The cheapest Steam Deck is heading into retirement, and I'm already worried about handheld prices in 2026

The Steam Deck LCD model's days are now numbered, as Valve has discontinued the handheld that started it all. The good news is that the portable PC plug isn't being immediately pulled, but with the storefront giant now "no longer producing" the 256GB version, I suspect it won't be around for long in the new year.

In a note added to the Steam Deck landing page, Valve says it is "no longer producing the Steam Deck LCD 256GB model. Once sold out, it will no longer be available." While you could argue it's been a long time coming since it entered the best gaming handheld ring back in 2022, it's still the portable I point most players towards thanks to its approachable $399 / £349 price tag.

As much as I love the Steam Deck OLED, its $549 / $479 MSRP means it'll now cost you a chunk more to pick up one of Valve's portables. Yes, this isn't the first time Valve has discontinued a handheld, as it gave its original 64GB model the chop back in 2023, but that move didn't increase how much you'll pay in real terms since the 265GB LCD model adopted its launch price.

I don't want to be a Debbie Downer, but the Steam Deck's LCD is one of the few handhelds available for under $400. When it heads into retirement, you'll be fully relying on sales to get either the OLED version of rivals like the white ROG Xbox Ally for the same price, and the fact that the Asus ROG Ally is also discontinued means there aren't very many options that aren't $1,000.

Look, some of you will be gunning to boost fps as far as possible on something like the ROG Xbox Ally X and have the cash to splash. I'm also pretty sure that most players looking at handhelds in the $400 price range will end up with a Nintendo Switch 2, as while its access to third-party biggies isn't a given, it has proven its worth as a 1080p option for playing even the likes of Cyberpunk 2077 (albeit with some AI upscaling assistance), and its 4K docking abilities make the struggles of portable PCs look a little silly.

That said, I do think we're sailing into choppy waters with the art of price-appropriate handheld gaming PCs. The Steam Deck OLED is still good value, and there's still a chance Valve could discount it in the future. But, I suspect that $400 is becoming an impossible price point to maintain in an unforgiving world of absurd US tariffs and an AI industry that's sending component prices like RAM to the stars.

Let's just say that in 2026, I'll be holding out for a budget-friendly handheld hero. Perhaps Valve will rescue me from my tower once the Steam Machine is officially out next year, but since we haven't even got a price for the mini PC, I'm not getting my hopes up.

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