2242 NVME

[Diogenes]

I was just wondering if anyone here was running a 2242 NVME in their deck, and, if so, have you had any problems with it?

I'm aware of what valve tell you what to do and what not to do with the Steam Deck. I'm not interested in that.

I'm interested in learning about any negative experiences anyone has experienced using a 2242 NVME in their deck?

The reason being because I intend to upgrade at the end of the month and I don't know whether to go with a 1TB 2230 NVME, or a 2TB 2242 NVME.

[Prezidentas]

where are you going to find additional 12 milimeters for that SSD?

[fender178]

Stay clear of any larger drives than the 2230s or it could cause future dmg to the Deck due to the drive requiring more power than it is accustom to using for NVME SSDs. And the Deck was made with 2230 drives in mind.

[PopinFRESH]

https://steamcommunity.com/app/1675200/discussions/0/5828254465018836961/

You can try to get a 2TB Micron 2230 SSD if you are wanting the additional space. You do not want to use a 2242 SSD and no one right this second will be able to tell you any meaningful impact of doing the modification to use a 2242 SSD. The issue is not that a 2242 uses more power than a 2230 SSD, however, some may if they have additional functions such as a DRAM cache, etc. The actual main issue is that a 2242 SSD will cover the charging IC which will both trap heat, thus increasing the temperature of the charging IC, and it will also remove airflow over it, also increasing the temperature. It will certainly shorten the lifespan of the IC and substantially increase the potential for it to fail.

There are plenty of good 1TB 2230 options and the 2TB Micron 2400 2230 should be a good option if you think you really need that much storage. I have one of them on order from that post and currently they are showing an ETA at the end of this month. They don't charge you until it ships so if you are interested in getting one next month I'd recommend putting in a backorder for one as it will likely take a bit before they actually ship as they are special order-on-demand from Micron.

[Diogenes]

Originally posted by Škoda 14Tr:

where are you going to find additional 12 milimeters for that SSD?

That's hardly an issue from what I have seen in video tutorials. There is plenty of clearance for the drive.

The only issue is that you can't screw it down, so you have to use double sided tape to hold it down.

Otherwise, the drive will fit. I've seen it done.

I have also seen Steam Decks running standard NVME drives, which is also possible, provided that you don't mind leaving the back off your steam deck, which I do mind.

[Diogenes]

Originally posted by PopinFRESH:

https://steamcommunity.com/app/1675200/discussions/0/5828254465018836961/

You can try to get a 2TB Micron 2230 SSD if you are wanting the additional space. You do not want to use a 2242 SSD and no one right this second will be able to tell you any meaningful impact of doing the modification to use a 2242 SSD. The issue is not that a 2242 uses more power than a 2230 SSD, however, some may if they have additional functions such as a DRAM cache, etc. The actual main issue is that a 2242 SSD will cover the charging IC which will both trap heat, thus increasing the temperature of the charging IC, and it will also remove airflow over it, also increasing the temperature. It will certainly shorten the lifespan of the IC and substantially increase the potential for it to fail.

There are plenty of good 1TB 2230 options and the 2TB Micron 2400 2230 should be a good option if you think you really need that much storage. I have one of them on order from that post and currently they are showing an ETA at the end of this month. They don't charge you until it ships so if you are interested in getting one next month I'd recommend putting in a backorder for one as it will likely take a bit before they actually ship as they are special order-on-demand from Micron.

Thank you for the information.

I just hope that they ship to the UK. Our currency will have to be converted to take in to consideration the difference between UK and US currency, which shouldn't prove to be problematic.

Trust me, I need the space.

I have a large Steam Library.

On top of that, I have about a gig's worth of emulated games.

Currently, I have already filled 2 512GB Micro SD cards with Steam Games, 1 512GB Micro SD card with Epic and GOG games, and 1 512GB Micro SD Card with Emulated games.

The Steam Deck needed Emulators on it to help make it feel like a complete hand held arcade experience.

