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[–]Poobhead 2457 points2458 points  (20 children)

From another post:

https://www.reddit.com/r/SteamController/s/Pev3tovS05

PSA: Left trackpad deadzone issue is fixed in latest firmware from Steam beta

Several people have been reporting that the bottom-left quadrant of their Steam Controller '26 have been not picking up touch correctly. This is a firmware bug that has been fixed in an update in the latest Steam beta. You probably want to be using the beta anyways for the next couple weeks as Valve irons out the bugs.

https://store.steampowered.com/news/group/4397053?emclan=103582791433918461&emgid=695386408114717443

> Updated Steam Controller firmware to fix a bug that caused some left trackpads to have issues registering touches on the left side of the pad when connected wirelessly

[–]welsalex 346 points347 points  (4 children)

This needs to be at the top.

[–]SamtheMan2006 103 points104 points  (1 child)

yeah give Poobhead the recognition they deserve!!

[–]lavenderc 13 points14 points  (0 children)

chanting POOB-HEAD POOB-HEAD POOB-HEAD

[–]Dorky_Gaming_Teach 39 points40 points  (1 child)

If this is confirmed to work, can you sticky this answer or link up top, MODS?

[–]Rocinante88119 10 points11 points  (0 children)

We the people can vote it to the top while the authorities do nothing.

[–]Thunderbeek[S] 51 points52 points  (1 child)

Unfortunately this didn't fix mine, but it definitely should be tried before starting RMA.

[–]LucaFrantz 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I hope youll have lots of luck fixing your issue and getting one without issues.

[–]Wallace_W_Whitfield 1 point2 points  (0 children)

So glad it’s a firmware problem and not a hardware issue.

[–]Swizardrules 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Common valve win

[–]Raptori33 1 point2 points  (1 child)

Multi billion company releases a controller

"Oh yeah you need day 1 patch"

Can 2026 do anything right

[–]slowro 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Quiet you, this is Steam and it's cool when they do this.

[–]paradox_valestein 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Valve not being the best company ever: challenge impossible

[–]Truffely 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I had the same with the original steam controller..no firmware ever fixed that.

[–]samppa_j -2 points-1 points  (2 children)

How the hell is this even a bug. Did they not test one of the main selling points of the controller before release?

[–]Original_Throat1072 0 points1 point  (1 child)

We're at the point where game developers/hardware developers live by the mantra of release first, then figure out the bugs later.

[–]Raptori33 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I hate modern gaming

[–]xD-Rock666x -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Pin this!

[–]nullypully123 1182 points1183 points  (48 children)

This is the second post about a large deadzone on this left trackpad, kinda nervous about it tbh

edit: its been fixed with a May 7th firmware update

[–]Taolan13 403 points404 points  (20 children)

if we see more unique posts about this, there may be a QC issue.

[–]NotBentcheesee 133 points134 points  (18 children)

What does quasi connectivity have to do with steam controllers

[–]Felixfops 91 points92 points  (5 children)

Quality control 😭

[–]Akwardwalnut3 31 points32 points  (1 child)

What does the Migos Record label have to do with steam controllers

[–]Talithea 27 points28 points  (0 children)

Unironically, Quality Control music’s parent company, Hybe, actually had problems with lawsuits and tax evasion: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hybe#Hybe_America

So we can say Quality Control music has no operational quality control.

[–]Vagabond_Sam 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I'm still confused, what does the 2000 album Quality Control by Jurassic 5 have to do with left track pads?

[–]CheesePuffTheHamster 18 points19 points  (1 child)

Quantum Controller. It both does and doesn't work until you start a game.

[–]YargumBargum 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Its both defective and not depending on if it's observed or not.

[–]turbokarhu 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Why do you think Queen's Counsel has anything to do with Steam Controllers?

[–]YourDeathIsOurReward 1 point2 points  (2 children)

... quality control

[–]NotBentcheesee -1 points0 points  (1 child)

Ah, I see

r/redstone has done it to me again

[–]Taolan13 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I mean, I thought you were joking when I saw the notif lol

[–]Bright_Curve3078 0 points1 point  (3 children)

Nah they mean the men's fashion magazine

[–]Taolan13 -1 points0 points  (2 children)

that's GQ

[–]Bright_Curve3078 2 points3 points  (1 child)

https://qcfashionmagazine.com/

[–]Taolan13 0 points1 point  (0 children)

well shit i stand corrected. Never heard of them.

[–]blahaj_cat-lover -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I see german word there Am I correct? Also took a lolli with opening your profile xD

[–]turbokarhu 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Why would Quebec Cheese company care about Steam Controller?

