The Steam Deck was the king of gaming handhelds when it arrived. But with more competition (and a higher price), is it still worth the cost?

We're still deep in the trenches of RAMageddon, the memory shortage driven by AI companies utilizing massive amounts of it in data centers, and virtually no sector of the tech world has been spared. This is particularly true for the gaming industry, where console prices have risen in recent months. The Steam Deck has seen a $300 price increase, and with a new generation of handheld competitors on the market, it's easy to wonder if the hefty price tag is still worth it in 2026.

The Steam Deck's main competitors Arguably the biggest competitors for the Steam Deck in 2026 are the Asus ROG Xbox Ally (and Ally X) and the Lenovo Legion Go line of products. Both boast generally higher performance: in testing, all models in both lines tend to deliver better frame rates than the Steam Deck.

Even with its own price increase — rising from $450 to $500 in September 2026 — it still beats the prices of the Xbox Ally and Legion Go product lineups. If you only want to play Steam games and you're not too worried about bleeding-edge graphics, Steam Deck is still a great little machine, even with the price increase.