Turning the ASUS ROG Ally X into a Steam Deck makes it better

Secure your privacy with Surfshark! Enter coupon code DEN for 4 months EXTRA at surfshark.deal...
Bazzite is a Linux distro that mimics the Steam Deck OS to a T. I was not expecting how much I would like the Steam Deck experience on a powerful Windows handheld...
🛍Support the channel! Use these links to buy stuff:
ASUS ROG Ally X go.magik.ly/ml...
SAMSUNG 990 PRO SSD amzn.to/4d0RxG6
ASUS SSD Enclosure (this is a slightly different one) amzn.to/3LPRalS
🔔GET NOTIFIED: SUB! www.youtube.com...
▶️New Videos AT LEAST weekly
👕W U L F F D E N A P P A R E L 👕
wulffdenapparel...
➤➤➤Support the channel! Become a sponsor: kzbin.info...
• Access to Sponsor only Discord chat
• Chat badge & Emotes
• Priority game time for chat multiplayer streams (whenever we do them)
🎮Twitch: / wulffden
🐦Twitter [Bob]: / bobwulff
🐦Twitter [WulffDen]: / thewulffden
📸Instagram: / thewulffden
🔷Facebook: / wulffden
💬Our Discord Server: / discord
(ノಠ益ಠ)ノ

[@RetroGameCorps]

I *am* watching this! Hi Bob!

[@WulffDen]

Oh shit its the cops

[@ZerkUWU]

They came so fast lol

[@wolfiemuse]

Would we miss it? No! 😂❤

[@Wolvfang21]

@@WulffDenABC

[@fekett]

@@WulffDen glad it's not fbi, you'd end like mkbhd

[@Dr0nion]

Because the Deck isn't available in my region but the Ally is, their prices are actually competitive. This is a game changer, Windows was holding back all these competitors

[@ZerkUWU]

Same for me, but there are still three problems: The micro sd problem that the ally has, and the fact that the ally doesnt have trackpads, and the lower battery life

[@johnnyrocketfingaz]

So in essence, i should buy a steam deck???​@ZerkUWU

[@ZerkUWU]

@@johnnyrocketfingaz idk, I dont have any of those, but for me, the steam deck has things that are more useful (again, for ME), Linus Tech Tips prefers the rog Ally because its just more powerful and the battery life doesnt matter for him because he only plays on his house. Idk whats ur case

[@jed23ify]

@@ZerkUWUbruh, that’s the old Ally, that issue was mediated and fixed. Also the batter was increased to 80-Wh, double to battery size of the original Ally and larger than the 50-Wh on the steam deck oled.

[@TruTrae]

​@@ZerkUWU The ally X has none of those issues other than the lack of trackpads.

[@Brandonhatesmayo]

Pro Tip: If you don't get the wifi option in Bazzite, boot into Windows, turn off fast boot and shut down completely. When you turn it back on it'll boot into Bazzite and be fixed.

[@chilla102]

this needs to get pinned or something

[@EhEhEhEINSTEIN]

Have a like and a comment to boost your Pro Tip

[@chilla102]

I would add that if it doesn't happen still. Try it a couple of times. That is what happen to me.

[@BringusStudios]

Yes

[@MonkeyVoices]

Yes

[@Dracossaint]

YES!

[@goggamanxp]

Optical Media Bad

[@etnurb2536]

bionicle video when

[@anuragthakur5787]

Edge

[@DrummerLocnar]

decky loader is found in the quick access menu on the right, after installed, it adds a plug icon way at the bottom, the look is so clean you probably didnt notice the change lol.

[@CrystalENVT]

additionally, Decky Loader is a CSS loader & program manager to be able to customize a whole bunch about your steam deck. Have a persona 5 themed app select, have your flatpaks get auto updated, have the volume adjust be a simple white bar, etc etc

[@fairphoneuser9009]

​@@CrystalENVTIsn't the CSS loader a separate plugin?

[@thebarbiter4644]

Same. After installing it i thought it didn't work at first because of how well it blends in with the rest of the SteamOS ui

[@CrystalENVT]

@@fairphoneuser9009 There is a "CSS Loader" plugin for the big overhauls, but Decky itself does CSS modifications due to the components within the plugin viewer. So a pedantic difference

[@M_CFV]

@@fairphoneuser9009 no, the entire point of decky loader is that it loads other plugins for you, like css loader

[@TeamLinux01]

After enrolling the MOK (Machine Owner Key) for Bazzite into the UEFI, you can turn Secure Boot back on without issues. I actually recommend doing so, as it will protect the system in case someone tries to inject malicious drivers/unsigned modules on the Bazzite system. Once the MOK is installed, you shouldn't have to reinstall it unless a BIOS update wipes the MOK or the keys need to be rotated for one reason.

[@chengong388]

Inject malware into a handheld gaming device of a poor gamer? Why? For what purpose?

[@TeamLinux01]

@@chengong388 Who knows why people do what they do. I could see someone trying to take over the machine to run crypto-currency miners, stealing credentials and attacking other machines. Having extra protections and know how they work is nice for the user.

[@coltonbyu]

@@chengong388 Gamers tend to download a good bit of mods/tools/tweaks/packages from non-official sources.

[@HiTechLoLife]

Been following and covering Bazzite since the beginning and it's come a VERY long way. Props to the Bazzite team for making it so dang easy over the last couple of months.

