Before the restock, the original OEM Steam Deck LCD battery kit cost $84.99, while the battery alone cost $79.99. After the restock, the OEM battery kit with iFixit’s tools included costs $134.99, and the battery alone costs $129.99.
Back when the news dropped that they were potentially dropping the replacement parts for LCD, the news was focused on the battery. However mine needs a new LB, so I had been looking at that. Those also increased in price around the same time, nearly 150%.
Your LB key is broke too :')? Hell, even when the battery was cheaper, it was always out of stock. I still don’t think I’ve ever gotten a restock email for the stupid battery and boy howdy does it need to be replaced…
Unlikely to happen now that it’s even more expensive though sadly. Maybe I just save for an OLED instead.
It’s like 50% broken. I can still activate it but only from a specific angle and it’s not as clicky.
FWIW that was already how much we had to pay in Europe before.
Jesus Christ. Replacing the broken shit’s going to cost more than buying one new at this rate.
Dong worry: the price of new shit will go up soon, too.
If that happens, the price on the new one will just go up!
Just kidding, that’s exactly how it is working on cars too.
Eventually thats what will garner iFixIts best rating.
I’m just happy you can still get batteries at all, honestly.
Why the fuck does there need to be a middleman for replacement parts? Can companies which sell products direct to consumer not also sell parts direct to consumer?
Any other company would give you fuck all, In this case there doesn’t need to be a middle man Valve partnered with iFixit because they share a similar philosophy and iFixit already had the infrastructure.
They aren’t a “middleman” they are the official retail outlet.
https://steamcommunity.com/games/1675180/announcements/detail/4347665658888576969
Producing a product and selling a product are two different industries. While many companies vertical integration to do both, its not a given that every company will.
Small nitpick, but any company that produces a product is also going to sell that product, they just may not be selling it directly to consumers. Companies that are selling to other companies still have someone in charge of doing that. Otherwise they wouldn’t make any money on the things they produce.
Thank you! I feel like folks don’t understand that Valve doesn’t manufacture hardware, either, and had to source all of these components from other vendors anyways…
It makes sense that they trust ifixit with the components instead of trying to sell them on the Steam store to bewildered customers who would have a meaningful percentage of support and return requests which Valve never wanted to deal with. I think that’s why they had the official position that folks aren’t supposed to go inside the hardware, at the same time as they released all the instructions for doing so.
Can you just buy the battery elsewhere?
You can get the battery elsewhere, but:
- iFixit is an official Steam Deck partner, and their Steam Deck parts are supplied by the official Steam Deck supply chain.
- The iFixit Steam Deck battery kit is not just the battery, it includes a bunch of tools and adhesive and things with which to do the job.
- You get iFixit’s guarantees and warranties and such if you buy from them, which may be worth it for someone buying parts for something expensive like the Steam Deck over getting it elsewhere.
Likely not original, but there are cheaper replacement batteries available at the usual big online markets.
