Modifying my Steam Deck

December 12, 2023

It’s just an SSD upgrade

I bought a Steam Deck a couple weeks ago on ebay because the prices were pretty cheap on the gen 1 models. I got a 64gb model with the intent of modifying it and putting a 1tb drive in. If you know me, you know I’m a bit lazy and I like to put things off, so I played it in it’s 64gb state for about two weeks… (I even finished both Half Life games in that time!) However, today was finally the day!!! I even bought some new tools for it! 

The Woes of the Battery Cable

Getting the battle cable out is a pretty easy job if you have a normal Steam Deck, however for some reason mine didn’t have a pull tab!! A cruel twist of fate... I had to pry and pry with my finger nail, obviously having to be careful with the delicate pieces that surround it. 

Battle’s End

Finally after an eternity of gentle prying it finally pops out!! After this my woes are pretty much over on the hardware side of things. Removing the SSD is easy as cake, and the heat shield sticker that surrounds it comes off easily too! I simply install my little 1tb SSD and take the old one out and seal everything back up! And after running a quick SteamOS installer, I have a 1tb Steam Deck! Behold!

On Steam Deck Modifications

Some things are a little annoying with the Steam Deck when you are trying to work on it. Having to pry at the case to pop it open will quickly become annoying and in my case the battery cable not having a pull tab makes disconnecting the battery a bit of a pain. Even when considering these things, however, I still feel like the Steam Deck is pretty easy to work with. I can absolutely see myself making further modifications and working on it in the future, and I would recommend you do to! Right now the 64gb Gen 1 models can be had for dirt cheap used, and if you are willing to do what I’ve done here, you can have a great lil game console on the cheap!