Adjust screen brightness
To increase the battery life of the Steam Deck, you should first reduce the screen brightness. A reduction of about 50% is recommended, especially in dimly lit environments. Here are the steps:
- Select the Steam button on the left side of the device.
- Navigate to Settings => Display and adjust the brightness there.
Additionally, you can activate adaptive brightness so that the device automatically reduces the brightness in low light:
- Press the Steam button.
- Navigate to Settings => Display.
- Press the A button to flip the switch next to "Enable adaptive brightness."
FPS and refresh rate
You could also adjust the refresh rate. By default, the Steam Deck is set to a maximum of 60 frames per second (FPS). However, 30 FPS is sufficient for many games:
- Press the three-dot button on the right side of your Steam Deck.
- Navigate to Performance.
- Here you can limit the refresh rate to 15, 30 or 60 FPS.
Another setting you can change is the refresh rate, which determines how often the screen updates every second. For most games, a rate of 40 FPS is sufficient for a smooth gaming experience and saves battery:
- Press the three-dot button.
- Navigate to Performance Settings.
- Use the slider to adjust the refresh rate.
Turn off Bluetooth
Finally, turning off unnecessary functions such as Bluetooth® can also save battery:
- Press the Steam button.
- Go to Settings => Bluetooth.
- Press the A button to turn off Bluetooth.
Performance Settings
To adjust the performance settings of your Steam Deck and thus save battery, you can turn on "Half Rate Shading". This feature reduces the number of pixels displayed on the screen and allows games to run with less power. Here's how to enable this setting:
- Press the three-dot button.
- In the menu go to Battery Settings => Half Rate Shading.
- Activate it with the A key.
Note that this feature may make the game appear to be running at a lower resolution, which may cause in-game text and graphics to appear blurry, so it may be necessary to turn this setting on or off depending on the game.
Background processes and updates
To save battery, it is useful to manage background applications and processes on the Steam Deck.
- Press the Steam button.
- Check the top left corner of the sidebar to see if any background applications are running.
- To close an application, click on the program icon and select “Exit game”.
To save some more battery power, you can also turn off automatic updates:
- Press the Steam button.
- Go to Settings => Downloads.
- Use the A key to turn off the “Schedule automatic updates” feature.
And turn off notifications:
- Press the Steam button.
- Go to Settings => Notifications.
- There you will see a list of options. Use the A button to turn off as many options as you want.
Thermal performance limit
Your Steam Deck has a thermal power limit that ranges from 3 to 15 watts . The lower you set it, the less battery power it uses. The default setting of 15 watts is needed to run complex games, but you can lower the power limit for less demanding games. Changing this feature may slow down certain games, so you may want to experiment with it. To adjust the thermal power limit, do the following:
- Press the three-dot button.
- Go to the Performance menu.
- Use the A button to activate the “Thermal Power (TDP) Limit”.
- Just below the “Thermal Power (TDP) Limit” you will find the Wattage slider. To adjust this, use the left analog stick or D-pad, press the A button, then change the wattage with the left analog stick or D-pad.
"Storage mode" - long-term mode to save the battery
If you are not going to use your Steam Deck for an extended period of time, it is advisable to put it into storage mode to preserve the long-term health of the battery. Here are the steps:
- Turn off the Steam Deck by selecting “Shut down” from the power menu.
- Press and hold the Volume+ button and press the Power button at the same time.
- The Steam Deck boots into the BIOS menu.
- Use the D-Pad and the A button to navigate to the Setup Utility.
- Go to Power Menu => Battery storage mode and confirm with “Confirm”.
The Steam Deck will now turn off. The Power LED will blink three times to confirm that Battery Storage Mode is on. To turn the Steam Deck back on, plug it into the power source and turn it on.