What really kills disk space, is the need for shader cache files. If it wasn't for the amount of disk space that shader files took up, I would probably be OK with 1TB.

Coincidentally, shader cache files don't appear to be generated with emulated games, which is also another reason why I like playing emulated games.

I currently have the base 64GB version of the Steam Deck. I bought that specifically with the intention of updating the storage at a later date beyond 512GB capacity.

I already have a 256GB NVME that I can put in later today. I am nervous, however, since I don't believe that a 256GB disk drive will be enough, given the amount of shader cache files that will be generated.

If I am going to go poking around in the back of the Deck, I want to do it as fewer times as I possibly have too.

[PopinFRESH]

Originally posted by Diogenes:

Originally posted by PopinFRESH:

https://steamcommunity.com/app/1675200/discussions/0/5828254465018836961/

You can try to get a 2TB Micron 2230 SSD if you are wanting the additional space. You do not want to use a 2242 SSD and no one right this second will be able to tell you any meaningful impact of doing the modification to use a 2242 SSD. The issue is not that a 2242 uses more power than a 2230 SSD, however, some may if they have additional functions such as a DRAM cache, etc. The actual main issue is that a 2242 SSD will cover the charging IC which will both trap heat, thus increasing the temperature of the charging IC, and it will also remove airflow over it, also increasing the temperature. It will certainly shorten the lifespan of the IC and substantially increase the potential for it to fail.

There are plenty of good 1TB 2230 options and the 2TB Micron 2400 2230 should be a good option if you think you really need that much storage. I have one of them on order from that post and currently they are showing an ETA at the end of this month. They don't charge you until it ships so if you are interested in getting one next month I'd recommend putting in a backorder for one as it will likely take a bit before they actually ship as they are special order-on-demand from Micron.

Thank you for the information.

I just hope that they ship to the UK. Our currency will have to be converted to take in to consideration the difference between UK and US currency, which shouldn't prove to be problematic.

Trust me, I need the space.

I have a large Steam Library.

On top of that, I have about a gig's worth of emulated games.

Currently, I have already filled 2 512GB Micro SD cards with Steam Games, 1 512GB Micro SD card with Epic and GOG games, and 1 512GB Micro SD Card with Emulated games.

The Steam Deck needed Emulators on it to help make it feel like a complete hand held arcade experience.

What really kills disk space, is the need for shader cache files. If it wasn't for the amount of disk space that shader files took up, I would probably be OK with 1TB.

Coincidentally, shader cache files don't appear to be generated with emulated games, which is also another reason why I like playing emulated games.

I currently have the base 64GB version of the Steam Deck. I bought that specifically with the intention of updating the storage at a later date beyond 512GB capacity.

I already have a 256GB NVME that I can put in later today. I am nervous, however, since I don't believe that a 256GB disk drive will be enough, given the amount of shader cache files that will be generated.

If I am going to go poking around in the back of the Deck, I want to do it as fewer times as I possibly have too.

You'd likely be fine with a 1TB drive as its unlikely you'll want to install most of your game library on the Steam Deck. I've been on the fence with getting one of the 1TB disks since it has been nearly impossible to find one of the 2TB 2230 SSDs since micron announced it early last year, and I have an even larger Steam library.

I have a 1TB microSD card for all of my emulators/roms, and yes you are correct those do not need shader caches as they (most of them anyway) are ROMs and aren't using modern graphics shaders. I'm already mostly fine with my 512GB Steam Deck in regards to my Steam library for the games that I'd want to play on Steam Deck, however, there are a few that I'd like to install. With your library and what you're stating as your use case I'd definitely skip the 256GB and either look at getting a 1TB or try to put in an order for one of the 2TB microns. I have no idea if that company does international shipping so you might want to send them an email and check that first.

If you decide to just get a 1TB there are a few good options, WD has an SN530 model that is ok, and there is a new Sabrent Rocket 2230 NVMe 4.0[sabrent.com] which is one of the best performance options for a 2230 SSD to use in the Steam Deck.