How to upgrade the storage of your Steam Deck SSD installation and dock to have expandable storage

Being a portable handheld computer device, the Steam Deck has numerous features that a PC has. While performance and pricing matter a lot, the major issue that arises once you purchase this device is its storage. The Steam Deck comes with three storage variants that range from 64GB to 512GB, with the 64GB variant being eMMC storage while the others are SSDs. Additionally, if you observe, the Deck has SD card support that can expand your storage up to 2TB.

I guess you got my point about which issue I am talking about. You guessed right: I am talking about the overhauled storage of the Steam Deck that restricts you from adding more games to the Deck and also creates problems while running games. I agree that some of you do not care about that thing because you stick to small storage-occupying games. But there are a majority of users who have such an issue. So, here we will guide you to upgrade the storage on your Steam Deck.

How to upgrade the storage of your Steam Deck SSD installation and dock to have expandable storage

There are merely two ways to increase or upgrade the storage of the Steam Deck: through a MicroSD card and through an SSD. I am sure that being new to tech gadgets, you might not know what these two terms mean, so let’s evaluate them. MicroSD cards are small SD cards that have the authority to expand your device’s internal memory. Meanwhile, SSDs are solid-state storage devices that are made with integrated circuits to function as secondary storage.

Now, let’s say we want to increase our Deck’s storage to 2TB. If we consider the option of a MicroSD card with 150mb/s, it will cost you around ₹15,000. While if you look for an SSD, it will cost you around ₹25,000. From this rough price analysis, I am sure you have decided to upgrade your Steam Deck storage with a MicroSD card. But note that a MicroSD card can increase your storage but does not provide the required strength and speed to run games properly as they run on a PC.

Upgrade your Steam Deck’s internal storage with an SSD installation. Wondering if you can use a larger hard drive?

Meanwhile, it is totally up to you which option you go for. But as a quick measure, we suggest you analyze your needs and budget. If you play light, space-occupying games, then go for a MicroSD card. If you want extreme gameplay for which the Deck is made, then go for an SSD. I know an SSD is an expensive thing, but moving from 64GB to 2TB with the same performance is all worth it. So, now that you have decided to go with an SSD, you might be wondering which SSD or MicroSD to choose. For this, look at the table below.

From these options, Choose the SSD or MicroSD card that offers you highest capacity, speed, warranty and satisfy your needs. Now whatever you decide let’s take a on loon on each of them. For which, first we would like to address upgrading Steam deck Storage with MicroSD SD card. So, below are the instructions to do so.

How to check your storage space and replace the SSD in your Steam Deck.

1. Simply, Insert MicroSD card into the Slot at bottom edge of deck.
2. Then Press STEAM >> Settings >> System.
3. Now scroll down and select Format and confirm it.
4. As a result, Steam Deck will test and format your inserted SD card.
5. From the left menu, Go to Storage and select MicroSD >> Press X.
6. That’s it, In a moment you will see your deck’s new storage capacity will show.

Moreover, if you considered the extreme benefits of installing SSD on Steam deck then you can also do that. But before upgrading Steam deck with external SSD, do note that it will not void your warranty but while installing if any other part damage then you can’t claim warranty for that. Now I hope you got every pre-requisite you need here. So, let’s discuss the steps to upgrade Steam deck using SSD.

Step 1: Remove the Old SSD

• First, Remove the back cover screws and Unclip the back cover.
• Uncover the hidden shield screws and remove the shield.
• Disconnect the SSD and remove SSD through removing its screw.
• Now remove the SSD shielding and take out original SSD.

Step 2: Clone the Steam Deck

• Download and install EaseUS Partition Master on your PC.
• Next open the EaseUS Partition Master and Get into Partition Manager.
• Do right click the target disk and select initialize to MBR >> Click execute task >> Apply to save changes.
• From left menu, click on Clone >> Clone OS disk >> Next >> Choose source disk >> Next.
• Choose the target disk >> Click Next >> Confirm the warning.
• Now click on continue >> Autofit the disk >> Start.

Step 3: Put the New SSD into Deck

• After that, Put the Foil Shielding to the New SSD.
• Insert the New SSD into the Slot and Screw it.
• Reconnect the battery and the shield.
• Following this, pack the deck in the same manner you unpacked it.
• Lastly, place the back plate and screw it and you are ready to use Steam deck with new SSD.

Conclusively, Steam deck is great fun device feels the same vibes as we play on PC. Especially the desktop mode made the things more evident. But there are few users who have issue with storage. For this, here we have given some best ways to initialize and enhance its storage capacity. And now I hope you got a better understanding for upgrading Steam deck storage. Even though, if any user have query then ask them below.

Frequently Asked Questions