[@HikariKnight]

Thank you, we try our best! Has come a long way indeed since i started using it and joined the team last year, props to everyone involved be it contributors, testers, volunteers, users, creators and maintainers. Would not been possible without everyone involved.

[@neoturfmasterMVS]

@@HikariKnight Thank you so much.

[@timetoshine2752]

Are features Like afmd possible ?

[@HikariKnight]

@@timetoshine2752guess you mean AFMF for games that has built in support: yes for all games without support: no

[@timetoshine2752]

@@HikariKnight so Fsr2/3 yes AFMF no

[@samuelknytt9434]

I can point out that SteamOS has less stuttering due in large part to DXVK (DirectX-to-Vulkan). Due to the similarities between Vulkan and DirectX, and the access both APIs have to the bare metal of your GPU, Vulkan is able to very cleanly translate all the calls DirectX makes back to Vulkan, including stuff like shaders. This isn't emulation, it's more a small piece of code that points the GPU to do Vulkan things when equivalent commands for DirectX are called by the game. While shader cache precompiling definitely helps, Vulkan seems to just handle shaders better than DirectX. This DXVK reaps all the benefits of Vulkan from DirectX12 games, including ray tracing, with none of the DirectX downsides, and developers don't even have to do anything. It's magic. Edit: You can do this in Windows as well. There are other things like the lack of overhead in Linux distros vs Windows 11 and the optimizations Wine/Proton have that can also make stuff run better than on Windows at times, but DXVK famously made Elden Ring Playable on Steam Deck vs the stuttery mess you'd get my default on Windows PCs that were objectively much more powerful than a Steam Deck. As far as I know, this fix applies to Windows as well if you know how to get it working. I haven't done it, but I've seen reports that it does work. Of course, this is all automated through Valve's Proton compatibility layer.

[@voyagerrock1137]

you don't have to precompile or download existing shaders on linux anymore, since it will just not display the effect until it's been compiled, so the game doesn't have to freeze while it's waiting for compilation to complete, like how the dolphin emulator does it

[@samuelknytt9434]

@@voyagerrock1137 that doesn't happen with every game, since some devs technically consider that a hack/workaround. You can turn that off entirely in Dolphin as well, the ishiiruka fork had that feature for like 5 years before Dolphin added ubershaders and baked that feature into the mainline build, but they consider it a hack since it introduces visual issues that aren't accurate and won't be consistent across all platforms.

[@JoeNokers]

Wine Is Not an Emulator ;)

[@voyagerrock1137]

@@samuelknytt9434 Yeah, it doesn't happen with every game, just 99.9999999999999% of them!

[@wyvern681]

Feel like a broken record for the last few months saying this but Bazzite turned my legion go into a proper console. I am dual booting a 2tb drive and it's wonderful on the legion go.

[@Lootworks]

Can you DM me your process?

[@Captain-Chats]

Have you partitioned in half? 1tb for each OS? I have a ordered a 2tb drive and 4tb and not sure if 4tb is to much so may send it back to save some money

[@wyvern681]

I left 400gb for windows cause I only use it now for any odd game that's not compatible with steamos. That's kinda been fixed for me cause kingdom hearts is now on steam. Any games I use on windows I keep on a 512gb microsd. Then I have 1.5tb for all the games I normally play on steamos with all the benefits that brings like preloaded caches and a lovely interface. I've remapped the legion buttons to start and select and my controllers are set to work as a dualsense edge.

[@Captain-Chats]

@@wyvern681 thanks for the reply, yea id only use windows for very few games. i may just split direct in half then may repartition if needed later down the road

[@Isaypreach]

I wanna do that to my legion go but just gotta find a tutorial on how

[@Nuprakh]

You can leave secure boot on. Just need to enroll the keys at first bootup of bazzite - it’s all in their manual.

[@joaoboccoli]

bazzite is insanely good, been rocking it on my legion go and it's night and day.

[@begejekan1244]

did you find any problems or bugs? some people mentioned that the suspend/sleep sometimes not working

[@samganji6987]

How does the sleep/resume work for you?

[@joaoboccoli]

@@samganji6987 as intended, feels like a nintendo switch.

[@joaoboccoli]

@@begejekan1244 fewer bugs than running with w11. suspend/sleep works really well never crashed on me. games that i played after bazzite: horizon zero dawn, dead cells, hades, days gone and super meat boy.

[@victor1882]

@@begejekan1244 there was one update that messed sleep/resume, but it was some time ago and I don't remember it being a problem anymore, just works, put the Legion Go to sleep and instantly resume it afterwards, you can also configure the power LED just like on Windows

[@tamilvilayattarangam]

This is probably the most layman-ish install I have seen, and its a great way to see how an everyday person who buys this device might go about using Bazzite OS on their Ally X. It still is a lot of hoops to jump through just to circumvent the pitfalls of windows, but atleast it is an option. Great video Bob.

[@DrummerLocnar]

this basically just proves we need that official release of SteamOS to kick windows to the curb on ALL OUR DEVICES

[@AntonioDeNardis75]

No need to wait. Bazzite OS is the way. I've kicked out Windows on my Gaming PC because of my SteamDeck... I never looked back.

[@MithosDagon]

Nah, I’m keeping windows thank you very much

[@AntonioDeNardis75]

@@MithosDagon your loss

[@MithosDagon]

@@AntonioDeNardis75 Nah, I already have a Steam Deck OLED and not missing much.

