Steam Deck: Docking station issues

Valve confirms docking station for Steam, Deck will be delayed. The docking station was actually supposed to appear in spring 2022, but it didn’t come and with the approaching summer months, the statement is now coming without a new date. “Due to shortages of required components and COVID-related closures of our production facilities, the launch of the official Steam Deck docking station has been delayed. We are working flat out to improve the situation and will inform you as soon as we have more information. This is not affected on the production schedule and reservation periods for Steam Decks that use different components and are made in different factories”.

“In the meantime, we’re continually improving the Steam Deck docking experience with all USB-C hubs and external displays,” said Valve. The port for the Steam Deck has already been upgraded: Originally, the dock was only supposed to offer one USB-A 3.1, two USB-A 2.0 and one Ethernet port for a stable network connection. There are also connections for DisplayPort 1.4 and HDMI 2.0, which can transmit the image. This would have allowed users to easily connect their peripherals and fast data storage to the Steam Deck while playing on a TV or monitor. However, two months ago, all three USB ports were quietly and secretly upgraded to the faster 3.1 standard and it was clearly communicated that the Ethernet port is a gigabit port. Only the screen connections remain the same.

Prices have not been mentioned so far either; you order the dock blindly. If you are looking for a quick fix and can do without the presenting character of the original, you can also get a third-party docking station that basically serves the same purpose. But first you should check the compatibility. This should actually always be the case, but in practice problems arise here and there.