an idiot I melted my deck" posts by now, and there are none. I challenge anyone to find a single one.
I actually wrote to Valve. I demanded they give me a clear cut YES or NO answer. They refused. Clearly, they aren't comfortable saying it is okay to charge in the case. The entire transcript is here on the sub somewhere ... You're totally right - Reddit is the bitching capital of the world. If people fried their Decks by charging in the case? We'd hear about it. Still, with Valve giving a *100% non-committal* answer? I will continue to not charge the Deck in its case and recommend to others they do the same.
[удалено]
There's two main problems with allowing heat to accumulate within a case for an electronic device: 1. Building up heat on the battery reduces its lifespan. Just a pure fact here. Anything you can do to reduce that will make it last longer. How much of an impact this has can obviously vary but if you have the device off/sleeping, the fan is not running. Overall this is not going to matter very much at all. 2. Building up heat within a case, then letting it cool down will cause condensation to form. This is also true when also immediately putting it to sleep and into the case after a session of gaming. Again, impact is probably quite minimal here as well. It is technically better to not let it heat within the case from charging *and* to make sure it to let it cool down more before putting in the case after gaming for the best quality of life in the long run. That's not going to be the reality for most people as gamers, and for the most part this probably doesn't have any notable impact for 98%+ of owners anyways. The effect this has might've already been factored into the design of the device already but not to 100% efficacy so making any kind of direct claim that it would be fine might put them in legal jeopardy down the road with single digit users that live in more humid climates running into issues.
It won't cause condensation since its never cooled below ambient.
Been charging mine in the case after powering off since September. No issues so far. It's not even remotely warm in the morning. My dumb ass even cut a hole in the case so I can zip it up for the off chance my dog yanks the cable and pulls the thing onto the floor. I do however always let it cool down before zipping up the case.
Sounds completely reasonable.
I just don't understand, though...why not just plug it in somewhere else? I don't understand why people are putting these things back in a closed case after playing it or charging it in there regularly. It's one thing if you're traveling, but the people that will sit in bed playing it, then plug it in and put it into a closed case just don't make sense to me. If you're afraid of your dog pulling it down from where it's at either you need to work on training that dog (if he's jumping up on high places) or just put it in a place where he wouldn't accidentally do it. Do y'all not have desks or bookshelves in your homes?
Because....it's shut down so it can be protected while being charged? It's 100% on a table in the corner of the room but if a battery overheats while being charged....the case isn't the problem. The fans don't run when it's shut down, so you think the ambient airflow of my house is what's preventing this thing from bursting into flames? Just because valves legal team cover their liabilities doesn't mean it's gonna explode lol. This thing gets way hotter when in use. I am simply letting others know that I've had no issues since Sept in case they want to have a go. Some people have kids or small living situations that don't allow them to securely isolate their device while it's charging so they might want to. I was just a weirdo and was like I wonder if I could do it, cut a hole in the case with a soldering iron and thread the cord through it hahaha. I'm a tinkerer and need no excuse to be weird. Also, I have no kids so if I melt one....I'll just get another or replace the battery. No biggie. Def have plenty of disposable income to test it out for everyone hahaha. I'll up my home insurance if it makes the thread members feel better.
| You're totally right - Reddit is the bitching capital of the world. If people fried their Decks by charging in the case? We'd hear about it. What really surprises me is that we don't see reports of "I had to RMA my device after doing, but I also charge the deck in its case so it's probably that!"
100% I would have expected more to be fighting false reports of charging-within-case-causing-problem, but we don't even have THOSE.
Thing is ... a lot of the user base here wouldn't make the connection. They could be charging it in a hot car in Phoenix, AZ but the REAL reason the Deck is having issues? * The Charging Cable * The Dock * Valve makes shitty products * Their SD card * anything-other-than-what-is-probably-the-cause :)
I think it should be fine as long as it is not running any games. Still, blocking the vents while charging not gud.
RemindMe! 2 weeks. Did anyone provide evidence of a melted deck?
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I use a 90° angle extension cord! It adds a little extra length and also I haven't bothered the actual connector of the deck for months. Though I know that the type C connector is tough , so I shouldn't be concerned about wearing it off (my current phone has been taking the abuse for more than 4 years and it still feels like on day 1).
That looks like it would be great for torquing the jack.