[–]Jalina2224 38 points39 points  (10 children)

Honestly missing out on the first wave might be a blessing.

[–]ParanMekhar 19 points20 points  (5 children)

One of the reasons why I'm not an early adaptor

Edit: adopter

[–]thanksforallthetrees 9 points10 points  (2 children)

Adopter

[–]ParanMekhar 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Aww shit.

[–]StandxOut 2 points3 points  (1 child)

Is the other reason that you were too late to order it?

[–]ParanMekhar 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Budget. But yeah. I have never bought a gadget on release.

[–]IsaacAndTired 6 points7 points  (0 children)

I haven't had any issues with my trackpads, but there's already a firmware update fixing it for those who did have the issue.

[–]obsoleteconsole 1 point2 points  (1 child)

Never buy first wave of anything, you're just paying to be a QA tester

[–]ginga_ninja2209 0 points1 point  (0 children)

As long as Valve continue to be the bros I've always seen them be they will likely replace these things with little questioning especially if its a widespread issue. In which case Valve are the only company I am willing to be an early adopter for unless they find a way to burn the bridge

[–]clearlynotmee -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Always is, let's leave the beta testing to brave early adopters 

[–]HexedHero 54 points55 points  (7 children)

I had similar issues when the Steam deck came out and also the touch screen had dead spots around the size of a pea in 2 or 3 places, it really seems like Valve cant master touch, sadly.

[–]SabreSour 25 points26 points  (0 children)

yikes, I barely use my touch screen, by no means have I brute tested it to find deadzones.

[–]TrueLurkStrong-Free 11 points12 points  (0 children)

I thought it was because I was using a screen protector on my anti-glare screen. Is it actually just a deadzone? Typing is really hit or miss.

[–]hearwa 13 points14 points  (2 children)

Same, my Q2 steam deck has touch screen deadzones. Very annoying.

[–]YouGurt_MaN14 3 points4 points  (1 child)

Ngl I've never used my touch screen and I'm a q2 so I wonder if I have it too

[–]hearwa 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I tried out a Legion Go and I'll say I didn't realize how far behind the steam deck touch screen was. I'm not sure if it's the technology or the OS, but I was very pleasantly surprised by how well the touch screen on the GO felt and worked. I don't use the touch screen on my deck much either. But when I do the dead zone is a little up and down from the center of the screen. Some of the keys of the on screen keyboard I struggle to be able to use if I am touch typing.

Now granted I did end up returning the Legion Go, but the touch screen definitely had the steam deck beat.

[–]xsparklingwater 3 points4 points  (1 child)

I mean, are these wide spread issues or is it like a few dozen people?

[–]IsaacAndTired 1 point2 points  (0 children)

My experience is the Steam Deck touchpads work so flawlessly, it's the only reason I got the controller. I haven't had any issues with the touchpads on the controller. I meticulously tested them after seeing this post and haven't found a single spot that is not responsive, even the outside edges. Could be some quality control issue for some units, but Valve released a fix for the touchpad today, so hopefully it's fixed now for anyone who was experiencing it.

[–]Desperate_Network651 6 points7 points  (0 children)

fixed with a firmware update. valve said before buying this put your steam in beta mode and update frequently.

[–]SharpClaw007 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Its a simple firmware issue, not a harder defect.

[–]MashiroAnnaMaria 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Just want to say that mine is working completely fine, and likely many many others aren't having issues. When I got mine yesterday this was admittedly the first thing I tested for because I was also nervous, but people who have issues post, other just use theirs or show off some pictures. Having seen two posts and a handful of comments frankly isn't that much when you think about how many people have likely already recieved theirs.

[–]rafalmio 1 point2 points  (0 children)

it’s fixed

[–]DaemonsMercy 2 points3 points  (1 child)

I feel like if it was a major/widespread issue, it would have been caught by reviewers that got it beforehand, no? Hoping this is just a one off ._.

[–]nullypully123 1 point2 points  (0 children)

This is correct, its been fixed with a firmware update

[–]zenongreat 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I purposefully missed out on first wave. I got the steam deck 512gb first wave and the trackpads had issues and clicked, I had to rma it

[–]Bluntastick 181 points182 points  (7 children)

So when i was using mine i thought the same when i attempted to scroll websites by swiping up and down. I realized its more of a circle motion than an up and down motion. Idk if thats your issue i might just be dumb lol

[–]chicken-wing-barragePlay SteamWorld Heist! 64 points65 points  (5 children)

nope, the circular motion thing is just a weird default configuration. you have to manually change it to swipe vertically/horizontally (source: i use mouse trackpads on my steamdeck all the time and i deal with this frequently)

[–]everythingisconnectd 8 points9 points  (1 child)

Where do you change that?

