How Much Does It Cost to Fix a Steam Deck?

Go to vessi.com/dammi... and get $25 off each pair of Vessi Shoes! Free shipping to CA, US, AUS, NZ, JP, TW, KR, SGP
I completely dissasembled my new Steam Deck, and I go over how to replace EVERYTHING in this thing. I show you how to upgrade the joysticks with the gulikit joysticks, and I show you how to do a screen replacement on the steam deck. I also show you how to easily upgrade your SSD, so you can have more storage on your Deck! I upgraded this one with a 1TB SSD, and it came out fantastic. We also look at a teardown of what the motherboard, controller, and other assembly looks like for the deck, and how fixable it really is. The battery replacement needs some work, however.
Links to everything I used (Affiliate!):
1TB SSD: ebay.us/XyPAaU
512GB SSD: ebay.us/n2GQMW
Gulikit Joysticks: amzn.to/3TnEFjq
Soldering Kit: amzn.to/3TlMlCW
(I suggest upgrading once you feel more comfortable soldering)
SD Card I use: amzn.to/3CSY7gV
MagGlass Matte Protector: amzn.to/3saji9z
ifixit pls sponsor me I am on my hands and knees here

[@DammitJeff]

Thanks to Vessi for supporting this video! Go to vessi.com/dammitjeff and get $25 off each pair of Vessi Shoes! Free shipping to CA, US, AUS, NZ, JP, TW, KR, SGP!

[@realgoatzy]

Hello! sorry to hear that you have so much bot comments. I'm Not a bot i swear!

[@DbsEnjoyer]

@@realgoatzy I don't think is a bot because if you check the channel is the same dude

[@KarlRock]

Handheld gaming industry is really heating up, and I love it. I forgot how much I loved handheld until I got my Switch a year ago. It took me back my Gameboy days as a kid. I just got the ROG Ally. Although I hope to get a Steam Deck one day because I think Valve will continue to lead the segment with their future Decks and SteamOS. Keep tinkering and documenting it Bro!

[@TheHarshil]

Nice seeing you here Karl!

[@ben_burnes]

It is honestly WILD and REFRESHING that Valve seems to give a shit about consumers who care about cracking the Deck open and poking around. Amazing they labeled not only the boards but the cables and everything.

[@redstone0234]

When i see how the battery/screen is glued in i think it was mostly an afterthought The steam deck is a cool thing tbh

[@HEADSHOTPROLOL]

This is a certified Steam Deck video

[@thehollowemptyhusk7674]

This is a certified willpower comment

[@CryoNoPyro]

I didn’t realize that it was a steam deck video until this comment thank you

[@DigitalMeIon]

@@CryoNoPyro really??

[@DigitalMeIon]

@@CryoNoPyro it says steam deck in the video title. No offense btw

[@DuoVersal]

@@DigitalMeIon it’s sarcasm

[@OmairArif]

The battery may be a similar size in mAh to a S22 Ultra, but what actually matters is the Watt hour rating, which is almost double in the Steam Deck. This is because The S22 Ultra battery, similar to most phones, has a nominal voltage of around 3.8V while the Steam Deck's battery is 7.7V. It is really strange that we've all standardized on talking about mAh ratings when it makes way more sense to talk about Wh rating. The whole controversy about the Apple MagSafe battery being tiny steamed from the exact same misconception.

[@rajgill7576]

Yea. I have plenty of peoerbabks with enough capacity to charge my steam deck, but SPEED is the harder part

[@DammitJeff]

Fascinating insight, you're absolutely right. I'll be sure to mention that in the future, thanks for teaching me something new! :)

[@cheeseswears]

All in favor of changing the standardization from mAh to Wh, like they’re doing with usb-c. But really tho it makes way more sense

[@Ahmed____]

Some serious video quality here! Gets better with each upload, and the layout is excellent.

[@DeckWizard]

Incredible Video Jeff, I know you spent a lot of time making this video and looking forward to more Steam Deck content from you soon, well played my man. Thankyou for the support and encouragement you've given me this year since I started the Deck Wizard channel, you're a true friend! 💪

[@martingru]

For ppl who are not expierencd with soldering , when working with small electronic parts try to have quite high temp coz excessive exposure to heat heats up all the components around the area you work on and CAN lead to damage right on the spot what you want to do is just use the iron for as short is possible to do a job ( its possible to add some new soldering material to help melt it) , i hope that helps . I wish Noctua made replacement fan for Steam Deck that would be cool ;)

[@returnofmerenguespersempre6664]

Love these teardown videos, big thanks for doing this!

