Will this microSD work fine with Steam Deck?

[Arkaft]

Recently I've bought Steam Deck 64GB. I want to expand it's memory by buying microSD card - GOODRAM 64GB microSDXC IRDM 170MB/s UHS-I U3 V30 A2. Will it work fine with Steam Deck? Or do you recommend something different?

[[KAMI] RedWyvern]

Assuming it lives up to the specs you listed here this will definitely work fine, if the capacity is large enough for you.

[Haruspex]

Originally posted by KAMI RedWyvern:

Assuming it lives up to the specs you listed here...

This is important. There are a ton of fake SD cards out there, even on reputable sites. Amazon and Ebay are full of fakes. On walmart.com I struggled to locate a card that's not fake. You need to be extra careful.

I've never heard of "GOODRAM" as a brand. It might be a legitimate product, but the name sets my fake-detector alarm bells ringing. What's the price? If the price seems too good to be true, then it probably is.

I recommend you stick to well-known major brands like Samsung and Sandisk, and even then make absolutely certain that what you're getting is the real thing.

I wouldn't be surprised if a sizable chunk, or even the majority of complaints about SD card problems on these very forums were actually the result of fake cards.

[[KAMI] RedWyvern]

Originally posted by 8bitbeard:

I've never heard of "GOODRAM" as a brand. It might be a legitimate product, but the name sets my fake-detector alarm bells ringing. What's the price? If the price seems too good to be true, then it probably is.

I have heard of the brand, my local computer store sells it as their budget SSD brand.
Their SSDs are good for the price, I use them as temporary and testing drives because they are cheap but work well.
Never tried their SD cards, but as it's a more obscure brand that's less likely to be faked, it's probably genuine, if it costs more than ~€15 (64GB cards are REALLY cheap now).

[Arkaft]

It is really common brand here in Poland - because it's Polish! GOODRAM is manufacturing RAM, harddrives, SD cards and SSD's for while now. They have special "gaming" series of hardware called IRDM - iridium.

They products are really good spec and price-wise, especially in our country. I have been using Samsung SD and SSD's before IRDM and after switching - no disadvantages and great savings.

I really like them, I'm planning PC upgrade and all memory related components will be from GOODRAM 'cause their RAM is GOOD.

[Mahjik]

I would really think about if you believe that size will work for you. There are some titles that are over 100gb on their own. I would highly recommend a 512gb SD card to at least give you the option for the larger titles should you start moving that direction.

[invision2212]

64gb will hold 2-3 games at best. You really should try to get 256 at least

[Mizufluffy]

Originally posted by invision2212:

64gb will hold 2-3 games at best. You really should try to get 256 at least

I don't think this is a good way to say this because it is based on an assumption of the game size for a single game being about 20 - 30 GB. What if the games are all around 1 - 2 GB? You could fit about 30 - 60 of those on the same microSD card, right?

In my opinion 64 GB is quite small for a microSD card since the price for them has gone down quite nicely, and I agree that a bigger microSD card would most likely be a better choice but even this is based on the assumption that the user has enough games, or enough large games, in their library for the extra space to be necessary. For example, someone with ten or so games, each less than 5 GB in size, might not need such a large microSD card.

However, I think even 128 GB microSD should be affordable. From what I've seen, 64 GB microSD cards from likes of SanDisk and Samsung are around 10 - 15 €, and their 128 GB microSD cards are around 20 - 25 €. Their 256 GB microSD cards are closer to 40 - 45 €, and their 512 GB microSD cards are around 100 €.

I went with a 512 GB microSD card for my Steam Deck (256 GB model) but I definitely understand if someone can't afford a microSD card of that price range.

However, anyone who can buy a Steam Deck should most likely be able to buy a 128 GB microSD card for it. The price difference between 64 GB and 128 GB cards isn't that huge, 128 GB are only about 10 - 15 € more expensive.

Also, before anyone says anything, I know the OP was looking for a microSD card from a different brand but I used SanDisk and Samsung simply for the sake of an example, it was easier to find information on their pricing.

[invision2212]

Originally posted by Mizufluffy:

Originally posted by invision2212:

64gb will hold 2-3 games at best. You really should try to get 256 at least

I don't think this is a good way to say this because it is based on an assumption of the game size for a single game being about 20 - 30 GB. What if the games are all around 1 - 2 GB? You could fit about 30 - 60 of those on the same microSD card, right?

Look at his game list and you will see that not only does this person own many games but a lot of them will fill that card in 2-3 games

[Mizufluffy]

Originally posted by invision2212:

Look at his game list and you will see that not only does this person own many games but a lot of them will fill that card in 2-3 games

They definitely have a lot of games. I didn't take a look at their profile before. I didn't go through their entire list of games but I'd argue that it's completely up to them to fill the Deck and microSD with the games they prefer so just because they have a lot of games that could fill it quickly doesn't mean they will install only those on the Deck or the card. But yeah, given the size of their library I could definitely see more use for a larger microSD card such as 256 GB or 512 GB.

[Arkaft]

The size is not important for me. I like to download one or two games and focus on playing them. I don't need many game installed at once.

Thank you for all your answers. I am going to buy 128GB card instead!

[Mahjik]

Originally posted by Arkaft:

The size is not important for me. I like to download one or two games and focus on playing them. I don't need many game installed at once.

Thank you for all your answers. I am going to buy 128GB card instead!

Having more space doesn't prevent you from doing that. It opens it up in the occasion you do want more than a few games installed at once.