Valve just made Steam Deck downloads much easier – and I hope this feature comes to all SteamOS handhelds

Someone give Valve a gold medal, please

· TechRadar

News By Isaiah Williams published 6 November 2025

(Image credit: Valve)

  • Valve has released a new Steam Deck 'display-off low-power download' update
  • It's currently only available for Steam Deck users via the beta and preview channels
  • Microsoft's Windows 11 Full Screen Experience doesn't feature a functional sleep and quick resume mode, but this could spur it on

Valve recently introduced its useful Steam calendar update, via its Steam Labs project, and it already has another long-awaited update for Steam Deck users that highlights one of SteamOS's best features.

Announced on its community page, Valve is introducing a new 'display-off low-power download' mode, which allows Steam Deck users to continue game downloads before setting the device to sleep, ultimately saving power and making downloads easier to complete while away from the handheld.

This new feature is currently only available on the Steam Deck via beta and preview channels, and can be enabled through the 'power' tab in settings. You'll know it's active once you press the power button to put the system into sleep mode, and a new prompt asks if you want to continue downloading while the screen is off.

Valve states that if you press a button or move the Steam Deck, a new status screen will appear (see below) showing download progress – and when on battery power, the device will go into full sleep mode if it drops below 20%.

Microsoft, take notes for Windows 11... (Image credit: Valve)

This takes the popular and beloved sleep and quick resume features on SteamOS to a new level, as you can simply queue a list of games to download, and not have to worry about increased temperatures or fans getting louder from placing the Steam Deck down on a soft surface like a blanket (which I normally do with my handhelds in bed).

I've tested to see if this new beta feature works on the Lenovo Legion Go S, which is an officially licensed SteamOS handheld, but there's no sign of it, so it seems like this will be exclusive to the Steam Deck for now.

It may very well eventually make its way to SteamOS entirely, which could turn out to be beneficial for clones like Bazzite on Windows handhelds like the ROG Xbox Ally X, especially as a request that gamers on Windows 10 and Windows 11 have voiced for years.

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