[@realgoatzy]

what teardown

[@weegeenumberone2]

@@realgoatzy teardown... as in... disassembly

[@MUSQUIZanimation]

Dammit Jeff! I left you alone with my Steam Deck for 30 minutes. How did you even get a sponsor in that amount of time!?

[@DammitJeff]

LMAOOOO

[@retrobear9367]

I upgraded my joysticks yesterday. Forgot the sd card was in. Ended up snapping it in the drive. The drive is now messed up because I ruined it while prying the card out. I contacted Valve, let em know what happened. Told em i didn't have the old 64gb hard drive since I upgraded to a TB. They are taking it back anyway and sending another. Awesome customer service

[@shadowedfate151]

"Why aren't you loading into the os?" The steam deck: there's umm... no os to load into jeff...

[@jfangx]

What slowly kills the decks chip is the power draw from the nvme not the form factor. Those western digitals (3.3v 2.5a) you and others are using are about 40 percent over spec on their power draw and if run full tilt for long enough, it will shorten the life of the chip. The deck is only rated for a few watts and those nvme easily exceeded that. I recommend the kingston OM3PDP3512B, 512 (3.3v 1a within spec) and a Samsung 512 pm991 3.3v 1.6a or 1tb pm991a (3.3v 1.8a) both slightly outa spec but much easier on the chip. Knowing is half the battle.

[@maurosgarage]

for removing sticky glue/tape use 99% isopropyl alcohol works like a charm. That's also good for cleaning water spots off devices with a very soft toothbrush.

[@RobertLiamWhyte]

There is a few errors in your video: 1. The Hall Effect joy sticks are not new, Sega introduced them on the Dreamcast controller in the 90's. 2. The PCB board that features the shoulder buttons are incredibly fragile and the main reason for replacement or repair to them is the deck being dropped on it's shoulder buttons instantly chipping the button on the board off. Look at how small it is in your video to your finger and then imagine the weight of the deck pushing it off sideways. 3. The replacement M.2 2242 or 2280 pass over the wireless module and it's that interfere that causes issues, that can be circumvented by increasing the length of the electromagnetic shielding on the m.2

[@brunoais]

3. No. The issue is actually the charging chip. In order to fit a 2242 or 2280, you need to remove the thermal pad for the charging chip which gets VERY hot while the Steam Deck is charging and reaches very close to the maximum working temperature (aprox 90ºC) if you are using the Steam Deck at the same time. If an SSD is dumping heat to it or the thermal pad is missing, it can fry the chip.

[@mb31415]

Nice ad bro I’m moving to Santa Monica next week and when you said where you were my ears perked up so much hahah

[@mb31415]

Also thank you for this incredible video, this must have been so much work to do and it’s so interesting to watch! Thank you!

[@tiredoftheliesalready]

6:29 - No, we aren't "just now finding solutions for [drift]." The Sega Dreamcast used Hall Effect sensors in its controllers, and that was back in the late 1990s; the principal is far, far older. It's not that there's been no knowledge of a fix, no understanding of the reason drift happens, or no technology needed to actually address the issues of drift and excessive wear. It is that the preventative design is a tiny bit more expensive, and "cheaping out" is a favorite for manufacturers, especially those in gaming.

[@DammitJeff]

You're absolutely right, manufactures just really like cheaping out on joysticks unfortunately. I figure its within their best interest to have controllers continually drift so they can...you know. Sell you more controllers 🤔

[@fdddd7143]

I dunno why but Jeff video is addicting

[@ojmachine9545]

as an aside the sega saturn had hal effect analogue sticks in their 3d controller as did the dreamcast. the issue is system manufacturers cutting costs and wanting you to replace the whole controller instead of repairing

[@akalalaimranrp]

Amazing video, thanks. I love my 256gb and 512gb model Steam Deck

[@DammitJeff]

Love it! it's my new favorite device for sure. Always looking for good deck game recommendations if you got any 🤗

[@KseRBanshee]

May I ask which screen do you prefer more? Do you see noticeable image quality degradation on the 512GB due to etched glass? Thank you!

