According to Wccftech, the November 4 Steam Deck Beta Client update finally delivers the highly requested display-off low power downloads feature. This allows the system to complete all active downloads in a new display-off mode before entering sleep. The feature is enabled by default when the Steam Deck is plugged into power and can be toggled in Settings under Power. Users can activate it manually by pressing the power button during downloads, which brings up a new dialog box, or it will engage automatically after idle timeout. The update also fixes issues with SteamOS updates failing to respect HTTP proxy configuration and a performance graph regression during streaming. This marks another improvement for the 2022-launched handheld that helped kick-start the PC gaming handheld market.
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Why this matters
Look, this is one of those features that seems small but actually changes how you use the device. Before this, if you wanted to download a big game or update, you basically had to keep the Deck awake and draining battery. Now? You can just set it and forget it. It’s the kind of quality-of-life improvement that makes a device feel more mature, you know?
And here’s the thing – this isn’t just about convenience. It’s about making the Steam Deck work better as a secondary device. Most people don’t have their Deck as their primary gaming rig, so being able to queue up downloads and walk away is huge. The fact that it works both manually and automatically shows Valve really thought through the use cases.
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This update is part of a pattern we’ve seen since the Steam Deck launched. Valve keeps refining the experience with software updates that address real user pain points. Remember when we didn’t have refresh rate controls? Or proper suspend/resume? They’ve been steadily building out the feature set based on what people actually want.
It makes you wonder – how many other handheld PC makers are paying attention? Because software support like this is what separates the Steam Deck from the competition. While other companies are focused on hardware specs, Valve is showing that the software experience matters just as much. If you want to see what proper ongoing support looks like, check out the official beta notes to see how detailed they get.
Basically, this is why the Steam Deck continues to dominate the handheld PC space. It’s not just about having powerful hardware – it’s about creating an ecosystem that keeps getting better. And with features like this, they’re making sure their early adopters don’t get left behind.