[@AntonioDeNardis75]

@@MithosDagon me too. Why are You here, commenting then? Bazzite os Is way better then Windows and there are plenty videos out there proving it. I repeat, of You have a Rog and do not installa Bazzite over Windows, Your loss.

[@Sherolox]

When will manufacturers like Asus understand how useful the dual trackpads on the Steam Deck are? Game is not made to be played with a controller? No problem. Want to easily navigate the desktop? Got you covered. Usable as additional buttons? YES. If Asus redesigned the Ally a little at least one full trackpad would've fit.

[@ZerkUWU]

ikr?? Its what makes me not instabuy an ally

[@Exodia_Misogynist]

You complaining over some lame track pads when these don't even have more ports for peripherals 😂😂😂😂

[@Sherolox]

@@Exodia_Misogynist Ever heard of a USB hub?

[@Lucaboox]

Just got a steam deck and for real there's no way I could ever use the joysticks for mouse control it's so horrible compared to the trackpads

[@kaiichinose9590]

Have the steam deck Oled and NEVER use the track pads. And I don’t play RTS games where it might be somewhat useful.

[@Yusei255]

and now valve have confirmed the Steam OS is coming to the likes of both ROG Ally models, and even the Legion go.

[@mechanicalmonk2020]

The characterization that Chimera is for any device and Bazzite is for Ally and Legion Go is false. It's the opposite. Chimera just tries to copy steam os meaning Intel and Nvidia folks are on their own. Bazzite has a whole host of releases for different hardware. I run bazzite on my intel mini PC connected to my TV. Works great

[@erixIsOffline]

Yea bazzite is not just gaming distro but a Proper os i recently moved on it and the CPU bore schedular was kinda scaring me but in the end works better than windows on the same applications i already been using on windows xd people i think just like to over looked things

[@SpiderMitch]

Spit out my coffee at the beginning from the quick "for $800"😆

[@AlexRubio]

yeah, me 2

[@JonathanAkiraFreudman]

thats cheap.

[@ivan2152]

Do you think this is cheap for everyone or what?​@@JonathanAkiraFreudman

[@KingVulpes]

@@JonathanAkiraFreudman My desktop PC was less than $800 💀

[@TheBlargMarg]

The ROG Ally X is considerably more powerful than the Deck and can use external GPU, BUT the Deck, specifically the OLED version is really good for its price. Pretty much, I say get the Deck if you have the cash, and get the ROG X if you have more cash.

[@SamuraiBeavs]

mom, dad. bob is doing something crazy again. he put a steam deck inside of the ASUS rog ally x

[@StoneyWoney]

As long as he doesnt give it a crunchy twist, I'll be fine.

[@meatpockets]

You know what they say… Bobs will be Bobs

[@trevornewyork]

13:10 The Plug icon on the bottom of the right menu is decky loader fyi

[@dogwithoutw]

Remember guys, while Ally x's pricing might not be justifiable for most of us, the very same specs(plus heavier and a bit less battery) was, about a year ago in Ayaneo kun, priced hundreds of dollars more.

[@arlemoine]

No touch pads, no touch capacitive sticks, and less buttons overall? I definitely wouldn't call this a "more premium Steam Deck." I would say that the only upside over the OLED Deck is probably a slight boost in power. Great video though, and I appreciate you advocating for Linux!

[@nikkoa.3639]

It's not a slight boost in power, it's a LOT. But you're right in the other departments

[@WilkoGRACZ]

The trackpads are probably one of the most U N D E R R A T E D feature of the SteamDeck.

[@erixIsOffline]

True brother🙏

[@fighterguard]

Totally agree. Which is why I see no point in running Linux on my Ally. If I want to play on SteamOS, I use my Steam Deck OLED. If I want the extra horsepower and remove judder with VRR, I play on the Ally. And also for Game Pass. That's my #1 reason for sticking to Windows.

[@Dracossaint]

6:04 That's one of the benefits of Linux. They have better 1% lows most of the time. Its the shader precaching for all the games.

[@Dewm_]

Since on Linux you're usually going to be playing games in Vulkan, either natively or via layers like Pronto, DXVK or VKD3D; you gain some of the benefits of Vulkan as well. From my experience Vulkan tends to handle input a lot earlier in the chain than Direct X, which tends to result in controls generally feeling a bit more responsive, and lower framerates being less of an issue for game feel. Combine that with how little processes are running in the background, proper priority and CPU scheduling and all the other benefits you get from a Linux distro, it overall adds up to a much better experience.

[@CyberDopamine]

Oh dude you’re rad. It is a sick name but I ain’t a wolf in the den.

[@InceptionAnims]

Bro thinks he’s cyber dopamine 🫣

[@SereneBlueSoul]

Deserve the cred u make fire videos man

[@tamilvilayattarangam]

Oh dude.... @CyberDopamine u got a shout out!!!! Nice.

[@CyberDopamine]

@@tamilvilayattarangam Hahaha hey whats up. Its like running into you in a different city lol

[@CyberDopamine]

@@SereneBlueSoulheck yeah thanks

[@RamRoxillo]

On Legion Go, Bazzite runs almost everything MUCH better than Windows. Lots of games that have framedrops and micro-stutters on Windows have zero of these issues on Bazzite. For example, I can only play Hogwarts Legacy on Bazzzite as on Windows it keeps stuttering like crazy (no matter the graphical settings).

