Steam update adds battery indicator for wireless gamepads, quick chat, remote downloads management and more

Valve released the latest Steam Client update for all platforms, bringing with it some major new features and bug fixes ready for the new Steam Controller.

The new update brings a battery level indicator to Big Picture Mode for supported wireless gamepads, and there's also a new quick chat feature for Big Picture Mode. The quick chat feature enables you to send a few pre-made messages to people, much easier than typing them out on a gamepad. Pictured below you can see the new battery indicator along with the quick chat feature:

We also have the new Remote Downloads Management feature, which allows you to control downloads on other systems like adjusting downloads on a Steam Deck or other handhelds from your PC. Quite a useful one if you have multiple systems in a household.

There's plenty more to the update. See the full list of fixes and additions for Desktop platforms from the changelog:

General

• Added a low battery level toast for wireless gamepads. Battery notifications for Xbox controllers on Windows are temporarily disabled.
• Added System Report button to the Help section on Windows.
• Improved client performance when there are many unread account notifications pending.
• Fixed spell check not working in certain browser views.

Big Picture Mode

• Moved Steam chat into the quick access menu, making it easier to access while in-game.
• Introduced new quick chat feature for Steam Deck and Big Picture Mode.
  • When in a chat, press and hold the view button to bring up quick chat options.
  • Move thumbstick and release view button to send a quick chat.
  • Quick chats can be edited in Settings > Keyboard.
• Added a battery indicator to the header for wireless gamepads.
• Updated the Store main menu option to navigate to the Steam Store home page instead of the Great On Deck hub.
• Fixed the Voice chat tab of the quick access menu not being hidden after exiting all active voice chats.
• Fixed an issue with the "use the gamepadui overlay when a controller is connected" mode where desktopUI chat windows could open and block the Big Picture overlay.

Downloads

• Added Remote Downloads Management. This allows you to manage downloads on Remote Steam Clients from the downloads page.
  • The App Details page now has the same options and statuses for remote clients as the local client.
  • Both the local and remote clients must be updated to enable this feature.

Remote Play

• Enabled streaming while Remote Desktop is active on Windows.
• Added more flexible options to the Advanced Host Options for selecting primary display, resolution, refresh rate, etc. while streaming from a Windows computer. This will also allow setting whether HDR is enabled while streaming.
• Added support for the SudoVDA virtual display driver on Windows. If you have the SudoVDA driver installed and select this as your primary display in the Advanced Host Options, Steam will automatically create a virtual display to match the client display settings.
• Added support for streaming 7.1 surround sound.
• Added a workaround for an AMD driver bug causing stream corruption and lockups on Windows. This bug is also fixed in the latest AMD drivers, version 26.3.1.
• Added feedback if capture can't be started on the remote computer.
• Fixed launching with surround sound audio when streaming a game from the library.

Game Recording

• Fixed the instant clip shortcut not working for non-Steam games when using a gamepad.
• Fixed a bug which affected taking a screenshot from a game recording clip.

Cloud

• Fixed an issue which could lead to data loss when uninstalling, reinstalling, and playing a game without restarting the client in between.

Steam Input

• Revised controller settings to reduce clutter and to make them work better with gamepads.
• Fixed a case where radial menus would fail to dismiss after releasing the joystick on Steam Deck.
• Fixed a case where the controller calibration screen could fail to load the correct values the first time it is opened.

Windows

• Updated CPUID SDK used for CPU Temperature in in-game overlay performance monitor when enabled.

macOS

• Fixed soundtrack playback not working on Apple Silicon machines.

The update for Steam Deck / SteamOS contains mostly the same, but with a few minor unique changes that were only listed in the Steam Deck changelog:

• Added a setting to enable 'Switch To Desktop' in the login screen. It can be found in System Settings.
• Improved compatibility with WiFi captive portals.
• Fixed a case where opting into the 'Preview' channel could silently fail.
• Fixed subtle sizing issues with the Recently Played carousel.
• Fixed the Voice chat tab of the QAM not being hidden after exiting all active voice chats.
• Focus will no longer jump to room effect replay buttons when scrolling through chat history.
• Fixed a bug that would sometimes prevent chat history from loading when scrolling up.
• Changed controller settings to use a menu and details structure instead of tabs to list the connected controllers.