[–]chicken-wing-barragePlay SteamWorld Heist! 8 points9 points  (0 children)

controller settings > trackpads > (gear icon next to corresponding trackpad) > scroll direction

... if i remember correctly, at least. admittedly it's been a short minute since i've messed with it

[–]Bluntastick 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thats what i figured got to tinker with it more

[–]MashiroAnnaMaria 1 point2 points  (1 child)

Isn't the scroll wheel scroll just way better for regular use than an up down scroll though? You can scroll as far up and down as you need without having to lift your finger.

[–]chicken-wing-barragePlay SteamWorld Heist! 0 points1 point  (0 children)

it's all a matter of preference, really. i can't seem to wrap my head around circular scroll, and vertical feels more natural to me

[–]cyberop5 9 points10 points  (0 children)

It's the ol' iPod style scroll

[–]SoraFirestorm 39 points40 points  (1 child)

This has been fixed in the latest Steam beta! You should probably be using it anyways for the next couple weeks while they're ironing things out.

[–]Raptori33 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Weeks?? How does anybody mess up controller this badly

[–]HexedHero 232 points233 points  (8 children)

No, RMA it

[–]Due-Grapefruit-5705 89 points90 points  (1 child)

yeah that looks way too big for normal deadzone. mine has tiny dead spots near edges but nothing like this massive arc you're showing. definitely defective unit, rma is right call here.

[–]DrOrphi 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Also the first steam controller and the steam deck for some reason have a virtual deadzone on the richt trackpad, all the way through the left side of it... It doesnt detect that as input, but only while steam is running. If you close steam and measure input, it does...

[–]bigbluey1 18 points19 points  (2 children)

Do you think it's a default setting for accidental touches with the palm? i'm yet to get mine but worth checking.

[–]Thunderbeek[S] 32 points33 points  (0 children)

That was my original thought but now I've tried the input tester built into steam and it definitely is much worse than the right side.

[–]danny12beje 8 points9 points  (0 children)

RMA it while it's a firmware issue that's already been fixed?

Wow

[–]captkrahs 6 points7 points  (0 children)

? Just wait for the firmware update

[–]GotEHM9 31 points32 points  (1 child)

<image>

[–]ImedgeQc 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Ned Stark always knew.

[–]KindaWorking 38 points39 points  (0 children)

I do not have that deadzone. I was able to confirm via the "Test Device Inputs" in the controller settings section on my Steamdeck. No deadzones at all on either trackpad.
I would RMA it if I were you.

[–]Mirumantorok 9 points10 points  (0 children)

There is a post of fix from Valve (later firmware)

[–]EndOfSouls 227 points228 points  (52 children)

The "I must have it day one" crew is always just people who paid to be beta testers these days.

[–]imfranksome 92 points93 points  (35 children)

That's such a stupid take.

If nobody bought, then you'll still be the beta tester 1 year later.

[–]ComatoseSquirrel 34 points35 points  (1 child)

But there will always be people who buy on day one.

[–]zazzyvibes2 27 points28 points  (0 children)

Good thing everyone is buying it so I get the good one a year later!

[–]_wbmr_ 2 points3 points  (8 children)

A product should be finished when it is released, you know...

Imagine car companies doing the same... yeah, our brakes might fail, mybe wait for a few updates..

[–]imfranksome 4 points5 points  (4 children)

I mean I agree.

But, how many recalls have hit cars again? Aren‘t warranty recommended on new cars because there’s a higher chance of failure during the first 20k miles?

What a bad and dumb example.

It’s sometimes with enough users that you know what to fix.

[–]_wbmr_ 0 points1 point  (3 children)

But the basic functionality should always be given. That is literally what quality control is meant to do.

How fucking hard can anyone shill for a multi billion dollar company. Are you really not demanding a finished product if you pay for it?

People like you are the reason so many products like games and software are released half finished and a lot of time never get finished because morons pay for it anyway...

Edit: you make it sound like it's totally okay for car companies to release unfinished cars...

[–]imfranksome 1 point2 points  (2 children)

Again, you used the car example and despite all the quality control, there are still recalls and failures. It happens. To literally every company.

You are so shortsighted man. Literally agreed with you and now everything is my fault.

Breathe. It’s not that serious.

[–]_wbmr_ -1 points0 points  (1 child)

You literally called my example bad and dumb... who should breathe here?

We are talking about 2 different things:

  • I talk about what SHOULD be the norm.
  • You talk about what IS the norm.

