microSD card for Steam Deck under $20 fo0r Black Friday

The Steam Deck is a lovely handheld gaming console. So much so that you're likely to fill its storage quickly with your favorite games. Luckily, you can expand the storage of the Steam Deck with a microSD card. SanDisk's Black Friday deals take $5 off the 256GB SanDisk Extreme microSDXC, allowing you to double your Steam Deck storage for just under $20.

More great Black Friday deals

Which SD card is best for Steam Deck?

SanDisk 512GB Extreme microSDXC UHS-I Memory Card with Adapter — The SanDisk Extreme microSDXC delivers quick read and write speeds at an affordable price. (Image credit: Sandisk)

Picking the best SD card for Steam Deck can be a bit tricky. There are a lot of options to choose from and prices fluctuate quite a bit throughout the year. Regardless of which brand you choose, there are a few things you need to consider: size, speed, and price.

The most popular version of the Steam Deck is the 256GB model. That provides enough storage to get you started but can feel quite limiting if you want to play a lot of games. Modern titles can be massive and eat through that built-in storage quickly. The operating system also takes up some space, so you have roughly 220GB to work with out of the box when you buy the 256GB model.

The best microSD card for a Steam Deck will have at least 256GB of storage. That size and 512GB microSD cards are much more affordable than if you jump up to 1TB.

In terms of speeds, you want read/write speeds that are as quick as possible. It may be tempting to grab something like the SanDisk Ultra due to its low cost, but slow cards mean long loading screens and worse performance.

On Black Friday, the SanDisk Extreme microSDXC checks all the boxes for Steam Deck gaming. It's affordable, available in multiple storage options that are big enough for modern games, and it's fast. Its 190MB/s read speeds and 130MB/s write speeds can handle your favorite games.

Is it worth getting a Steam Deck in 2023?

Steam Deck: Starting at $399.00 at Steam

Valve's original Steam Deck LCD gaming handheld is designed with SteamOS to play compatible games from your Steam library easily. The screen isn't the best, with only 800p resolution, but the software is straightforward to use and feels a lot like the Steam client you access on PC. Using the program, you can adjust settings, purchase games, or enjoy some older ones. Just remember that a game must be Steam Deck compatible to play it on Steam Deck.

There's also the new Steam Deck OLED, which is mostly the same but offers longer battery life with a much better screen than the original Steam Deck LCD. Thanks to a promotion celebrating the release of this new OLED version, the various configurations of the Steam Deck LCD and the Steam Deck OLED are selling at a discount right now.

🎮 Steam Deck OLED: Starting at $549 at Steam

Black Friday 2023

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When Valve's Steam Deck burst onto the scene, it stood atop the best handheld gaming console list. Since it came out, however, plenty of competitors have been released. The ASUS ROG Ally is an impressive console that runs Windows. The Lenovo Legion Go is the new console on the block and features a massive 8.8-inch screen. Of course, the Nintendo Switch is still going strong, though I'd argue it is in a bit of a different category. So, with all those other handheld consoles around, is the Steam Deck worth it in 2023?

The short answer is yes. The Steam Deck provides easy access to games in your Steam Library that have been optimized for the device. It's easy to jump into your games and use the Steam Deck, especially compared to some of the clunkiness you run into when using Windows on a handheld gaming console. While we'll have to wait a while for a Steam Deck 2, the Steam Deck OLED has a better screen and improved battery life compared to the original Steam Deck.

If you want a deeper dive into the best gaming handhelds to help you decide between the Steam Deck and its competitors, our Gaming Editor Rebecca Spear compares the Steam Deck, ROG Ally, Legion Go, Nintendo Switch, and more in a comprehensive guide.