Can the steam Deck Dock be used undocked?

[Spine]

I think I'm wanting to do something fairly simple but I cant get any reliable answers googling.

I want to use a portable monitor for picture and the steam deck for controller, and be charging the deck while using. (while laying on the couch)

But the deck dock has a tiny cable, so can I use a type C extension?

Or would I be better off using a TypeC hub, and are they reliable, do they all charge etc

Why cant I get my head around this, all of the typeC docks I'm finding don't specifically say they work like I want with the Steam Deck

Can anyone help?

[ReBoot]

But that would be docked, to wall power & the monitor. USB-C docks work with computers. The Deck is a computer. Valve themselves tell us to use whatever docks we want. So use whatever dock you want.

Or don't, if you want undocked gaming, don't use docks

[Lala Satalin Deviluke]

confusing, the steam dock only seems to kick on when u dock the deck and it recoqnizes theres a hdmi connected to a tv/monitor, the dock will charge without an hdmi connected, u should be able to connect a controller with deck plugged in and use the deck like a switch as a hands off monitor with u using a controller as an indirect to play on deck

[Spine]

I don’t want a controller, I want to use the steam deck as a controller, and I want to connect it to a portable 15 inch monitor, but I don’t want the battery to go flat on the deck.

I don’t think what I want to do is all that strange tbh

[ReBoot]

Originally posted by Spine:

I don’t want a controller, I want to use the steam deck as a controller, and I want to connect it to a portable 15 inch monitor, but I don’t want the battery to go flat on the deck.

I don’t think what I want to do is all that strange tbh

Not strange at all. It's just that you saying "undocked" at the same time as "I want to play on a monitor", that is "I want to play docked" . That's REALLY strange. It's like saying "I wanna take a shower but staying totally dry". But what you're trying to do isn't strange at all.

So get yourself a USB-C dock with a long cable and get going!

[Mahjik]

Yes, you can do that. You might be better off with an Anker hub instead of the Steam Dock but you can do what you are thinking.

[Spine]

@Reboot, sry what I mean is I don’t want it sat IN the dock, but it is a tiny cable, so do extensions work, or lose signal/power at length.

I think a type C hub is probably more what I’m after, but there are some stories of some not working/charging/sending signal, or worse bricking the Deck. I probably just wish there was a solid recommendation or up to date info

[ReBoot]

There's no bricking. Worst case, the Deck won't charge and you'll have to press 2 buttons at once to unstuck the power contract.

Well, no dock-specific bricking. Deckls dying can happen (happened to me once) but there's that ever-important difference between coincidence and causality.

[Clone303]

well yes you can, i try to use Steam Deck when was Dock and it worked fully normal so wtih extension cable, it should work.... im self use the valve Dock, there was made for Steam Deck

[Jcee]

Absolutely, get yourself a cheap AF 7$ hub on amazon and your good to go..

[[KAMI] RedWyvern]

You can try a high quality USB-C extension cable, as USB is digital it will either work perfectly or not at all, with not much in between.
The Deck can charge from pretty much anything USB that has power.
I think you can drop the output resolution if the connection struggles, but I haven't tested this.
Keep in mind that the connection is a bit sensitive to being bumped, the screen might flicker if you move it.

Another option is using Steam Link, using the Deck as-is and streaming to for example a phone connected to the monitor.
This is over WiFi, so you need a good 5GHz connection for this, but if you have this or if you're okay with using a hotspot without internet, it works surprisingly well.
It does limit you to the Deck's screen resolution, so you will get black bars if you don't use overscan, which is something I don't mind but you might find annoying.

P.S. Docked or not, the Deck's built in controls will stay operational, only the screen goes off when docked in Game Mode.

[Mahjik]

Originally posted by Spine:

I think a type C hub is probably more what I’m after, but there are some stories of some not working/charging/sending signal, or worse bricking the Deck. I probably just wish there was a solid recommendation or up to date info

I don't use this regularly, but I have this hub that works perfectly:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07ZVKTP53/

I use it with a Bluetooth keyboard and 10" portable monitor. It's more of an emergency setup if I'm traveling and my work PC stops functioning. The keyboard I'm using supports 3 separate bindings so I have the Steam Deck and my phone (Samsung Fold) bound to use as desktops if needed.

[FandangoChristmas]

you would need a dock or usb-c hub, a very long hdmi cable, or however long you need to be away from the tv where the hub or dock is plugged into. Mind you you will have around 2-3 cables all hanging off it while you hold it.