Why are you defending bad quality control? This should be the biggest demand of every customer all the time.

[–]imfranksome 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Except I was already agreeing with you what SHOULD be the norm.

I’m only talking about what IS the norm because your car example was bad and dumb.

You’re saying "lolol imagine if cars did this" and I’m just saying "but they do".

You literally couldn’t reply without swearing and blaming me for what is wrong in the industry. After I agree with you. Not my fault you haven’t thought through your car example at all.

Edit: I attack your example. You attack me instead of what I’m saying. Breathe lol

[–]Mountain_Ape 1 point2 points  (1 child)

I mean, Tesla has done this an incredible amount of times, yet somehow still gets sales.

And almost all recalls for modern cars are just software updates.

[–]_wbmr_ 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Again:

I'm not talking about what IS the norm, but what SHOULD be the norm.

If teslas brakes fail randomly, people wouldn't buy the car.

Also: fuck elon

[–]NickkNasty 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Have you seen the state of the car industry? I mean seats are killing people at this point.

[–]cwaterbottom -1 points0 points  (3 children)

Nobody's saying nobody should buy it day 1, we're saying thank you to the beta testers who did so that when I get one it will work better.

[–]imfranksome 2 points3 points  (2 children)

The “that’s what you get for pre-ordering/day one” idiots every big launch are not saying thank you.  What they just want is to feel vaguely superior for not succumbing to FOMO.

That’s it. Literally just cope.

[–]cwaterbottom -1 points0 points  (1 child)

That kind of sounds like cope because you did succumb to fomo though.

[–]imfranksome 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Why would I word it that way if I haven’t? Both can be true.

[–]JohnSilver317 16 points17 points  (4 children)

If it is defective it will be replaced under warranty. Such a weird thing to say lol

[–]SmellyMammoth 7 points8 points  (3 children)

Sounds like a hassle

[–]JohnSilver317 12 points13 points  (2 children)

Yeah it wouldn't be ideal, but I am sure a small number of units will be RMA'd like every gaming hardware launch ever.

A couple reported issues from however many units sold doesn't make people 'beta testers' lol

[–]Existing_Doughnut985 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Sounds like he’s trying to make himself feel better about not getting one

[–]StandxOut 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Not just every launch, but every device we ever buy has a chance to be broken. People are more likely to share it after a device launches, while later on they'll just Google the problem and send it back.

[–]JesusJuicy 32 points33 points  (6 children)

Or just people with disposable income who don’t care about having to RMA something. Man it’s weird people be salty about how people with money, spend it. It’s not like Valve isn’t known for having some of the best customer service to ever exist lmfao.

[–]ChapGod 23 points24 points  (0 children)

Two things can be true at once

[–]brick_gnarlson -1 points0 points  (1 child)

RMAing is fucking annoying, it has nothing to do with having disposable income.

[–]JesusJuicy 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I’m retired and got all the free time in the world, spendin 20 minutes to get something fixed because they fucked up and are willing to fix the fuck up isn’t a big deal on my end. Do I wish they never fucked up in the first place? Sure but Valve has been one of the best customer service experience consistently across the past 20 years that I’ve ever had and I’m fine with dealing with it when it’s this infrequent that issues arise and the fact they’re so willing to make it right.

You can choose to be complain about anything, doesn’t really solve anything though. I give props to Valve cause they actually TRY. Look at the next batch of releases for the controller and the safeguards they put into place after the first incident and how fast they put out a statement on it. Mistakes happen it’s life, least they’re doing better than 90% of other companies out there when it comes to these things.

[–]GotEHM9 -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

This is the reason why I waited lol Never buy at launch

[–]toomuchft -2 points-1 points  (2 children)

Now all the scalper can be the beta tester then. I feel bad for people who actually buy this from steam though. I think you should consider warranty.

[–]EndOfSouls -1 points0 points  (1 child)

I feel bad for the people who buy from the scalpers. XD

[–]Mountain_Ape 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Easiest choice in the world. Can't claim "muh kid!!" because no kid under 12 wants a Steam controller. Don't buy from scalpers, ever. Let them rot. Kill the cancer. Come at me you eBay scalpers.

[–]Working-Crab-2826 16 points17 points  (1 child)

Just valve doing valve QC as always. This makes me nostalgic about the Valve Index era when defective knuckles were the norm.

[–]danny12beje -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Except it's already been fixed via firmware.

So you're just a very confident asshole.

[–]Convillious 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Nice Strava map

[–]StrawberryStill3189 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Too much nail?

