How to use the dock?

[kоВ]

I've had a steam deck for a long time now and I would like to use it on my TV for certain games from time to time. Which controller to choose? which is the easiest to connect? I have no idea how to connect it or even if I should choose a certain brand of controller (Xbox controller rather than Sony?) Thank you

[Kalten76]

I have a dual sense controller but I’d say 1/3 of the games will show the xbox buttons instead of PS buttons, even Helldivers 2 which is made by Sony. So if you’re controller agnostic go with Xbox.

Also be aware the official Valve Steam Dock maybe not the best one out there. With the official dock anytime I want to play I have to start the deck, unplug the dock power, let my tv see the signal from the deck, & then plug power in to enjoy a session. This will last until you sleep, restart, or power off your deck. No idea when Valve will fix it.

[kоВ]

Originally posted by Kalten76:

I have a dual sense controller but I’d say 1/3 of the games will show the xbox buttons instead of PS buttons, even Helldivers 2 which is made by Sony. So if you’re controller agnostic go with Xbox.

Also be aware the official Valve Steam Dock maybe not the best one out there. With the official dock anytime I want to play I have to start the deck, unplug the dock power, let my tv see the signal from the deck, & then plug power in to enjoy a session. This will last until you sleep, restart, or power off your deck. No idea when Valve will fix it.

wow ah yes I thought that the valve station was the most reliable, I was right to ask you thank you for your answer. I'm going to opt for a wireless Xbox controller and I'm going to find out which dock to buy (I think it's not possible to talk about it freely here)

[◢ k r i s ◤]

The official Steam Deck Dock has been a joke since it first reached us and has lasted as a joke ever since. Spend $50 USD on Amazon and get you a dock with cooling fan and RGB lights and whatever other nonsense you might need. Just avoid the Steam Dock unless you need to waste your time and money for some reason; it is the LEAST reliable dock available for the Steam Deck.

Wireless controllers are typically just bluetooth these days (console or otherwise), so just pair it like any other bluetooth device. If it's wired, plug it in. Unless you're trying to make work of something obscure or esoteric, it should be a pretty straight forward process. This is especially true with every passing update where the Controller button mapping config in Steam get better and you can adjust everything to anything as you most prefer. I've had no trouble getting anything to work yet, if it's a game controller.

In fact, the only thing I've yet to get working as desired is my Akai MPK Mini keyboard, which is not a game controller, but a MIDI keyboard with drum pad buttons I'd like to get Steam to recognize as controller inputs to use in some rhythm games like DJ Max. Anything less convoluted than that has "just worked" for me though.