It's no secret that while the Steam Deck is one of the best handheld consoles in terms of design and software, it might not be the most powerful. There are options to try to improve in-game performance, though, including the Lossless Scaling app. While I don't use it myself, I'd always assumed it was fairly popular, especially as the program currently has a 'very positive' rating on Steam after over 15k reviews. However, a new discussion among the Reddit community dedicated to Valve's handheld suggests that the appreciation for Lossless Scaling might not be as widespread as I thought.
In a Reddit post titled "Do YOU find Lossless Scaling useful on the Steam Deck?", countless users have offered their thoughts on the app, and some of them are quite damning. One of the top comments at the time of writing reads, "No. It's pushed around like some magical cure for everything Steam Deck-related. To the point [that] I resent seeing it even mentioned." That comment has 482 upvotes, suggesting that Rainy_J isn't the only one who thinks that the frame-generating software isn't as game-changing as others continue to make out, with others raising issues such as ghosting and input lag.
If you don't know, the Lossless Scaling app, published and developed by THS, is a tool intended to boost frame generation in games, which, in theory, should make gameplay look and feel smoother. In the app's defense, the Lossless Scaling Steam page clearly says that it's 'unsupported' for Steam Deck, and it requires a bit of fiddling to make it work on Valve's handheld, such as installing the Decky LSFG-VK plug-in in the Decky Loader software, but, until now, I'd only heard good things about using the app on Steam Deck.
While most of the top comments are critical of the Lossless Scaling app, including my personal favorite from RiparianTreeLobster, who suggests that the input lag from the software makes them "crash the **** out," it's not all bad. Those defending the app suggest its usefulness depends on what game you're using it with and that it pairs best with predominantly single-player games that could benefit from higher frame rates, such as Red Dead Redemption 2 and, apparently, SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom - Rehydrated.
As I said earlier, I don't use Lossless Scaling myself, but funnily enough, some of the comments further down the discussion board have given me a reason to try it out, and surprisingly, it's nothing to do with performance or visuals. No, I'm talking about my biggest personal gripe with Valve's handheld, as well as some of the rest of the best Steam Deck alternatives. I'm talking about battery life.
According to some Reddit users, including PutPineappleOnPizza and Ghozgul, it's a great option for saving battery and is worth the occasional lag or ghosting issues. Ultimately, it's down to individual users whether the apparent trade-off is worth it. Still, as far as I'm concerned, I don't mind a little inconsistency if it means getting more life out of my handheld while playing my favorite Steam Deck games.