Best Steam Deck accessories in 2024: dbrand Killswitch, power banks & more
Sponsored by dbrand.
Looking for the best Steam Deck accessories? We’ve listed some of the best below. We’ve scoured the internet for everything from cases to power banks and more.
Looking for Steam Deck accessories can be a headache. There are so many options out there from cases to MicroSD cards and more. But worry not, as we have assembled a handy list of the best that you can find, so you don’t need to look anywhere else.
Since the Steam Deck’s success, accessories have become key to the Steam Deck‘s continued success. A whole cottage industry of dedicated accessories has hit shelves, and it makes Valve’s humble handheld super versatile. While we’ve covered USB-C docks from a wide range of companies elsewhere on the site, this is more about making your Steam Deck experience a little bit better.
dbrand Killswitch
dbrandYour Steam Deck is an investment that deserves protection from accidental scratches and drops. Thankfully, there are durable, lightweight cases on the market to keep your Steam Deck safe without sacrificing portability.
dbrand’s Killswitch case is absolutely the gold standard for protection, customization, and ergonomics. In addition to military-grade impact resistance, the Killswitch case features textured grips and a thin, protective travel cover for the screen to round out a full suite of protective features. You also get to customize your case with one over 30 skins for the front of the console, providing an extra layer of scratch protection.
In addition to making your Steam Deck, and your Steam Deck OLED, look and feel fantastic, the Killswitch also offers an entire ecosystem of accessories including a kickstand, tempered glass, stick grips, a mount for your battery bank, and many more to come.
Best Steam Deck power banks
One of the most essential Steam Deck accessories is a power bank. If you want to make use of gaming on the go, then you’ll need something to power it up. But, just make sure you pick one up that has at least 45W of power delivery.
For our money, the best right now is Omnicharge. A smaller company, they have put out fascinating power banks that should, in some rare cases, be able to power your whole system.
The smaller options might not give the juice needed, as the Steam Deck needs at least 45W to charge. However, you’ll find their more expensive options can support up to 100W charging, as well as provide power to your other devices over USB.
Think about it, you’re out there, your phone is dying and Deck is dying too. Rather than compromise and try to find the nearest outlet in your friend’s house (why is it always behind a couch?) you could whip out your Omnicharge and be able to fast charge both – multiple times.
These not only are excellent multi-tools, but they have massive batteries built in. Currently, their Omni 40+, aimed at MacBooks and other laptops, hosts a whopping 35,000 mAh battery.
While more focused on professionals, what’s that to stop you from jumping in?
Best Steam Deck USB power bricks
One of the most essential Steam Deck accessories is a USB power brick. Sure, the default one is fine. But, if you want to charge more than one device at once, it’s worth looking into other options, too.
Going with a multi-charger from Anker could probably save you a lot of hassle. Plus, you’d be able to invest in a much longer USB-C cable to sit comfortably pretty much anywhere.
How often do you find yourself needing to just turn over to that right spot and feel the tug of a cable preventing you from doing so?
Well, no more. Anker’s newer range and previous options are our go-to for charging needs and even provide a 45W portable charger for those who just need to need to juice to charge other devices, too.
Best Steam Deck cases, stands & screen protectors
Another group of Steam Deck accessories that you need to pick up is a case or screen protector. As we mentioned above, the dbrand Killswitch is back and better than ever. But, for those who don’t want to slap a case on the Steam Deck, you could also pick up one of the company’s signature skins.
Deckmate
We recently reviewed the Deckmate, which completely lives up to the name. It’s a friend to the end.
Deckmate, a company taking advantage of the new device, already has a wide variety of things for you to grab. These are everything from stands, to VESA mounts and wall mounts for when you dock the device on something that’s not Valve’s or JSAUX’s.
We especially like that it seems to be offering a universal approach, allowing anyone to design and provide their own attachments for the future.
While these are excellent for carrying your extra gadgets along with them, they don’t exactly add any extra layer of protection. For this, you might want to consider a DBrand skin or even their Killswitch case.
JSAUX Steam Deck ModCase
We recently got hold of the JSAUX ModCase, a modular kit similar to the Deckmate. While the Deckmate relies on sticking things on, or creating your own with a universal mount, JSAUX has created something a little more streamlined.
We got nearly the full kit, which features the following:
- Case
- Cooling fan
- Wrist strap
- Back stand
- A protective sleeve for the Steam Deck Dock
- 11-in-one USB hub
- M.2 enclosure
The only thing we didn’t get was the Power Bank module, which seems like would be the best option to go for. However, we do like the USB hub, as it clips onto the back and if you’re in possession of a long HDMI or DisplayPort cable, you’ll be able to recreate a DS, 3DS, or Wii U while emulating games.