[–]Ready-Slice-5491 1 point2 points  (1 child)

Can confirm, there is a dead spot on the left hand side touch pad. its just one small spot, not a massive one as per OPs image.

I'm on Steam Beta Client and have installed all updates...

guess this is what i get for getting one from the first batch.

[–]VonSwoopington 0 points1 point  (0 children)

same issue here and i updated the controller and the puck using the steam beta client. its a little better than before the update but there is still a dead zone on the bottom left corner.

[–]xDark-Sword777x 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The Deadzone has gone Rogue

[–]Capokid 5 points6 points  (8 children)

The index controllers had the same exact issue for a long time as well as rampant defective sticks that would get stuck up. I went through 4 rmas with brand new controllers before i had to just return them several years ago. I ended up waiting a year or two for them to figure out how to manufacture them properly before buying them again.

Whoever they contract to make their controllers does an absolutely shit job of it.

Oh yeah, this was only like 4-5 years ago, so they had been out for quite a long time. I did not get them anywhere near launch, so dont expect these issues go go away quickly.

[–]danny12beje 0 points1 point  (5 children)

Such long text for a firmware issue that's already been fixed.

[–]Capokid -3 points-2 points  (1 child)

????it was defective hardware. Firmware doesnt put a controller together wrong so the stick gets stuck pointing ip, make half the trackpad not work on some units, scratch the shit out of the paint, or lesve huge gaps in the seams because the shell is warped. I even got one where only half the finger sensors worked 

[–]danny12beje -1 points0 points  (0 children)

My guy.

The steam controller that the post is about had a firmware issue, not a hardware issue. There's a reply specifically proving this and the link to the fact it's fixed.

[–]NickOulet 4 points5 points  (3 children)

Oh thank God, that’s the part of the trackpad I never touch.

[–]KenneR330 8 points9 points  (2 children)

Imagine buying controller with a trackpad and just not using 33% of it

[–]Objective-Review-359 7 points8 points  (0 children)

I’ve imagined many things indeed

[–]lycoloco -1 points0 points  (0 children)

For those of us who had an SC'15, this is kinda what the downsized Deck trackpads feel like lol

[–]MooCovv 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Mine has the same issue, position of the track pad when using the on screen keyboard resets to the middle when I move to that bottom left area. Just sent in a RMA request

[–]MDParagon 1 point2 points  (0 children)

thats 50% of your AO dude, RMA that

[–]seg-fault 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Is there a calibration option in the controller settings menu.

[–]Intelligent-Soup1978 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Well we all know how steam support is, so if it is a problem they’ll probably fix it

[–]Spartansoldier-175 2 points3 points  (5 children)

I dont have a deadzone like that, But when I use the left track pad. (Might be hard to explain). the right side wills scroll up when I go up. But left will go down if I scroll up. dont know if thats intentional for the left trackpad to cut the scrolls inverted halfway through.

[–]shortish-sulfatase 11 points12 points  (0 children)

It's not 'cutting' anything.

You're supposed to be drawing a circle to scroll.

You're not using it right.

[–]Spartansoldier-175 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Correction After testing in pragmata it does infact do the deadzone. seems like its only in games and works fine in steam. strange.

[–]Supercereal69 1 point2 points  (1 child)

It is intentional. Steamdeck does the same with the left trackpad

[–]Spartansoldier-175 -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Ah understood thank you for the clarification. On that part of the track pad.

[–]DrOrphi 1 point2 points  (0 children)

yeah thats always been confusing at start.. you have to make circles with your finger counterclockwise or clockwise if you want to scroll up or down.

[–]ValuxTheRuthless 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Do you mean that when you slide over the marked line it does not respond properly?  Will test this later

[–]Akoa0013 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I had two updates or maybe it was the same one twice but it felt fine.

[–]Brutaka1 0 points1 point  (1 child)

My question is how do folks have their controllers????

[–]StrangeCrunchy1 0 points1 point  (0 children)

They got delivered.

[–]maestroplease 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Would it be intentional to factor one's palm bumping the pad...? It's only on the left side, then?

[–]ISEGaming -1 points0 points  (0 children)

And so....it begins 🤣

[–]Dark_Akarin -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

These controllers need firmware updates? I’ll stick with my 15 year old wired Xbox controller.

[–]Tall_Opportunity_521 -5 points-4 points  (1 child)

Why dont you return it to the scalper for a refund...

[–]StrangeCrunchy1 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The scalpers most likely wouldn't have theirs yet, much like a lot of us... Why don't you think before you speak?

[–]Glitch-in-The-Ether -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

Maybe wait for an update lol