[@SpaceCassini]

This is a best easy repairable console that history of gaming ever seen. Valve knew that problems (sticks drifting) with 3D analog sticks and did easies way to replace it:) it's so cool, respect them. Now i love this company more😂 (And sorry for my English, a just learning it)

[@chunkylover5367]

Disagree about the SSD part, but it's mostly because Valve wasn't specific about the power requirements. For example, the 256GB / 512GB Steam Decks today are now coming with Gen 3 x 2 that are 3.3V at 1.5A = 4.95W. Much less power and heat than the PC SN 530 SSD that's 3.3V at 2.5A = 8.25W. This is about 10° C higher on average. I wish Valve just released a list of recommended SSD's, so that people won't blindly say herrrrr 2230 good. You're missing some info about the joysticks. You'll need to check to see whether your Steam Deck uses type A or B joysticks. Gulikit only has the Type A right now. It's only for the capacitive touch though. So, it should work still, minus touch if you have B. Ifixit has instructions on how to check your joystick type.

[@beavis5706]

When you bend the heat pipe slightly while trying to remove that stubborn sticker then you might need a replacement heat sink. I would like to know where to get replacement and how much just for future reference

[@lilrockstar77]

No sir we been found the solution to drift. The Dreamcast had magnetic stick. Everyone was just being too cheap to incorporate.

[@aaronogden9900]

A great console with innovative ideas like the magnetic sticks. Shame hardly anyone bought one.

[@KoralTea]

I love your videos, Jeff! Jokull must be proud

[@naufalzaqie]

Hey, I just subscribed to your channel. I love your videos especially the "jailbroken looks like" please make more video about that, keep making videos!

[@sonups2]

good to see you back

[@DammitJeff]

Good to be back! 💖

[@fruitsnacks155]

valve is a treasure for making the steam deck like this

[@SleepingInAshes]

The Sega Dreamcast used magnetic detection for their joysticks, so this is not a new solution, but I could see why you would think so.

[@pondwaterjr]

i find when the batt is glued down, in the case of the steam deck remove the screen then apply heat to the frame on the back side, that way heat does not have to soak thru the batt hopefully there is an oled screen at the time i have to replace my batt

[@TheBuster0926]

I hope the same thing. Maybe there's gonna be crazy new Optimized fans too...

[@richieruiz3652]

Such a great informative video. Thank you Jeff!

[@SeithonJetter]

The battery being expensive isn't too surprising given it has a custom formfactor. The fact they've not used more easily removable glue is odd.

[@ithildiess8305]

0:22 with my shaky hands hell no :p I destroy desktop PCs by just replacing CPU coolers, lol. Even after 5pc builds I don't trust myself. The most I'd swap in steamdeck is a battery or a fan. And maybe ssd. Everything else I ain't touching! Soldering is a "hell no!" But really fun to see someone pick everything apart I do enjoy the process nice video, thanks!

[@bestestdev]

Came here from NationSquid. Watched a couple videos and so far yeah man I’m digging it. Promise I’m not a bot lol

[@DammitJeff]

Appreciate it!

[@pompshuffle562]

The thing about those side boards is that the bumper can break and the actual button on the board can crack

[@bushysowavvey]

Had an energy drink open up in my bookbag and seep into my Deck…. Hadn’t even had it a month smh. I tore it down and tried to clean it, but I decided to start the RMA process anyways and just shipped it off this morning. Going on a trip for Memorial Day weekend so hopefully I’ll get it back by then. Willing to pay the $150 or whatever it costs since liquid damage isn’t covered. Better than buying a brand new one.

[@Richman_7]

Wow! This video makes it made super easy. Nice one Jeff. Please, any update for jailbreaking PS4 9.60?

[@rajgill7576]

I can't wait to swap out atomic purple shells for the entire console

[@orcckaa]

High quality content 👍👍

[@NissanSkyline69]

The last 3 seconds were my favourite 😂

[@JoseHernandez-zq6rt]

Great video! Thanks for doing this. Hope they help us out with the battery. :P

[@repeekyraidcero]

6:29 Not true actually. The dreamcast already had halleffect analogues But companies always take the cheapest road, so no hall by stock. Great video. TheSD seems really repairable 🙃

[@triadwarfare]

Here's to hoping that if Valve won't make an OLED version of the steam deck, someone else would make it for them.

[@gsharpshooter80]

After removing the screen if you were to heat up that metal part would it have loosened the adhesive for the battery on the other side?

[@sum1s0mewhere]

New to the channel and I love the videos. Was wondering if you can do a video about modding a steam deck. I got one as a bday gift

[@Duel911]

so im curious, can you take it apart, add better graphics, add ram, and change from battery to plug power, and we got a steam deck console?

