I’m a handheld gaming PC connoisseur — I currently own a Steam Deck, Asus ROG Ally, and Lenovo Legion Go, and I’m already planning my next upgrade. It’s no secret that now isn’t the best time to buy into the PC gaming handheld market. The global RAM shortage is driving the cost of component pricing upwards, and those price hikes eventually hit consumers. Handhelds appear to be particularly vulnerable, as Lenovo’s base-model Legion Go 2 recently climbed 36% in price. The Steam Deck went out of stock due to market conditions, and now that it’s back, the handheld costs hundreds more than before.
Frankly, I thought the Steam Deck LCD’s original prices were too high. The higher-capacity storage variants and the newer Steam Deck OLED models are even more expensive, and that was before the latest price hike. That’s why I bought a cheap, certified refurbished Steam Deck LCD with only 64GB of storage years ago, opting to upgrade the storage myself rather than pay Valve to do it for me. Now, I think buying certified refurbished is the only way to justify purchasing a Steam Deck in 2026.
I made the switch to Steam OS on my ROG Ally X and haven’t looked back
Being reunited with SteamOS has never felt better, especially on the ROG Ally X
Valve’s Steam Deck price hikes are unsustainable
Who wants to pay nearly a grand for a three-year-old handheld PC?
As I mentioned, the Steam Deck’s rising costs don’t represent a Valve problem. It’s a global manufacturing problem, and until the AI bubble bursts or production capacity increases, it’ll remain an issue. In fact, the Steam Deck isn’t the handheld most affected by the volatile market.
That would be the Lenovo Legion Go 2, a handheld with a top-end configuration that went up in price by a mind-boggling 92%, from $1,479.99 to $2,849.99. However, the Legion Go 2 was updated with a fresh AMD Ryzen Z2 or Ryzen Z2 Extreme chip just last October, whereas the Steam Deck OLED is going on three years old. I’m not saying anyone should shell out nearly three grand for a 2TB Legion Go 2, but its newer hardware counts for something.
The Steam Deck OLED doesn’t have that perk going for it. The situation is quite the opposite. Valve, the company behind Steam and the Steam Deck, has maintained that a proper Steam Deck 2 is still in the pipeline. Knowing that a true successor is coming eventually might make it tricky for potential Steam Deck buyers to justify spending on the current model with inflated prices. Speaking of those prices, they make the cost of a Steam Deck a small fortune.
Specifically, the base model is now the 512GB Steam Deck OLED, and it retails for $789. The upgraded tier is the 1TB Steam Deck OLED that goes for $949. Those new prices are up from $549 and $649, respectively. That’s a difference of $240 for the base model and $300 for the top-end model. At these figures, the Steam Deck OLED is competing with higher-tier handhelds like the Asus ROG Ally X, and I’m not sure if the aging SteamOS device is up for the task.
Put aside your thoughts about the Steam Deck and its competitors for a moment — who wants to pay as much as $300 more today for the exact same product that was cheaper months ago?
Refurbished Steam Decks are a steal
The $300 price point perfectly fits what Valve offers
The only way a Steam Deck OLED makes sense in the current market is as a used or certified refurbished product. Be warned, though — I’m far from the first person to throw out this idea, and you’ll have your work cut out for you if you’re trying to secure a certified refurbished Steam Deck. The attractive part of buying certified refurbished is that you can pick up Steam Deck LCD models, which are no longer sold in new condition directly from Valve. These are cheaper than the OLED alternative, and they’re ideal for budget buyers.
I went with the 64GB Steam Deck LCD because I didn’t need the flashy OLED display or the higher storage capacity. I planned to use the microSD card expansion slot to the fullest, and simply swap out the internal SSD for a bigger one on my own. Unfortunately, the Steam Deck LCD isn’t being restocked. If you want a new Steam Deck, the OLED variant is your only option. That’s bad news for those who don’t want to spend more than $500 on a PC gaming handheld, but certified refurbished models can be the solution.
At their current prices, certified refurbished Steam Deck LCD models start at just $279. That’s for the 64GB model I own, but the 256GB and 512GB configurations cost $319 and $359, respectively. All of these certified refurbished handhelds cost a fraction of the Steam Deck OLED’s current retail price. Like I did, you can always pop in a microSD card or swap out the factory SSD to upgrade your storage down the line while saving money today.
All eyes are on certified refurbished Steam Deck handhelds, so they may not be in stock when you check Valve’s certified refurbished Steam Deck store. Check back often, as certified refurbished inventory is restocked regularly and sells out fast.
The perk of buying a refurbished Steam Deck directly from Valve is that you get the same experience as buying new, including the one-year warranty, a refurbished battery, and free carrying case. You can look at other refurbishers like Game Stop or Amazon, but choosing to buy from Steam keeps you fully protected in case something isn’t right.
I own 3 PC gaming handhelds, and this is the one I barely use
Until Linux gets serious about multiplayer gaming, my Steam Deck will collect dust while I play on my Windows gaming handhelds instead.
Finding cheap Steam Decks is a waiting game
Restocks can be few and far between, and you have to be quick
The current $789 starting price for the Steam Deck OLED should be a non-starter for prospective buyers. It first debuted in 2023, and while it offers plenty of upgrades over the Steam Deck LCD, it’s not a Steam Deck 2. That is still coming, and spending on the Steam Deck OLED now will leave you feeling left out when the true successor finally arrives.
For now, it’s a waiting game. You can wait with the hope of Steam Deck prices falling back to normal eventually, or wait for a Steam Deck 2, or wait for more certified refurbished Steam Deck models to pop up on Valve’s store. Either way, you’re going to be waiting. If I were doing it all over again, my eyes would be glued to Valve’s certified refurbished store waiting to snag a Steam Deck LCD for under $400.
- Brand
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Valve
- Screen
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7-inch touchscreen (1280 x 800, 16:10)
- Processing Power
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AMD RDNA 2 with 8 Compute Units, up to 1.6 GHz
- CPU
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AMD Zen 2: 2.43.5 GHz
- Battery
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40 Wh, 5-8 hours
- Connectivity
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Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, USB-C, 3.5 mm audio
Steam Deck is a portable PC gaming handheld that runs your Steam library on the go, offering a 7″ touchscreen, high-performance AMD chipset, and built-in controls. It supports full PC games, customizable settings, and optional external display output — delivering console-like convenience with PC-level flexibility.