[@gdcrisanto]

i honestly think that valve should just hire the bazzite team at this point to bring steamOS to other systems

[@foxonboard1]

Well, I guess it is a selling point of the steam deck comming with steamOS

[@namegoeshere197]

​​@@foxonboard1i dont think valve really care what system you us, aslong as you are using the steam store.

[@ValentinoNicko]

@@foxonboard1 It might hurt the Steam Deck sales count, but it is already sold in a very tight margin, so the price point is still the plus point for Steam Deck.

[@oryxisatthefront8338]

@@ValentinoNickoI thought steam was selling at a loss so it wouldn’t matter? In fact I feel like this way they are actually making more money lol

[@ValentinoNicko]

@@oryxisatthefront8338 No way they are actually selling at a loss. the margin might be very tight but saying selling it at a loss is like free marketing so consumer would think how much value they get from Steam Deck.

[@aquasp102]

Now that Bob has put SteamOS on a couple Windows handhelds at this point, I'm still waiting for the day that he makes a video where he puts Windows on a Steam Deck, as he said he would a couple years ago. It'd be interesting to see how he thinks of the experience with the right setup.

[@therandomlootdrop4285]

You know its a good day when Bob drops a new video!

[@SwitchMania]

I love bazzite on my ally x. The performance and battery life far exceed my steam deck OLED. Been using it like this for over a week and been having a blast.

[@LawlietKing]

So is the battery better? I'm curios about this since this wasn't mentioned on the video

[@SwitchMania]

@@LawlietKing I find it to be slightly better than the OLED in performance and turbo modes. In low power modes it’s about the same between OLED and the Ally X,

[@envyLP333]

​First you said far exceeds now it slightly?​@@SwitchMania

[@SwitchMania]

@@envyLP333 you’re right I was inconsistent between my 2 comments. Thank you so much for pointing out the error in my phrasing. I will make it my utmost priority to use more consistent phrasing in the future. You have changed my whole view on life! Truly, you have made such a difference. Keep on correcting such inconsistencies as the world loves those who point out the flaws in others. In all seriousness, it isn’t a mind blowing difference in battery and performance, but I am happy with it so I used a hyperbole. Good enough for you?

[@Virtualblueart]

My personal conclusion at the moment: The Ally X is very powerful but also expensive compared to the rest. Also no trackpad and no Oled. (A good screen but I like Oled) The original Ally has too many mechanical issues and Asus support. Oh boy. No trackpad. The Legion go is cheaper now and also powerful, has trackpad, Hal effect sticks (a tad small), good screen (no oled) but very big for a portable. The Deck is ageing compared top the above, but it has great support a great screen on the Oled and is (relatively) cheaper and less hassle to use. Plus you can fix or mod the thing with support from Steam. So while it's no longer the most powerful one I chose the Deck because of the above.

[@spookyclaws5350]

1) Steamdeck oled is actually more expensive than the Rog Ally Z1E now that the prices dropped (its around 500$ in most parts of the world, while Steamdeck is 570$. Not to talk about the fact that Rog Ally is more accesible, a Steamdeck OLED here is 900$, while the Z1E is 500$ and the Rog Ally X is 800-900$. Rog ally sells in more countries than steamdeck 2) The argument about the legion go being bigger is a bit weird. Steamdeck is way heavier than both of them, I wonder why you didn't mention that? All of them have pros and cons, but at this point the steamdeck has more cons compared to the rest. Worse battery than the X, worse refresh rate than all of them, worse performance than all of them. Sure, you get a trackpad, good for you? And that oled screen is beautiful, I won't lie, but 1080p is amazing too. It all comes down to preferences and needs, if you play newer games then definitely go for a rog ally/legion go. If you're more into older/indie games, or emulation, then steamdeck is the go to. Why not mention that the steamdeck has a much smaller library of games because it runs on Linux? If you're gonna give out arguments, fine, but make it fair. You're talking about how you can fix or mod the steamdeck (with support from steam) you can do the same to the other 2? People literally moded a bigger battery for the original rog ally Z1E, albeit not from support from asus, but you're acting as if modding ain't a thing for the other handhelds. Until the X drops in price, I'd much rather have a CHEAPER rog ally z1e, with better performance, VRR, 120hz, windows+bazzite, a larger library of games, more longevity, and struggle for a few hours its first day to set it up, than simply have worse everything but OLED and a trackpad for more $.

[@Kairistorm]

Bazzite is so awesome. I used it on my Legion GO and it made it so much more useable. Now that I only have a steam deck and a Desktop, I use Bazzite on my Desktop. LOVE IT!

[@erixIsOffline]

Lets go, same here bazzite is awesome🎉

[@MickNavarro]

last version controls TDP and even RGB profile better thant armoury crate, this is insase, now i enjoy my Ally (bonus for the sleep mode... this is a what basically lead me doing the os change)

[@kir0v]

yeah dude why does the ally handle sleep so shitty on windows

[@nelsonngu]

Thank you so much for this video. I nearly get steam deck. I will get Ally X now.

[@erixIsOffline]

Remember thou you have less buttons than on steam deck but might have greater performance in games than in steam deck, keep that in mind

[@nelsonngu]

@@erixIsOffline yeah, greater performance is what I need. Most probably will hook onto my gaming monitor to play some games at times. Thanks for the notice of the buttons too. Appreciate it.

[@RandomUserName92840]

Custom firmware. Standard for Linux. Where the community says "fine I'll do it myself".

