Steam Deck Windows Users Rejoice: New APU Driver Boasts Improved security and stability

Last night Valve’s OnDeck Twitter account announced that a new Windows APU driver is out which includes, “various compatibility, security, stability, and performance improvements.” Unfortunately there’s no changelogs to cite precisely what’s changed but any improvements are welcomed. Dual Booting is still not available at the time of writing so if you wanted to experience all the joys of Windows on a handheld it’s all or nothing.

You could always try installing Windows on a micro SD card and booting off of that, however when I tried it I began to slowly unravel as loading speeds were so abysmal I couldn’t get anything done. I never tried again mostly because of my Win Max 2, but even without that I personally see very little value to Windows on a device like this. Native Game Pass games on the go is a huge boon, and if I were a huge Destiny player I can picture I’d be tempted to experiment with Windows.

You can still access Game Pass games and Destiny 2 through SteamOS with the cheat that is cloud gaming however. Destiny 2 is an online only game so it’s not the same as completing a few runs in Dead Cells before coming home. You access (at the time of writing) Destiny 2 and some other games in your Steam library through Geforce Now.

I’d take paying $10 a month over losing features like SteamOS’ instant sleep/wake, dead simple power management, and hyper focused operating system over anything Microsoft provides. This is coming from a guy who’s idea of a fun weekend is nuking and reinstalling Windows!

Gardiner has said all this and more in a previous video on the matter.

I also want to quickly take a moment and remind you that today is the last day to grab a Steam Deck for 10% off. Maybe you’re a baller who can just drop the cash for a 2nd Steam Deck to install Windows, or maybe you’re a saint of a friend who wants to pick this up for a friend that can’t afford their own gaming PC. Maybe you’re simply late to the game, but your patience has paid off by precisely 10%.

What do you think? Windows on Deck a blessing or curse? What are the things you want most from Windows? Are you a Game Pass subscriber? Have you bought anyone in your life a Steam Deck as a gift and if so can we be friends? Let us know in the comments down below!