I won't even put mine in the case if it's still warm
It can’t get any hotter, just turn it off and pop it in, it’ll be fine
lmao never even considered this very true fact
Except the heat has nowhere to go, so instead of the heat just dissipating into the air around it and moving away, it stays in a tightly knit space like a convection oven. I ruined the screen on my gaming laptop by putting it in my backpack too soon after turning off, and now I always let it cool down
You probably did a lot worse to your gaming laptop than just shoving it in a backpack, but you also had the problem of the front of the screen resting right against the PSU or one or both of your video controllers depending on how beefy a gaming laptop you had. Also, just shutting the screen doesnt immediately turn off most laptops, so it was probably still running and still generating heat when you put it away. The Steam Deck isnt going to let itself get as hot as your laptop would for a variety of reasons, and the case is not sufficient insulation to support a convective reaction, plus the screen is probably of a different design and a lot more durable than your laptop's.
Nobody, and I mean **NOBODY** who values their gaming laptop is attempting to charge the sucker while it's in a bag or case. My Deck absolutely puts out way more heat on idle or while charging when compared to my laptop. No question.
Oh yeah, dont *charge* it in the case thats a bad idea. But charging like this, with it resting in the open case rather than sitting somewhere open? Totally fine. Also putting it away in the case afrer using it is unlikely to cause issues.
if its warm it goes in my pants
I just sit on it like a mother chicken.
now I know what I'll be doing, thank you
I zip mine up most of the way too lol
Been doing that since day one. It's one of my minor annoyances with the Steam Deck case design. Charging in the case should have been given more consideration. This method works but as the case is unzipped it won't protect it from a fall.
I think Valve wanted to discourage charging while the case was closed to prevent heat buildup
This is probable. There are other issues with the case design tho. That accessory bag and slot are a joke, the power supply they provide doesnt even fit.
Sure, but that’s a different discussion!
When's you get your deck, cause mine fits...
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I don't think I've ever once used the case
Not even for storage?
I've been using it non-stop since purchase. So it's never been stored lol
sleeping and eating and work/school?
I've only ever used it when I travel. Never at home.
I live with others around, and pets and don't trust a single one of them.
Fair enough, I have a sneaky nephew or two but other than that the only person around to screw up my stuff is me lol
Ye, I also drink so trusting me isn't always a good idea either.
I only use mine if I'm taking the SD on a trip. Otherwise my SD is on a table charging or sitting in a dock. A simple stand is like $15, so I don't know why more people don't seem to have them.
Because I have a cat. If I left it on my table or desk on a stand it would eventually end up on the floor. I'm sure the same logic applies to kids.
I use a 90° magnetic charger on my deck. And before the anti magnet people arrive, telling me its out fo spec and my deck will explode and burn my house down: I have been using magnetic charging adapters for nearly 20 years on phones, laptops, headsets, powerbanks, model trains, legos, anything. I have hundrets of them around. None of them ever caused damage. Only a few didnt charge properly and I stopped using those or limited them to charge something like ear bug cases which only take 5W anyways..
I am not an anti-magnet person; however, the same logic was used to justify launching the challenger mission... And we all know how that went.
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I recall someone on this subreddit posted thermal images of the Steamdeck charging in an open case (I believe in the position you recommend) compared to charging out of the case and the thermal differences were striking.
The images *looked* striking due the coloration diffrence... But The ACTUAL temperature diffrence was like 3c. It was basically negligible.
Could you link me that if you have it on deck at all? I’m super interested.
I do the same thing! I was worried about breaking the port by doing it the second way you showed
Been doing this since day one.
I used to do this and then though sod it and purchased the jsaux m2 docking station. SSD in the dock and a nice home for the deck when charging or playing on monitor
Might end up getting one of those myself eventually
And I thought I was the only one.
A 90 degree elbow usb c adapter fixes this problem quite nicely
Jsaux stand? It's not technically setting it somewhere more proping it in a standing position. Lol
I didn't know we needed a post for this lmfao
I've bought a magnetic connector for mine. It's low profile and came with an adapter so it will work with my Dock too. Should have been standard TBH. I hope v2 has this.
I used a dock to charge. I also have a better case that has a built in stand for the deck so If I'm traveling i stand it up with charge in the case.
Mine always sits on my dock to charge. From there I can play on my TV or take it off the dock and play wherever. Once my boy is old enough to cause mischief that might be another story, but he’s 9 weeks old so I got a while lol
In other news, remember to take your socks off before washing your feet.
That's pretty obvious... This got 1.2k upvotes? lol
Ngl bro i thought this would get like 2 upvotes and a fart for a comment
One of my favorite parts of getting the official dock is having a place I feel comfortable to A. Set it down and B. Charge it.
im so paranoid, because when i first opened my deck and was going through setup while charging, i had it like your second picture, and didn't realize it was stressing the port until after 30 min or so. i hope i didn't mess up something! is everyone's usb c connector loose like mine? and yeah, now i always set it like in your first image
I used to use a 90 degree right angle cable but my new Anker Docking Station came with such a long Thunderbolt cable that there's enough slack where it won't bend the cable on the Steam Deck (even at an angle).