[@neoturfmasterMVS]

I use a mini pc with ryzen 780m with bazzite hooked up to my home tv. Works fantastic. I had used Windows before and switch to Bazzite/Fedora 40/KDE Plasma and the desktop experience is great. Enjoyed it so much I replaced Windows on my office pc with Fedora 40. Now its Bazzite for TV/Home Theatre PC's and Fedora 40 for real work. Good buy Windows after 30 years your out. For those that don't know nothing is missing and everything is snappier, improved and quick.

[@erixIsOffline]

I will add that bazzite CPU bore schedular is most fascinating thing i ever learned and fact it gives like anti lag technology in every applications is mind blowing. Thanks you windows you become so shit i tried Linux😭

[@neoturfmasterMVS]

@@erixIsOffline The real driving force behind Linux as Desktop OS has really been Valve and Steam Deck and SteamOS. They work so hard to polish out all the bugs and missing features left along with the linux community ralling behind them. SteamDeck is secretly the long term project of Valve to remove Windows from their 'stack' and by so doing they've made Linux a real alternative and possible, finally a real change to overtake windows in every way. I say this as a linux user for 20+ years that have never said this till today.

[@EeveeEuphoria]

i'm someone who's Crazy and uses bazzite on my own steam deck, and it's virtually identical to stock steamOS, despite the base being different (bazzite uses fedora atomic, while steamOS uses a modified arch that is made to be immutable; this is nerd talk for "the way you install software is different") i will say though, the niceties that bazzite comes with does make it a bit better, i've always had issues w/ decky on steamOS, while on bazzite it just. stays there.

[@MeCrazy516]

i really need the touchpads....well not constantly, but there are a ton of games in the strategy or rpg department where it can be very nice to have

[@fresco_dinero5155]

Ally the Ally support and praise warms my heart

[@NerdNest]

Vindication!

[@Username_CC_]

A steam deck for only 800!

[@hidden_name7469]

​@@Username_CC_a much better steam deck

[@Franchise9920]

I run my pc with Bazzite and I've never looked back. This thing runs like a beast. CPU: R7 5800X Mobo: 580X Asus Mini ITX GPU: RX 7900 GRE SSD: Samsun 990 2 TB NVME.

[@erixIsOffline]

Juicy build probably rocks on every game

[@SylverstoneKhandr]

Home button + A button is a quick way to bring up the Quick Access Menu for the Decky stuff!

[@HikariKnight]

great video, at 16:00 sadly we need to wait for nvidia to fix their drivers for this to be a thing, their drivers crash steam gamemode completely so the nvidia image does not include gamemode for this reason. It has only been about 2 years... since nvidia said they would fix it? The open source driver nvk however might get the gamemode support first at the rate that is moving along for 16 series gpus and newer. But hey all we can do is wait and hope that someday it will all work nicely together. Also Bazzite targets a lot of x86_64 handhelds (the ones we can test or have volunteers test), HTPCs, desktops and laptops. 🙂 Although we recommend an AMD gpu for the best experience. PS: Secure boot is supported, you just need to enroll the secure boot key, if you did not do this during install you can run "ujust enroll-secure-boot-key" from the terminal to make the enrollment screen appear again on the next reboot. the password for the key will be "universalblue" without quotes

[@Helladamnleet]

1:38 answered the main question I had right away. Nice

[@napperneo4516]

i just did this with my ally z1 and it's been awesome. super easy install. the sleep button functionality is the biggest game changer.

[@PabloPadilla-eo6bm]

I just got an ally and was looking for a vid like this!!

[@techhead78]

I’ve been running this on my legion go for about three weeks and it’s been amazing. I have a dual booted as well. Hell divers runs better on windows. So it’s been awesome

[@joeybalacko4719]

Wonder if you put Bazzite on a MSI CLAW if it would improve it

[@kittenzrulz2314]

You can get Grub (the Linux bootloader) to recognize Windows using os-prober and update-grub, you may need to customize grub though so you can get it to automatically display at boot.

[@kir0v]

yeah it was wild this wasn't included

[@ALISHAPLAY10]

Turned my legion go in to a steam deck with bazzite , and now i have a gamong device with a bigger screen with split joycons . A thing of beauty 😍

[@acuteaura]

or: turn secure boot back on, open an admin terminal, `manage-bde -protectors -disable C: -rebootcount 0`, immediately go back into bios and turn secure boot off, done.

[@erixIsOffline]

Fun fact bazzite uses the bore schedular for cpu which improved the responsivness and 1% low making game way smoother than on other distros allowing you to have nvidia reflex or anti lag technology in every single application you run cause bore priotizes interactive process( processes that the user aka you are activly engage like video games or daw etc.) im saying this cause i myself started using this os on my desktop and its awesome ❤

[@Firefighter_Jony]

So I don't think it defeats the purpose at all! I think for us gamers if we can have the best of both worlds with minimal tinkering we would all do it especially if 80% of most games are on steam anyway so why not and only boot windows for those times you're not using steam. Definitely doing this!

[@Artista_Frustrado]

honestly... yeah having these Windows Handhelds be Multi-boot is pretty smart I know why these companies don't do it, but i would love if they included the Dual Boot to SteamOS by default

[@FemboyCatGaming]

Microsoft mafia would kneecap them. What they did when OEMs tried ship dual boot machines in the 90s.

