I’m only bringing this up because I’d assumed, based on everything I’d read and videos I’s skimmed, that it would be the same process to swap SSDs on the new OLED Deck.
Boy was I mistaken. There’s a ribbon cable all the way across the system taped onto the shield which I had to carefully peel away mm by mm so that I could slip the shield off.
There’s also a thin wire taped to the side of the shield under that long taped on ribbon cable that needs to be separated as well.
I don’t remember anything as precarious feeling as that ribbon cable (I couldn’t tell what it was for but I didn’t want to mess anything up.
It was also 10x harder to wedge the shell open, maybe the tolerances are a bit better, but I was starting to freak out. I used the same blue wedges from the iFixit kit that worked easily on the LCD.
Anyways, a cautionary tale, expect differences inside.
I haven’t even received my OLED yet but have read several times about that cable. There are also several guides available already.
So u didn’t even google „steam deck OLED ssd swap“ and checked out one of the first results? You’re naive boy
From the vids I have seen, you can just lift the shield with the ribbon still attached to get at the SSD. ie. no need to remove it completely.
Yep, i did my swap without removing anything, just lifting it up enough so i can get the old one out and the new one in.
Was fine for me at least. But yes it is a bit finnicky.
I received my SD OLED 4 days after it went on sale 20th I had seen Gamers Nexus’s video but was unable to find a guide on how to disconnect the ribbon cable so I had to sit there and play with the connector on my left hand side (right side of the device were in a normal position) until I figured out the white latch disconnected the cable. As for the little black cable taped down I just used a small spudger to disconnect the tape.
Having now heard iFixit talk about it I guess they moved the ribbon cable to make it easier to replace and because when removing and reinstalling the motherboard that ribbon cable would often get pinched or ripped.
Personally I do agree the SSD swap was much more tedious this time between the tighter shell fit and not being able to quickly remove the shield. However it’s off set by the good like now if you need to replace that ribbon cable it’s right there and the backplate screws thread into metal fittings making them less likely to strip. Actually funnily enough the backplate which I do agree is much better fit this time I was able to remove by wedging my nails in one side and pulling up.
Kind of a silly design change for one of the most popular upgrades. That cable is going to see alot of damage from first time upgrades who have no prio experience
I didnt even need to do anything with the ribbon cable or the smaller one, i just lifted the shield slightly to the right and swapped the ssd
You just have to unplug it on one side, after that it’s much easier to move the plate. It took me about 10 minutes
I did mine pretty easy, I just disconnected the ribbon cable so i could tilt that cover upwards a little easier, popped the old one out and the new one in… (I did have to slightly move the shield upwards away from the screw so i could reach the screw with the screw driver. All in all it was slightly easier than the LCD version, Although I confess I forgot to unplug the battery on the LE… but everything works great and is back together now.