Here’s the first proof a refreshed Steam Deck is nigh

The mystery “Valve 1030” that went through South Korea’s National Radio Research Agency has now been definitively identified as a Steam Deck, and it’s our first proof the hardware’s potentially close enough to release to justify showing it to regulators.

Quectel filed for a Class II Permission Change to simply allow its certified Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth chip, the FC66E, to retroactively work in a new Steam Deck, too.

It’s a clever technique — as you can see in the document above, Valve’s supplier is able to argue that the new Steam Deck has a weaker antenna, so its radio emissions don’t need to be retested.

Does this mean that the new Steam Deck is a minor refresh that only adds Wi-Fi 6E? I very much doubt that. In fact, Wi-Fi 6E might not be a supported new feature at all — South Korea only certified the device for 5GHz Wi-Fi, not 6GHz Wi-Fi, despite the country approving unlicensed use of the 6GHz band back in 2020.

Valve can hide whatever new features it likes behind the Wi-Fi chip certification because these agencies only tend to regulate radio emissions, not other specs. I have a few ideas for what Valve should include next.

I have to admit it could simply be an existing Steam Deck with a refreshed radio chip if its previous supplier, Realtek, ran out. But Valve wouldn’t have to cook up a new “1030” model for that, would it?

Lynch continues to find code snippets that suggest a wireless PC VR headset is also on the way — I wouldn’t be surprised if Valve announces both items simultaneously.