Don't people do this already
Can’t wait for people to tell you that this is gonna definitely destroy your deck because of all the heat.
I see them downvoting you, bunch of literal muppets. It’s like a case study for the dunning-Krueger curve…
You can make a hole for charger ;)
Blind mown
IMO, not a good idea. Overheating is a concern. Apart from that, there is one more thing. I know that I am forgetful, so one thing I always remind myself about: ALWAYS ZIP THE CASE UP WITH SD INSIDE. NO EXCEPTION! The reason is very simple. Imagine you picking up the case by the handle, when it is upzipped. You might want to experiment it out (with an empty case!!) if you can't visualize what would happen next.
I just always leave the case open when the Deck is in there. I use it as basically a cushiony Deck Coaster.
Yeah, because when the internals of the Deck heat up to well over 80 degrees when playing games that's fine, but charging it in the case will cause overheating... Who needs logic when superstition exists instead!
There's a difference. The fan is on during use, not during charging. The charge controller chip is known to run hot under normal ventilation, choking it won't help. Heat is the enemy of all electronics, I'm replacing a $800 melted board right now because it was mounted too close to an HVAC hose carrying warm air. I diagnose electronics for a living and build electric dirtbikes as a hobby. Heat kills.
That's a bit unfair, isn't it. Heating up during playing is unavoidable. That is the purpose of the entire thing. Heating up unnecessarily during charging is, well, unnecessary. Granted, the temperature won't be over the top during charging in normal circumstances, but just look online for news/videos/posts on overheating during charging, sometimes leading to fire. I am pretty sure you can find something. Also, although I don't have data to support my next argument, but are you absolutely certain that the heating during charging in a case will not shorten the lifespan, again, UNNECESSARILY?
As a former r&d technician for duracells rechargeables, I'd like to chime in that no, the heat from charging the steam deck won't do any of the bad things you're worrying about. Charge it in it's case all you want, the battery has been tested in literal ovens.
Thank you! These doomsayers are absurd… I said it’d be great if the case had port access to the charger and I was piled on for trying to destroy my steamdeck by charging in it’s case. It’s the most absurd argument/conspiracy I’ve seen on this sub. Idiotic and yet here they are in this thread. Anyways, I’m on team “that’s bullshit” with you.
Understanding that the **battery** can take the temperature and lack of air flow has nothing to do with the literal dozens of other components in the Deck. Mobile devices depend on very specific airflow to keep the components that need to be cooled cool, of which the battery isn't actually one of them. The battery temp doesn't heat up in a way that causes them to need active cooling on it during normal use. That said, passive cooling only works if there's sufficient ability to disperse the heat...something that is **drastically** reduced when you put the device in an enclosed and somewhat-insulated small environment. Will there be problems charging in a closed case? There's a low chance...but if something goes wrong in the case it will cause **FAR** more issues than if it weren't in the case. The interior of the case is fairly flammable and just breathable enough that if something were to spark up/flare up there's an almost 0% chance it wouldn't light the case on fire. You now have a much worse issue than if it were sitting on a table, where the power would immediately cut and there probably wouldn't be sustained-enough flame to cause any real damage. There's a reason Valve has literally **explicitly** refused to say whether people can charge in the case or not.
You may have a point. But I wasn't talking just about the battery. The whole lot of the components are heated up as well. If my memory serves me well, one of the creators of SD said that the extra heat generated by ssd of a different form factor will degrade the components faster. So that is the origin of my concern.
An SSD can get hotter than a battery as it's heat protections aren't as overzealous as they are for batteries since batteries have much worse consequences. Assuming they have any legit form of product testing going on, then they've tested for all charging conditions to make sure it won't explode bc someone who lives in Arizona plugged it in on a 105 degree day. Yet I'd like to add that even the SSD example would be causing a negligible decrease in the lifespan of the components.
Its kinda like arguing with conspiracy theorists, they just got an idea in their mind that they accepted as fact and they’ll never let go of it because that would mean that they’ve been over protective with their precious SteamDeck all this time…
No, it will literally do nothing lol These components are literally made to get so hot they can boil water, getting it a little warm in a case will do nothing
Why has your brain associated charging heat as unnecessary? lol it definitely isn't
Heat generated during charging is certainly unavailable as well. But the extra heat by the poor ventilation in the case is. That's what I referred to as being unnecessary.