[@whomortalseven]

Using bazzite is a breath of fresh of on my Ayaneo 2. The only problem im facing is rgb breathing lights stay on during suspend and I can’t go to desktop mode, which is a bummer but for the steam deck like experience, it’s awesome. Im getting even better frame rates with considerably less less TDP.

[@adnvdn]

I have both a Steam Deck LCD and Lenovo Legion Go. I gave my sister the Steam Deck after I bought the Legion Go. As soon as I turn it on, I finish all the settings on Legion Space, set up AMD Adrenaline to my liking, installed Steam, set it up to autostart on Big Picture Mode, disable Legion Space autostart, and now it's basically a giant Steam Deck.

[@DrakonR]

Not even close

[@adnvdn]

@@DrakonR I mean, yeah. The Legion Go runs games better from my experience

[@names-are-for-friends]

I used CachyOS on my non-X Ally. Btw, doesn't require any additional accessories, just the USB stick plugged into the slot, because it runs from a live environment with the touch screen working. (Actually, you can eject the stick too once it loads into the RAM.) You do have to follow instructions and manually partition the drive, but that's the only potentially tricky part. It also support dual-boot. Anyway, highly recommended. The interface is much better and the stutter in Windows makes it borderline unusable whereas this is completely smooth.

[@names-are-for-friends]

I mean, the installer runs from a live environment, to be clear

[@erixIsOffline]

Cachy OS is underrated i feel sometimes nice to see a person mentioning it ❤

[@names-are-for-friends]

Yes! I started using Cachy on my desktop after trying the handheld version, too. It's a really nice Arch-based distro with a bunch of stuff added that you just want to have anyway... and the handheld version just works out of the box, simple.

[@Valeriya_78]

Just installed Bazzite today after 3 day i have Ally, unbealivable and beautiful OS.

[@falsetoaster]

Just to give you a heads up it's not Linux that makes it snappier.. It's the SteamOS Proton translation layer (so that Window executables i.e. games can run in a Linux environment) that addresses shader compilation and general performance.

[@lennyngrado6365]

I thought this video was going to be about Nobara Linux that also has a Steam Deck version and it's developed by the developer of Proton GE, but this looks like a great project too.

[@NotTheGaslighter]

Bazzite is essentially going to do the same thing Nobara does, its just based on Arch instead of Fedora (and I've gotta be honest, Nobara is a one-man team and I don't like it much)

[@frankseyen9156]

@@NotTheGaslighter Bazzite is also based on Fedora. Chimera, Cachy OS and HoloIso are based on Arch.

[@nohs8776]

@@NotTheGaslighter bazzite is also based on fedora, but it uses distrobox so the steam stuff is based on arch

[@CheerioMate]

TIP: (Doesn't seem consistent, so it's probably some hardware does and some doesn't) letting windows update or simply run for 10 min, restart, rinse repeat at least once after repartitioning and disabling secure boot and before making any other changes usually clears up related boot issues. Unless Ofc you have bit locker or something on. But in my experience it even handled tpm settings and ram integrity/virtualised security. Has been super helpful when switching to and from dual boot configs, nuking the Linux install and changing drives

[@sswampp]

I think the game compatibility complaint is valid but overblown. Unless you intend to play a competitive shooter that lets you matchmake by input you probably won't want to play them on your handheld anyway. Fortnite and Call of Duty are a couple games that come to mind here. Those should play fine. But nobody in their right mind is going to want to play Valorant with a controller against mouse and keyboard players. Another valid point is if you don't have the majority of your games on Steam and would rather subscribe to the Xbox Game Pass. We're basically never getting access to that (without streaming) on Linux machines unless Microsoft steps in and gives it to us. Dual boot is your friend here.

[@ManuDiaz06]

To boot into windows instead of holding volume down, press volume up, it will take you directly to boot option and you just have to select which OS you want to boot without having to go to the BIOS, you can also set in the bios the default OS you want to boot every time you reboot.

[@ZamiGami_]

I love having the option for installing a good linux distro on a worldwide-available handheld, but I went out of my way to get a deck in my unsupported region because the hardware is so perfect! The trackpads and back buttons are absolute game changers. If someone releases a well priced competitor with at least dual trackpads? I might not go for a deck next time then!

[@traviszick]

I got a refurbished ally z1 for 350 and installed bazzite.. absolutely rules. I hated using windows 11 and was the only windows machine in my house so was totally worth putting bazzite

[@atrielienz]

I'm sold on this. I've got the Legion Go and I mostly bought it as a handheld I can use in my entertainment center with my tv. But I'd play way more on the go if I had Steam OS installed.

[@TheXipherZero]

Just a point of clarification. Bazzite has spins that officially support the Legion GO and Ally; but there are also general purpose spins for standard computer hardware. I currently run Bazzite on the computers hooked up to the TVs in the house for a console like HTPC setup that can play games as well as installed on my Legion GO and on my Asus gaming laptop which supports Asus's wonky GPU switching seamlessly. Bazzite is very versatile and isnt *JUST* for windows handhelds ;) Its a SOLID choice for basically ANY system you want to have the console experience on.

[@JasonCrosen]

Now, if only these windows handhelds were priced a little closer to the Steam Deck.

[@juiciness]

Unlikely. Valve can take the loss because you'll be buying games on Steam.

[@fujinshu]

@@juicinessExactly the same reason Nintendo’s consoles can’t be cheap and powerful. Their competitors are literally just divisions of mega-conglomerates.

[@kdubspencer3390]

Used ally x at Best buy are already $642 . 1TB OLED steam deck is $649 so if you buy a two week old ally x it's actually cheaper and can be picked up the same day .

