Lenovo could unveil the first third-party SteamOS device at CES

Something to look forward to: Valve confirmed plans to bring its SteamOS Linux distro to devices other than the Steam Deck over a year ago, but exactly when that will happen remains unclear. A recent announcement from Lenovo supports recent leaks indicating that the company will soon become the first OEM to back what has become a strong alternative to Windows for PC gaming.

The Verge reports that Lenovo is inviting CES attendees to a handheld gaming showcase in cooperation with Valve. The press release has added fuel to speculation that Lenovo will soon reveal a successor to the Legion Go featuring the Steam Deck's operating system, signaling a potential move away from Windows for handheld gaming PCs.

Lenovo will host a January 7 event called "Lenovo Legion x AMD: The Future of Gaming Handhelds," featuring Valve's Pierre-Loup Griffais, a key figure in the development of SteamOS and the Steam Deck. Lenovo is expected to unveil three rumored Legion Go revisions, one of which was recently pictured featuring a button with a Steam logo.

While the button's precise function is unknown, the leak coincides with increasingly frequent signs that Valve will soon outline its plans to bring SteamOS to devices from other manufacturers. Last year, the company confirmed its aim to make the Linux distro available on various handheld gaming PCs before progressing to general availability.

Recent branding guide updates indicate that Valve is preparing to support numerous devices running on SteamOS. Furthermore, leakers recently reported that the company could resume its attempts to sell console-style PCs.

In contrast to Windows, which most portable PCs use, SteamOS enables users to manage games and system parameters with a relatively simple console-like interface. Valve's quality-of-life features also solve common PC gaming annoyances like driver updates and shader compilation.

Jason Ronald, the VP of Xbox Gaming Devices and Ecosystem, who Lenovo calls Microsoft's "VP of Next Generation," will also attend Lenovo's event. Microsoft's presence is intriguing in light of the company's ongoing development of a handheld; however, Microsoft admits that the device's launch is years away.

Lenovo's upcoming Legion Go variants are expected to feature AMD's Ryzen Z2 APU platform, which includes a Zen 4 CPU, a GenAI-capable NPU, and an RDNA 3.5 integrated GPU. The fastest member of the lineup, the Z2 Extreme, could provide substantial performance boosts compared to recently released handheld PCs.

Image credit: Windows Central, Evan Blass, via The Verge