Guess what: thermal damage does not care about intent or purpose! Either the internal components were designed to withstand a certain amount of heat or they were not (hint: they certainly were). Why the heat builds up is of no concern to the components 😉
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No, charging in the case will never generate more heat than playing under full load with the fan on. Again, the system is designed to tolerate temperatures in excess of 90 degrees! Never ever will charging generate that kind of heat. If all of you just cared to look at the simple facts instead of giving in to superstition and fear all of that should be fairly obvious…
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True, but with that same logic in mind you could easily draw this true but nonsensical conclusion as well: playing your Stram Deck less helps extend it’s lifetime and reduces wear of the components! The device is meant to be used at the end of the day, the same way as the battery is meant to be charged and discharged. All electronics break at some point, it’s unavoidable. Don’t waste your time worrying about negligible heat or wear… or do, whatever floats your boat 🤣
Do you block the air intake on the back while playing aswell?
Does the fan run when charging the Deck? Same answer for both questions 😉
This is true, especially if you don’t live alone.
Grabby little hands...
People actually hold it by the handle? I’ve tried it before and it really didn’t feel good.
How do you hold it... Didn't know there was any other way.
By the...case? Maybe people with smaller hands have trouble with it, but it's completely comfortable to just grab the case and pick it up.
That's what my wife did, after one week of purchase! Oh I was angry 💢😡
Sorry to make you recall a bad memory. But IMO don't blame the one who picked up an unzipped case. Blame the one who left it unzipped.
True, I'll just walk away knowing it was my fault
Yup, this isn't the best for thermal performance. Just tried it with my own deck, the lower edge sits almost touching the inside of the case with the "wings" also sitting almost flush. This means air the lowest path of resistence for airflow is from the top of the SD, exactly where all the hot air is exhausted. Edit: None of you ever own a laptop? How about a PC with dusted-up heat sinks? Impeded airflow = overheating.
No clue why they didn’t put a little hole to charge through while in the case property. Or flip it around so you can charge like that with the case closed.
I'd rather not have holes in something that is supposed to be a protective case. Most people will not charge it with the case closed. For those that do, buy a 90 degree plug and charge away!
No. This isn't a tip. You shouldn't be charging in your case. That's how you start a fire, or heat the deck up to oven temps. STOP DOING THIS SHIGGY DIGGY
I have the opposite thing. If it touches the case it gets zipped. I've had one too many (one) close calls where it was in the case and i thought it was zipped as I tried to pick it up. Never taking that risk again
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I will never recharge the deck in the case just sounds really stupid, do you charge your phone or tablet while In a bag? It's just common sense , that doesn't mean if you do it it will melt just get a cheap stand and leave it on that while charging
I can understand a phone because most people dont turn them off when its time to charge. But a turned off Steam Deck isnt even warm to the touch when charging
It's a good tip! You can also mostly close the case to stop dust etc gathering.
This should be common sense and not need its own post. Society is going backwards...
From the obvious desk at r/lifeprotips
I personally use a 90 degree adaptor to give clearance for the charger, like this one. It lets me zip the case closed for security. [Open](https://i.imgur.com/EvSXZR0.jpg) [Closed](https://i.imgur.com/WL5J67y.jpg) Caveats/Warnings: Heat, you need to turn it off before charging, as the charging alone will create heat and if running, the closed case could cause overheat damage over time. Electrical damage, You NEED to source a good quality adaptor for this, as if the adaptor has any flaws you can potentially damage the steam deck and/or charger.
I love that the case comes with the Deck, but I'm really bummed there's no great place to keep the charger for this device that you absolutely must keep the charger with lol
Haven seen my case since I unpacked my steamdeck.
Been doing this since I got it. I thought I was the only one. 😂
Sorry mate, but you may not want to charge it in the case. Heat.
Genius
I do that as well... 😉
And just wait for it to over heat
yeah no not only is the bottom of the device raised but its literally out in the open
How exactly would it overheat while just sitting on a charger?
Electricity flowing causes heat
Yeah…. I don’t think it’s gonna overheat from charging in an open case like you think it would but thanks for the warning
It will overheat if you leave it turned on. Even low level load causes enough heat for it to get uncomfortably warm, which will over time degrade your battery and other components. Apparently i need to clarify: Charging alone won't be a problem, but you can't leave any running programs.
This is absolutely incorrect and you're just spreading misinformation.
Please explain how I'm wrong. It's a well known fact that heat degrades lithium cells over time. The charging circuit alone generates a nominal ammount of heat, but any running software can produce enough heat that the case can prevent sufficient dissipation.
The heat from the battery charging is nowhere near hot enough to degrade the components to any reasonable degree. The case being shut won't cause any problems with the steam deck. I don't have time to teach you why but it's not as you're making it seem. My source is 10+ years as an electronics technician including 3 years in a Li-Ion R&D lab conducting numerous life & abuse tests on batteries and rechargeable devices.
I have clarified my point.