[@Ducky935]

What microphone do you use for your voiceovers? its very clean

[@DammitJeff]

Thank you! This year I swapped over to an Shure SM58 with an EVO 4 interface.

[@LolCat361]

There are some issues with my Steam Deck's hardware which causes some problems like the Steam Deck randomly crashing every few weeks, having to tilt the Steam Deck a certain way to get it to launch again when I restart it, and Left 4 Dead 2 completely breaking when I have it open for a few days forcing me to restart my Steam Deck to launch it and play it again.

[@Shishkablob]

Idk if you will ever read this, but if so I wanna ask if are going to make a tutorial on a steam deck shell swap. I enjoyed your Nintendo Switch shell swaps and would like to see you customize a steam deck. (I know you said you would, 8:50 , but it's been 9 months...)

[@paul7031]

Really good video thanks 👍🏻

[@allmightytoaster]

Vessi is lit I still have to buy a pair

[@hrvstmn31]

Man I wish more controllers had hall effect sensors in em or the ability to swap em in. They've been in console controllers before so Idk why they aren't used any more.

[@pingus9934]

It's cheaper to use the ones that cause stick drift, plus temporary solutions to sell more controllers.

[@hrvstmn31]

@@pingus9934 Sadly yer not wrong.

[@pedrogiron5858]

Wondering if you either buy broken devices or offer repair on a broken device. Long story short, I drop my steam deck and both right and left bumper buttons don't work. I think it might be the tactile button on the board itself. So wondering if you would buy a device that could be fix or offer service to fix it for me?

[@jayfeliciano2]

I wish there could be a time that we could upgrade it like we can easily upgrade our gaming rigs

[@UncleHeatBand]

Amazing video. Thank you very much for the information and hopefully I'll never need it. 🤘

[@malfunction7077]

do you think we will ever get a better display for the steam deck i mean over 60hz not just this deckhd one coming out i think id like something like 60+ hz but i dont want a rog ally

[@ancaxtx647]

i like the mainboard is separate.. maybe for next steam deck 2 only upgrade mainboard, i hope valve thinks like that

[@libardomm.trasimaco]

great video

[@Quasisaur]

Is it possible to make a custom battery mod for this device so you can use AA or 18650/18500 batteries I wonder🤔

[@nasser1337]

I'd the gulikit accurate? I heard there is a problem with how far they go compared to the default sticks

[@hanro50]

Apparently Valve wanted to use pull tabs, but they ran out of space.

[@orlandofurioso7329]

In this particular case i would buy that issue, everything is very crammed in there

[@DammitJeff]

Interesting! I find that really hard to believe somehow, pull tabs are really thin honestly. I have some spare pull tabs that are leftover from some iphone batteries i've replaced, im contemplating opening mine back up and see if I can apply them to the battery successfuly, cause it seems pretty straight forward to add in with zero bulk.

[@Transfurred]

4:43 that freakin hurt my soul man, i just slid that thing off when i upgraded my ssd

[@usaskjock]

Any chance you can do a video on fixing the Nintendo switch pro controller? I have two and one the joystick has severe left drift and the other suddenly has the Right trigger and up down and right stop working on the dpad

[@cagethelonewolf]

Me not remembering then buttons conacts are on the bumpers meaning you cant buy it separately now the right is outta stock and i have to wait for it to return just to re take aosrt the steamdeck again

[@sihTdaeRtnaCuoY]

I don't know why people of this younger generation think that joystick drift is just being solved now. Old joysticks didn't drift. It was the generation after Xbox 360 that all joysticks started drifting. I had 4 Xbox 360 controllers and none of them drifted and I used them until they were broken in some other way. I recently bought an Xbox Series X controller because they don't sell 360 controllers anymore, and it started drifting after 3 months, and they refused to replace it. The fact that every manufacturer has drifting issues is almost certainly a calculated move to sell more controllers. Controllers have skyrocketed in price and plummeted in quality. Controllers are now more expensive than a AAA game on launch. And that's all of them at the same time. That was never the case in the past, and the controllers worked well for a much longer period of time. It makes literally no sense at all unless companies got together and decided to opt for planned obsolescence and thought they might as well price fix while they're at it. And that would make sense too, because around the same time they decided to start doing cross-platform multiplayer, something they refused to ever do in the past. Hooray for extreme oligopolies to the point that it's indistinguishable to a monopoly from the consumer point of view.

