474
New handheld game consoles will need replaceable batteries from 2027, EU says
(www.eurogamer.net)
A place to discuss and support all things Steam Deck.
Replacement for r/steamdeck_linux.
As Lemmy doesn't have flairs yet, you can use these prefixes to indicate what type of post you have made, eg:
[Flair] My post title
The following is a list of suggested flairs:
[Discussion] - General discussion.
[Help] - A request for help or support.
[News] - News about the deck.
[PSA] - Sharing important information.
[Game] - News / info about a game on the deck.
[Update] - An update to a previous post.
[Meta] - Discussion about this community.
Some more Steam Deck specific flairs:
[Boot Screen] - Custom boot screens/videos.
[Selling] - If you are selling your deck.
These are not enforced, but they are encouraged.
Rules:
As long as tools to unclip the shell aren't consider specialized, I think almost all existing handhelds are gonna meet the actual requirements here - they just have to be user replaceable, not use swappable, without the use of specialized tools or thermal energy. If you can unscrew it, disconnect the old battery and connect the new one, it complies. It's really only an issue in waterproof devices, where they have to glue everything to seal it.
I read a lot of people claiming that waterproofing technology has come to a point where this isn't too much of an issue, but that's as far as my knowledge goes
It's true. If you put a little gasket around the edges and make sure it's held down tightly (clips, screws etc) it's fine. Glue is cheaper and faster to manufacture, that's why companies claim it's necessary
[This comment has been deleted by an automated system]
There are plenty of options for waterproofing removable batteries. They just tend to be large.
What’s the difference between swappable and replaceable
Swappable as in “let’s just put a spare battery in so my phone is at 100% again and I can continue doing whatever” (like with cameras for example)
Replaceable as in “my phone only lasts 2 hours instead of a day because after 3 years the battery has degraded, time to replace it with a new one”
Needing disassembly or not, at least colloquially
Yeah as much as I like electronics with batteries in their own module that pops right out of the bottom of the case, I think they should word this more to be against devices that are glued together or batteries that are glued down. If I just need to take the back panel off to get to the battery then that is no big deal as long as it isn't glued down.
I think the specialized tools thing leaves a lot of room for interpretation. For instance, Nintendo consoles likes to use triwing screws. A triwing screwdriver is a standard tool technically, but they aren't found at most hardware stores. I could see the argument that a triwing screw would not comply.