I'm once again repeating a phrase that you've no doubt come across so much that it's burnt into your retinas like the Halo HUD on a cheap plasma TV: Microsoft will be ending support for Windows 10 on October 14, 2025.
In other unsurprising news, not everybody is all that keen on the enforced switchover to Windows 11.
So, what are your options? macOS? I've been a Windows user my entire life, and I just can't wrap my brain around those weird traffic light window controls. ChromeOS? Talk about cutting your nose off to spite your face.
How about clinging to Windows 10 past its expiry and falling foul to every security pitfall possible? No thanks. Considering all of my passwords are just the word "Password," I'm already walking enough of a tightrope of trouble every time I venture online.
Then, of course, there's switching to Linux — or as I like to refer to it, the hardware driver hellscape whose reputation paints it as so unapproachable it might as well adopt hieroglyphics as its system font.
But, what if, hidden among all of those various Linux distros, there was some lightweight, easy-to-install, bloat-free, alternative to Windows that doesn't require a degree in computer science to handle?
Well, there is. It's Valve's SteamOS, and its latest preview build (SteamOS 3.7.0 Preview) is opening the doors for its adoption on "non-Steam Deck handhelds" and potentially opening up a new lane for disgruntled Windows gamers looking for a genuine off-ramp from Microsoft's ecosystem.
SteamOS: Linux for people who fear Linux
Yes, SteamOS is Linux, but it's not that Linux — or it certainly doesn't feel like it, anyway.
Having spent some time with the OS through my use of the Steam Deck, I have to say that this is one of the most accessible versions of Linux I've come across to date. To power users, yes, this is very much baby's first Linux gaming platform, but to the average gamer, what more do you need?
Built on Arch Linux, SteamOS is a painless gaming companion through its Proton compatibility layer and isolated Gamescope micro-compositor that offers a console-like gaming experience reminiscent of Steam's Big Picture mode.
If the bulk of your computing consists of media, browsing, and gaming, SteamOS has you covered, and there's very little you'll need to do to get the ball rolling.
SteamOS is simple enough that even your grandma could effortlessly launch her way into a game of Stardew Valley, yet flexible enough to accommodate more enthusiast demands for plugins, mods, and more.
SteamOS: What's the catch?
As nicely as I may have presented SteamOS, it's not without its drawbacks. SteamOS wouldn't be for everyone. If your computing itinerary consists of more than YouTube, Steam gaming, and Discord, you're likely going to run into the same hurdle most first-time Linux users do: limited compatibility.
Love your Adobe products or heavily rely on that Microsoft Office suite? Bad news, champ. Beyond web-based versions, you're not going to have a good time when looking to lean on your favorite apps.
Instead, you'll likely have to rely on Linux-compatible alternatives like GIMP and LibreOffice.
That's not to say SteamOS' desktop mode isn't capable of handling a lot of your daily driving on productivity tasks, just that it wouldn't be a frictionless experience.
Factor in Linux's anti-cheat software struggles (effectively locking gamers out of certain titles), typical Linux hardware driver woes, and SteamOS' double-edged immutable system (great for stability, but painful for customization), and you can begin to see where headaches could form.
However, the potential SteamOS still offers, remains.
The underdog option that might be crazy enough to work
Originally designed for Valve's gone-too-soon Steam Machines in 2013, the Arch Linux-based SteamOS has gone on to act as the backbone to one of the most popular handheld gaming PCs to date, the Steam Deck.
Current rumors suggest that SteamOS will return to Valve hardware to handle the company's upcoming standalone Deckard VR headset.
However, later this year, SteamOS will be stepping away from Valve hardware for the first time, with Lenovo's Legion Go S and the GPD WIN 4 among the first third-party devices to adopt the platform — and you'd be fooling yourself to think it will be the last.
SteamOS clearly has potential beyond handhelds, and users (including yours truly) have been eagerly awaiting its broader release to see how it handles desktop and laptop computers. Some have already managed to get SteamOS running on non-Valve hardware, transforming their devices into modern quasi-Steam Machines.
For gamers who don't need to drag around all of the baggage that Windows carries with it, SteamOS might be exactly what a clean break from Microsoft's operating system looks like.
It's an OS designed by gamers, for gamers — a streamlined approach that lets you focus on playing rather than wrestling with bloat, AI, and Microsoft's complexities.
According to Valve's own Steam Hardware & Software Survey for February 2025, only 0.14% of the platform's users make use of "Arch Linux" at the moment, only fractionally more than the number of users still running Windows 7 (0.10%), and leagues below those running Windows 10 or Windows 11 (53.34%, 44.1% respectively).
It'd take some surge in popularity for SteamOS to challenge Microsoft on that front. Windows is still the home of PC gaming, and Valve's primary position is still as the pipeline to accessing those games, not in providing the operating system with which to play them.
However, knowing that the quirky, risky, and oddly compelling SteamOS exists as an alternative is quite exciting — and I look forward to the day I get to take it for a full test drive on hardware of my own.
There's a long road ahead until Windows 10's end-of-support date, and plenty of time for Valve's OS to shape up. When it's time for Microsoft to finally pull the plug, I think I'm ready to take the gamble on this underdog alternative. The question is: are you?
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