[@DigitalMeIon]

Can you please make a video about making your own Splatoon 3 Nintendo switch oled? I want to make one of my own but I can't find the parts 😔

[@Ozymandiaz1260]

You’ve got an editing mistake right at the end

[@cagethelonewolf]

Simple as it can be as scared as ever taking it apart. That's the easy part but putting it togther? If my deck even so much as lags I'll assume I broke it

[@SlyNine]

The dreamcast controller used those kinda of joysticks. So it's not new.

[@Che1seabluesdrogba11]

I fried something.. I was playing a game with battery maybe at 60% and plugged in power and it turned off 😭😭😭 Ive done this numerous times but somehow this went wrong. Im betting i might as well get a new one if i want one as repair will probably be costly. I did have a new corsair MP600 SSD But its had it for months

[@vanimapermai]

Other then the SSD replacement I don't think I'm gonna take my deck apart

[@Zordyn]

still waiting on the modded steam deck video

[@poke_detta]

i dont know why i watched this never in my life will i ever be able to afford a steam deck

[@omarguerrero6417]

The only questions i have is how the dual touchpads work

[@gg_mydog968]

Yes

[@Reynsoon]

what if i told you we always knew about magnetic joysticks (Hall effect joysticks) it's just that drifty boys are cheaper

[@ZeroChoices]

any updates about the steam deck?

[@MrOzyreusz]

I got mine a week ago and still it has the loud delta fan

[@zariarogers2846]

I needed to see how to take the battery out T_T

[@pepealexandre8815]

Nice.

[@clydefrosch]

Hate that the usb connector is not modular.

[@mfpv_detroit8182]

I had to sub

[@ebolaboi]

Any version of the decks SSDs can be upgraded? TY

[@DammitJeff]

Yes!

[@obidahasdia4095]

just what i was looking for i bought 2 new steam decks i will use it as console with bluetooth controllers so i wont have to ruin anything i guess

[@Bludgeoned2DEATH2]

Unrelated to the video but Japanese vitas are far superior, the mirroring of the X and O buttons make all the difference lol.

[@RiveraShatz]

Not sure if its a good idea to recommend people to get soldering kits

[@monochrome_linux]

The new gulikit ones dont need soldering, so thats a bonus

[@dannyd4339]

Dammit jeff

[@niclast7600]

well as mutch as steam machine was a failere there where in a right track, and they have really learned. They simple understand there customers, we want to fiddle and tweak with our hardware. And its also goes along with valves spirit, let the community do the work for them aka workshop. Imagen the mods that will come for the deck.

[@ni2opps]

It did not clibrate, it gives error after 4th step. What did I do wrong ?? It doesnt read .py script

[@ConnorSeals]

0:17 Jeff is assuming I’m average 😭😢

[@bobkelley8234]

im watching you take apart a steam deck on a steam deck

[@sandeeprajaputhran2383]

can you install oled screen on your steam deck?

[@jadedshard9650]

wait to that daylight sensor dos that mean if I play golden sun the game would use it?

[@DammitJeff]

Nah, its designed for the auto-brightness feature on the deck. If you're in sunlight, the brightness will auto go up. If you're in the darkness, it'll auto go down. This sensor detects if you're in a bright environment or not!

[@Inyayo]

based repairman

[@bravefastrabbit770]

Truth be told the prices feel like a huge fucking scam. 20$ per joystick, which doesn't even include shipping to the EU. That's fucking absurd

[@borisdg]

What brand is the LCD? AUO?

[@brandon_nope]

BOE

[@borisdg]

@@brandon_nope Thank you. No wonder there are so many issues.

[@jackmaskoten3765]

Do a modded steam deck video

[@SnowFootprints96]

buying a steam deck one piece at a time.

[@LanceRyderWilsonNigguh01]

Are you NationSquid's friend?

[@DammitJeff]

ye we have brunch on weekends 🥰

[@emeryduhgamer]

I have absolutely no idea what any of this means but I came here to ask is anybody knew anything about water damage repair for the steam deck as my deck was damaged and I do not know what to do, it has been probably about a month since damaged (damaged on like august 13th or 14th) and so I don’t know how to repair it and when I turned it on again a while later some of the buttons seemed not to work and I have decided against turning it on again, if anybody knows any places IRL I could go to get it fixed please please please lmk in the replies, also it wasn’t like dunked in water it was minimal damage like some water getting in like the speakers or the fans and I will not disclosed how it was damaged (it was stupidly embarrassing)