Valve’s Steam Deck has stirred the portable gaming sector, leading to transformative changes within Steam to consolidate its foothold in the handheld market. The latest update on the beta version introduces an option aimed at improving battery longevity.

Batteries inevitably lose capacity over time, especially with frequent charges; therefore, various technologies now come equipped with battery preservation features, akin to the one offered in the recent Steam Deck Beta Client update on May 8.

For users with this beta update, navigating to the Settings on the Steam Deck reveals a new option under ‘Power’ that allows setting a battery charge limit capped at 80%. While this would decrease the battery’s usable charge by roughly 20%, it might extend the lifespan of the battery.

This setting could be particularly beneficial for users who tend to keep their devices plugged in most of the time to avoid potential battery failures associated with frequent full depletions. However, it’s essential to remember that this option remains flexible and can be disabled if needed. For those often in need of a full charge to last through the day, it’s possible to revert to the standard mode when necessary.

At this stage, the battery limit feature is exclusively available in the test preview build, indicating that Valve is adopting a wait-and-see approach before its official rollout.