Valve’s Steam Frame OLED Code Points to Sharper Screens

Valve may already be working on a sharper version of its Steam Frame headset. Code in Valve’s public Linux kernel source points to a device codenamed “Plano,” with panels of 3552 by 3840 pixels per eye. The Steam Frame has been on sale for only about a month, and Valve has announced nothing.

Steam Frame Hub found a development branch called Plano on October 14. The code describes a panel with a native resolution of 3552 by 3840 pixels per eye. The current Steam Frame uses 2160 by 2160 LCD panels, so the new panels would have nearly three times as many pixels. Outlets report that they are MicroOLED panels, though one analysis notes that the OLED label and the high-resolution display may come from separate projects. The code lists a maximum of 90Hz. Valve seems to be testing 120Hz, but it does not work reliably yet.

Plano reportedly uses the same Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip as the current headset, and that limits how much it can draw. The code sets a default render size of 1776 by 1920 per eye, which is lower than the current model’s 2160 by 2160. The image is then scaled up to fill the panel. An experimental mode renders at 2368 by 2560. The code also points to foveated scaling, which adds detail where you look, and that could help. Still, extra pixels do not guarantee a clearer picture until Valve solves the chip’s limits.

The code does not prove a product is coming. Next Reality says it shows just an experimental hardware, and the project code is reportedly unfinished. Development continued through October 2, weeks after Steam Frame pre-orders opened on September 14. Valve has given no date. The Steam Deck OLED arrived in November 2023, almost two years after the original. A similar gap would put a Frame OLED around 2028, but that is only my own comparisonw.

If you want a Steam Frame now, there is no reason to wait for this one. A refresh, if it comes, is probably years away. Steam Frame Hub suggests the panels could come from Sony or Samsung, but there is no confirmation of a supplier. Until Valve says something, treat Plano as a lab project.