Video summary

Official SteamOS vs Bazzite… Which one is better?

Main summary

Key takeaways

Technology

Why they chose Bazzite over SteamOS on the “J machine”

  • Broader hardware support: Bazzite is positioned as working across more CPU/GPU/handheld combinations, even though their specific build is all AMD.
  • More configuration flexibility: includes more options if they ever want to install Windows on the same machine.
  • Dual-boot support out of the box: Bazzite supports dual boot with Windows more directly than SteamOS.
  • Handheld support beyond Valve’s list: they mention support/examples like an Intel Arc-based handheld.
  • Practical reasons: they already had a Bazzite image available on their Ventoy media, and the team already knew how to set it up.

How modern gaming Linux distros are structured (the “stack”)

  • Game compatibility via Proton: games still “expect Windows,” and Linux relies on Proton (Valve’s Windows API translation layer) rather than Windows emulation.
  • Proton handles APIs: graphics, sound, and input calls are translated so the game behaves as if it’s on Windows.
  • Gaming UI/compositor layer is similar between SteamOS and Bazzite:
    • SteamOS uses Gamecope (Valve’s compositor).
    • Gamecope is tailored to run the Steam Big Picture UI + the game, reducing compositor overhead versus full desktop OS compositors.

Underlying OS base differs

  • SteamOS base: Valve’s custom Arch Linux
    • Uses dual redundant OS partitions that are read-only to prevent users from breaking the system.
    • Includes KDE as the desktop environment (for desktop mode).
  • Bazzite base: Fedora Atomic Desktop variant (Fedora + “atomic” design approach)
    • Also emphasizes redundant, read-only partitions for safer updates (fallback to the previous partition if an update fails).

Key practical claim: SteamOS vs Bazzite is mostly the same “experience”

The user-visible gaming mode is largely identical because:

  • Both use Valve’s Gamecope and Proton (Gamecope/Proton are open and not re-implemented by Bazzite).

Differences mainly appear under the hood (Arch-based vs Fedora-Atomic-based), plus distro-level conveniences.

Update/driver implications

  • Graphics drivers are packaged with the OS (unlike typical Windows where you install driver packages separately).
    • This can mean:
      • Slight driver timing differences between distros.
      • Performance quirks can vary depending on when Valve vs Red Hat updates their driver packages.

Review/benchmark-style findings (performance + behavior)

They ran tests/benchmarks comparing Bazzite vs SteamOS 3.8 (auto-mentioned version “3.8, 8 point whatever”).

  • Boot: Bazzite boots about ~10 seconds slower.
  • Gaming performance:
    • Sometimes slightly better on Bazzite, but often nearly the same (a toss-up).
    • Example benchmark deltas mentioned:
      • Cyberpunk (built-in benchmark): ~130 vs ~136 FPS
      • Horizon (Forza Horizon 5 implied): ~63 vs ~159 FPS (large delta as stated)
      • “Blacksmith” benchmark: unchanged
  • RAM idle usage:
    • Bazzite idle RAM: about 2.6 GB
    • SteamOS idle RAM: about 2.1 GB
    • Both are far below Windows idle by comparison (Windows cited at about ~5.3 GB in their test).

Big technical “pro” for Bazzite in handheld scenarios: Handheld Daemon

Handheld controller + device support is a major challenge because handheld controls/RGB/TDP interfaces vary by manufacturer.

  • SteamOS support is limited to devices in its beta support list (they mention ROG Ally, Lenovo Legion Go, and another Go model).
  • Bazzite includes “Handheld Daemon” (third-party stack) to support:
    • Controller handling
    • RGB control
    • TDP / power & clock controls

Claimed benefit on non-AMD handhelds (example: Intel handheld)

  • Full control over GPU/CPU clocks, CPU core selection, etc.
  • SteamOS on that Intel handheld might boot, but would miss TDP/RGB/control features unless you manually install tooling.

SteamOS install + dual-boot tradeoff

  • SteamOS install is extremely simple (“two clicks” + one terminal confirmation + reboot).
  • But SteamOS has limitations for dual boot:
    • Dual boot with Windows is possible, but they say SteamOS updates can overwrite bootloader configuration, requiring reconfiguration after OS updates.
    • SteamOS likely uses the whole NVMe by default and offers less customization.

Linux gaming pros/cons vs Windows (high-level opinion)

Pros

  • More consistent frame times in the Gamecope (Steam gaming mode) setup vs Windows.
  • Better sleep/resume reliability (even during a game).
  • Free and generally lighter than Windows.
  • Runs “basically all games,” except some cases needing Windows-specific anti-cheat.

Cons

  • Sometimes worse performance on Linux in some tests.
  • Some features (e.g., RT) may be missing or grayed out due to Proton/driver/support gaps.
    • Example mentioned: a scenario where a GPU supports RT but Proton/driver path didn’t enable it for a specific game/setup.

Main speakers/sources

  • “Jay” (speaker referenced multiple times, describing installations and comparisons)
  • Primary video source: the channel producing the “Official SteamOS vs Bazzite… Which one is better?” official comparison
  • Valve (creator/provider of Proton and Gamecope, and SteamOS components) and Red Hat/Fedora (provider of the Fedora Atomic base) are discussed as sources of underlying technology.

Original video