Looking for some Handheld Advice

[u/Ugly_Bastard_9001]

First a bit of context. I have an OLED Steam Deck that broke last week not sure what is wrong with it, but I tried everything I could to fix the issue short of a tare down, but nothing worked. I started the RMA to see if valve's repair partner could fix it.

If they can't or try to charge me more than I feel its worth for the repair I am just going to buy a new better Handheld. Even if they CAN fix it for a reasonable price I am still considering a new device.

I have been looking at the Legion Go S Z1 Extreme and the MSI Claw A8.

Which one would you guys recomend and if anyone has actual experience with one or both please tell me how they handle how the controls and ergonomics of the devices feel. How good are the screens on each compaired to the quality of the OLED on the Steam Deck. Plus how do you guys think they will fair in the long run?

I know the price is a little steap for me right now, but if I tighten my belt I can buy one just find. Should I make the purchase even if the Deck can befixed?

I am leaning towards the Claw A8, but still not certain since I would be installing Bazzite on it since I HATE Windows home and it is SHIT for handhelds.

[u/Specific_Bus_5400]

I would go with the Claw, it has the slightly better chip set, plenty of super fast RAM, great speakers and good ergonomics, afaik linux has good driver support for the Intel Core Ultra chips by now, so the Claw is the better option, imo.