[@jd2792]

They cant valve sold at a loss becuase most of the monry comes from steam useres buying more game for the deck

[@willeh1947]

Sorry, but that is just wishful thinking and will never happen. (Unless Microsoft makes a handheld.) The PS4/360 (and I believe also PS5/Series X?) were sold at a loss because they can recoup the cost in games and additional hardware. Same thing with Valve. They sell the Deck at a loss because they’re banking on it enticing people to buy more Steam games. Asus (and other companies making these Windows Handhelds) just *can’t* do that because they *have* to make a profit on the device itself. I actually think for everything an AllyX packs into it, it’s not really exorbitantly expensive. Still expensive, but not for what it is.

[@meric12131415]

I mean big picture mode also comes to mind it mimics the decks os but without having to go through the headache of installing a different os

[@lyconxero457]

This is just another bit of info that makes me continue to feel like all of these handheld devices are just really nice prototypes for the REAL thing to get which will be the Steam Deck 2 and the ROG Ally 2. They're both refining both their software and build quality now so once there's a truly "next gen" chip available for these devices they will absolutely KILL IT.

[@Ashleigh_456]

Bob! please do a perfromance follow up, with all of the windows crap out of the way i wan't to know if the battery lasts longer, it can push games closer to the native refresh rate and how something like Elden Ring might run on it. I love my steam deck but the bulky nature of it is staring to get to me after 2 and a hlaf years. Having to buy a bulky travel back pack to take it with me its encombersum

[@erixIsOffline]

I think it could be a bit better in terms of battery life if you put bazzite on Ally but i recommend checking bazzite community to Ask people there who own handheld for Proper answer

[@EleanorDrapeaux]

"You couldn't live with your own failure. Where did that bring you? Back to me"

[@Fariorn]

Great Video as always. I used Bazzite on the SteamDeck OLED, because it was easier to use it, for my Triple boot (WinDeckOS aka my custom Win 11, Win 10 & Bazzite) option. It works mostly fine, but it has some updating, plugin and audio issues... Some Decky-plugins don't work, which doesn't really bother me, but It always shows an update, even if there is none and sometimes I first have to go to the Linux-Desktop Mode and back to gaming mode, to hear sound.

[@KasimaOne]

I bought a used original and barely ever used ROG Ally (not the "X") for half the price of a new Ally X, didn't like it too much on Windows either but was mostly ok with it because the Steam Deck lacks some horsepower and screams for a hardware upgrade after these years. I gave Bazzite a try when I was upgrading the SSD to 2 TB anyway. What a difference - it's literally a game changer! Windows is still there, but I didn't boot it again since. With Chiaki the Ally is also a great PS Portal replacement to play PS5 games remotely on a handheld - this is where I run the EA titles that would otherwise require Windows for their "AntiCheat" p.i.t.a.

[@oscarbarrios]

There's a thing I rarely see ppl talking about when using Bazzite and is one KEY feature for me getting initially a SteamDeck on the first place and is the ability to put a game into suspension. Is this something that works on windows for these handhelds even? Because being it a default on steamOS is incredible.

[@SlushiiMusic]

Pro Tip: have a 2nd USB with Windows 11 ready in case the drive needs to be erased (you'll get a 'Device Active' error) also, PLEASE for the love of god set an admin password; otherwise you'll have to reinstall.

[@pettypenguin656]

Hopefully Asus is or does get directly involved in funding Bazzite maintainer and makes it an official option at sale point in the future. The work done on Bazzite is wonderful and funding a generic pc handheld OS that isn't terrible AND ISN'T WINDOWS BASED feels like an increasingly important thing in this space.

[@cochi2221]

Can you do this with the regular Ally?

[@Collin_J]

Yup and you'll have better support right now - Bazzite has been well-optimized for the original Ally

[@eighth08]

Seeing as the Steam Deck still isn't available in Australia, I may do this

[@Hayden120]

It's on sale in Australia as a parallel import. Plenty of places sell it now, including Kogan and Mobileciti (who both provide local warranties in line with Australian Consumer Law). Often for around $1000 for the OLED model.

[@BenRK90]

I've been saying this from the start. The worst part about Windows handhelds is Windows. SteamOS coming to more PC handhelds is only a good thing for everyone involved.

[@calebwipf520]

Regarding having to go into BIOS to switch OS: you can actually just hold volume up when powering on and it will give you a menu where you choose which boot device.

[@jontechie]

Actually every windows handheld is better with SteamOS

[@jrknsOFF]

Great vid on its own merit, but I also want to say that it's a testimony to how much great influence Valve and its efforts have been for the Linux as an ecosystem and the community. I remember seeing people planning to, writing guides, installing Windows on their Steam Decks or talking about handhelds that are way more expensive but run Windows already being better because they're just not Linux and may support the games they want to play on their handheld device. Most of the games they mentioned weren't remotely a good choice for a handheld/controller form-factor, and they bashed the touchscreen support of Windows, too, but let's ignore that. And now Wulff comes up with a vid like this, basically turning the tables with installing Linux on a Windows-first handheld gaming machine. I'd love it even more if Valve gave us all a proper SteamOS image that's up-to-date with the Steam Deck, but thankfully a lot of the functionality is (relatively) easily achievable through other means, all still within the vast possibilities for customization and tweaking offered by a Linux-based OS. So props to Valve, props to Wulff, and props to Bazzlite team and contributors!