Screen protectors
There are a few generic brand cases from Amazon, which should serve the purpose of protecting your precious Steam Deck from drops or spillages. However, we do recommend looking into getting hold of an independent screen protector.
Best headset and earbuds for the Steam Deck
While not strictly a part of your essential Steam Deck accessories, having earbuds or a headset on the go with your Steam Deck might be incredibly useful.
If you can wear in-ear headphones, we’d highly recommend getting hold of the JBL Quantum TWS. These come with a 2.4GHz USB-C dongle, for a better and smoother connection over wireless than Bluetooth. This makes them ideal for gaming, as you won’t have to suffer from/ the potential lag that comes with Bluetooth.
They also work out of the box, regardless of what operating system you intend to use. This makes them perfect for those who just use SteamOS, there’s no faffing around with Linux here.
Outside of this, if you need overhead headsets, we’d probably recommend one that’s 3.5mm. We’ve tested the wider range of JBL, LucidSound, and a couple of others, but haven’t found one that works wirelessly out of the box. Bluetooth is fine, so you could theoretically go with the JBL Quantum 810s, but you lose a few additional gaming features when disconnecting with the JBL Quantum software.
What we’d suggest is something like the Skullcandy SLYR Pros, which use USB to connect to the device, as well as 3.5mm. Other than this, a really nice pair of Bluetooth headphones would probably do just nicely for some relaxing gaming sessions.
| Headset/Earbuds | Price |
|---|---|
| JBL Quantum 810 | $150 |
| JBL Quantum TWS | $150 |
| Skullcandy SLYR Pros | $100 |
| Sony WH-1000XM5 | $399 |
Best Steam Deck portable SSDs
We’ve covered how to add external storage to your Steam Deck before, but what’s the best option? In our current setup, we’ve just got a generic NVMe adapter that houses an old 256GB PCIe 3.0 drive. However, you can do better than that.
We’d always recommend going the route of SSDs, especially in 2024. The failure rate and slower loading times that come with hard drives just aren’t worth it anymore. With that in mind, we do recommend the WD Black range of external SSDs, as well as Samsung’s T5 or T7 drives as well. These are lightning-quick USB 3.2 Gen 2 drives, that will consistently last for a few years of service.
Alternatively, you could always get a Crucial SSD, which we use for capturing footage of games for other projects. It manages to keep up with our NVMe drives to some extent and the small size means it could be easily clipped onto some of the Deckmate products.
| SSD | Price |
|---|---|
| SAMSUNG SSD T7 | $249.99 |
| SanDisk 1TB Extreme Portable SSD | $249.99 |
| WD_BLACK 1TB P40 Game Drive SSD | $179.99 |
| Crucial X8 1TB Portable SSD | $110.49 |
Best bags for the Steam Deck
Our top recommended bags for the Steam Deck are usually going to be in the realms of ‘camera bag’ or ‘laptop bag’.
In our ultimate Steam Deck starter guide, we mention Samsonite. However, these are luxurious bags that we only came into because of the Philips Evnia excursion a few months back.
What we do recommend is looking through some of B&H’s lineup. They have a tonne of inexpensive camera bags that will nestle your Steam Deck, case, controller, and dock quite nicely.
Best controllers for Steam Deck
The Steam Deck’s default controller is pretty good, but if you’re looking to arm yourself with the best Steam Deck accessories, then you might want a controller, too. If you’ve docked your device, you’re going to need a controller at some point. Especially if you’re on a TV. Who wants to whip out a keyboard and mouse on their couch? People who enjoy uncomfortable positions, that’s who.
For this, we’d always recommend the Xbox or PlayStation DualSense controllers. These are natively supported within the UI of the Steam Deck and will work straight away with Bluetooth.
If you want to have something a little more reliable, or even to compete with the built-in paddles on the back of the Steam Deck, the Elite Series 2 and the upcoming DualSense Edge will be the way forward. Not interested in spending that much cash?
We’ve covered the PowerA Fusion Pro 2, which emulates these pro-end controllers, but for a lot less than the $180 starting price.
| Controller | Price |
|---|---|
| PowerA Fusion Pro 2 | $89.99 |
| Xbox Elite Series 2 Controller | $179.99 |
| Xbox Controller | $59.99 |
| PS5 DualSense Controller | $69.99 |
You can find more Steam Deck guides here, including how to swap SSDs, and install Windows.
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