Replacing Battery in Steam Deck Will be Tricky
Valve is not going to make life easy for those who like to repair their devices themselves. This is because Steam Deck will have a non-replaceable battery, installed with a sizeable portion of glue.
Steam Deck is undoubtedly one of the most important 2022 hardware releases in the gaming market, yet the first unofficial tests have shown some problems. It is mainly about the device's rather short operation time. What's more, it looks like we can forget about easily replacing Steam Deck's battery.
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The editors of Linus Tech Tips and GamersNexus have taken Valve's mobile PC apart. Linus Sebastian, representing the former, handled the battery quite brutally (although effectively, because he managed to remove it without harm). Steve Burke from GN was more methodical in his approach, but he too was not impressed with the way the battery was "fixed".
The battery is glued tightly, which is not an uncommon solution (it is also used in some smartphones). However, this means that it will be virtually impossible (or at least very risky) for the average user of the device to replace the battery on their own. Especially since Valve definitely didn't spare the strong glue, which was sourly commented on by Linus Sebastian, talking about "glued in" battery.
It should be added that although Valve itself showed the proper way to take apart Steam Deck last year, it also advised against amateur disassembly of the device. First of all, it is risky, as if you don't know how to do it properly you may end up damaging the device or even injuring your health (for example, if the battery catches fire after being removed improperly).
DIY repairs are also discouraged by the limited warranty. Doing it yourself will result in the warranty being voided in the event of a malfunction.