[@The-Wild-James]

try installing refind and make it your boot option in bios :D

[@MaxRei_Xamier]

pro-tip - install clover boot manager imo iirc theres a windows installer for it but for most part it streamlines the process of switching really seamlessly while also keeping the windows and linux partition safe from it removing the boot option for linux (atleast that happens for my steam deck LCD but having clover avoids that issue entirely)

[@discountermeasures]

I remember during the announcement of the steam deck Valve said they’d release a standalone steamOS distro, whatever happened to that? Why do people have to homebrew these clone OSes?

[@fujinshu]

They’re probably waiting because as soon as SteamOS is released, they lose their competitive edge over the market. I am baffled with Valve essentially withholding an OS they PROMISED to release to other handhelds, since they usually are the one promoting open solutions like Linux. It’s crazy.

[@erixIsOffline]

Bazzite is heavly inspired by steam os but i would not call it a clone its like other gaming like distros they have an idea and take what works fine to make new flavour

[@EugeneYunak]

@@fujinshu dude. as a linux dev let me tell you turning steamos into a generic distro you can install is an incredible amount of work. so massive props to the community for making it work! valve chose to focus on base os improvements so far instead (this is MUCH more technical work and therefore benefits greatly from employed developers working on it full time). and they make all their contributions public, enabling the community to make custom builds like this. so far it seems to be paying off - we have the best of both working together to create a seamless ecosystem, with valve devs handling basic steamos, and the community making distros for all kinds of use-cases. this is actually very common in linux world - android is another example of this approach.

[@HorstKirkPageKian]

That transparent Steam Deck case 😍 Is it an aftermarket case or was this an option from Valve?

[@maarkryaan]

I completely agree but somewhat tied down with gamepass for a few more months so sticking with debloated windows for now

[@chriss.4790]

Hi Bob, I really think you should learn how to use Deki loader. There are so many things that you can do with it like install CSS loader to customize the look of your steam OS and much more

[@mba849]

Where did you get the ROG enclosure from? I want one that looks exactly like yours. its pretty sick!

[@nawafsohsk6611]

I just watched another one of your videos, and I have to say, your content is consistently amazing! Your thorough reviews and engaging presentation make watching your channel a pleasure. I hope you will add Arabic subtitles to your videos; it will help and make it easier for your Arabic fans to watch your content. Keep up the fantastic work, WULFF DEN!

[@WAFLNeo]

I installed Bazzite to my Legion Go this week and it's been a great experience for gaming. Some things to note : I made sure to install some games to my MicroSD in Windows so the card is compatible with both Windows and Bazzite/Steam OS. Formatting a card in Steam OS stops it from working on Windows sadly due to the file type used. Installing Proton GE on the desktop side of Bazzite allows you to play games with codecs that regular Proton doesn't support. PSO2 New Genesis is an example and is a fantastic game on the Legion Go if you put the settings to Medium and lock the FPS to 30.

[@evilcrashbandicootthetouho2753]

Actually more system on one machine is not good

[@WAFLNeo]

@@evilcrashbandicootthetouho2753 what do you mean?

[@frankseyen9156]

On Windows you should be able to use Bazzite formated SD cards if you install WinBTRFS

[@WAFLNeo]

@@frankseyen9156 Bazzite has been working fine with my exFAT MicroSD as well which works alongside Windows all the same. I usually install games with Windows first and then play on SteamOS.

[@frankseyen9156]

@@WAFLNeo yes Exfat works, but Ext4 and Btrfs are much faster, Games load faster with those.

[@Madblaster6]

If the performance is the same why not just use Big Picture Mode? You're loosing a lot of features and game support.

[@KnightRiderOfVoid]

not even close, and you don't lose anything, you still have windows for those games and programs that don't run on linux, but with bazzite you actually have A LOT of features and improvements that windows just doesn't

[@maxgill489]

You don't really need to use the bazzite tdp menu, everything that you set in steam quickmenu for tdp gets synced over + you'll have per game tdp settings

[@michaelclark2594]

I would argue that Bazzite doesn’t make the X better in some key areas. If you’re dedicated to Steam and Steam ONLY, then Bazzite is a healthy option, but if you happen to be subscribed to Game Pass, or try to run some games that require other launchers to work in the background, then Bazzite handicaps the X. SteamOS is nice, but if you can muster the setup, Windows is fine.

[@matteckert130]

Which is why most people just dual boot. That way, you get the best of both worlds.

[@michaelclark2594]

@@matteckert130 also a viable option. Personally though, I don’t want to take up that space on my installed SSD or have it installed on another that I have to keep plugged into my USB-C port. But that’s just me

[@erixIsOffline]

Understable

[@menaced.]

You can try using clover to make the dual boot experience better (basically a better way to swap between the OSes)

[@mikes-tech-tips]

This was a great video! I'm enjoying Bazzite on the original ROG Ally.

[@blakeynz]

Can this be done on the MSI claw to potentially redeem it?

[@chrisweeksnz]

You can set Bazzite to show a grub menu on boot, that way you can choose if want bazzite or windows on each boot and it will default to bazzite after a few seconds....

[@HolloVVpoint]

The Ally x has incredible battery life, I wonder if Bazzitte adds anything to the battery life considering the steam deck oled also has amazing battery life.

[@erixIsOffline]

Might be sligthly improved cause there are overall less processes to be done in the background than on windows