Shortly after opening the waitlist for the Steam Machine, Valve has made it possible for you to install SteamOS on basically anything. This was done with the release of SteamOS 3.8, released just this week, adding “Beta SteamOS Support” to wide swath of products.
Not only is it now possible to get SteamOS up and running on something like the ASUS ROG Xbox Ally or MSI Claw A8, but SteamOS is also available for devices with AMD discrete GPUs. While there’s no specific mention of Intel-based handhelds like the upcoming MSI Claw 8 EX AI+, some (like ETA Prime) have already been able to get it running on existing hardware.
Things get a bit more complicated for those who have desktop rigs or laptops that rely on an NVIDIA GPU. According to Valve (via The Verge), it’s “collaborating with Nvidia ‘very closely’ and that Valve has a ‘growing team of people just working on Nvidia drivers.” However, the company goes on to say that it “doesn’t expect support will be available this year.”
Needless to say, that’s not the greatest news to hear, considering how popular NVIDIA GPUs have become in recent years. Then again, it’s pretty awesome to see that Valve is working with both NVIDIA and Intel to bring SteamOS compatibility to the masses. This is something that we’ve seen some other projects also work to achieve, such as Bazzite and CachyOS. But once Valve gets things working, it’s likely only a matter of time before other OS alternatives adopt and implement whatever potential changes are necessary.
In the meantime, if you have an AMD-powered handheld, laptop, or mini PC, you can take SteamOS for a spin right now. Just make sure to head over to the dedicated support page to learn more and follow the necessary steps to make the switch.
If you’d like to see some guides or read more about SteamOS on different devices, be sure to sound off in the comment section and let us know!
