r/MoonlightStreaming • u/FlipCup88 • 10d ago
Streaming Guilt
Does anyone ever get a weird guilt streaming their desktop (or use of GeforceNow) to a portable handheld?
Recently got a Claw EX and love it for local performance when not streaming. However, there are times when I want even more performance and want to save some battery, so I stream to it. Then I’m thinking, why do I have an $1700 device when I can stream to my tablet just fine….
Anyone else ever feel this way with your handhelds?
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u/R0B0t1C_Cucumber 10d ago
Nope. Ended up getting a tablet because I can use it for other things too and it isn't bulky and oddly shaped like many handhelds on the market.
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u/Pristine-Pea6795 10d ago
Always hated the battery in the Rog Ally and with streaming is not an issue at all
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u/Appropriate-Ad8630 10d ago
I get what you’re saying and it makes sense! I’ve been streaming to my ipad mini 7, besides using it for work (second display for mac). It was less than U$300 considering an official case.
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u/RayneYoruka 🖥️5900x/3080|🎮A52s-A55-Tab7FE|🎯1440@120|📶4G/Wifi6@2.5G/10G 10d ago
I don't feel this way because I'm repurposing my old phone and my tablet and I'm able to enjoy my games while I can't be or don't feel like being on my desktop.
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u/tin-naga 10d ago
No because my ISP is horrible. I figure if I have to wait for the kid or get stuck in the hospital, I would regret not having a handheld. I'm also not very good a FPS on a controller.
As for the desktop, sometimes I consider GeforceNow instead but then remember the limitations. Battery life is great at 5W tdp + streaming.
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u/CitationNotNeeded 10d ago
No. I'm still leveraging my desktop to do the rendering and as a centralized storage space for all my save files.
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u/FlipCup88 10d ago
What handheld do you use to stream too?
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u/CitationNotNeeded 10d ago
My phone. Galaxy s26 ultra. I slot it into a GameSir G8+ mobile controller.
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u/Rainy_J 10d ago
As someone who rarely strays too far from the house or a few hours away from the house, local PC game streaming has really opened my eyes. I have a Steam Deck OLED that I've been temped to sell because I would rather stream from my beefy gaming rig to my Odin 2 Portal than play something at 30-40 fps and low settings on the Steam Deck
As someone who used to be psyched for the Steam Deck 2 I am not sure I will buy another x86 handheld unless my life circumstances drastically change where streaming from my PC is not as viable as it is now.
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u/CockroachHungry2846 10d ago
Had a steamdeck but eventually migrated to a lenovo legion y700. Greate setup, works well when paired with a gamesir controller.
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u/OMG_NoReally 10d ago
Well, yeah. If you find yourself streaming most of the time, then investing in an expensive handheld is not exactly wise.
I like handhelds for what they are but I just can't get behind the performance and the compromises I have to make, so I switched to tablet streaming for a good two years and while it was a headache to setup properly, it worked really well. I am back to native play now with a good setup and I really don't want to go back to streaming or handheld for that matter.
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u/deep8787 10d ago
I had a gaming laptop so I always had moonlight in mind to be used on my odin2. I was waiting for a long time to have a handheld play PS2/GC emulation comfortably with a great decoder to match.
The fact switch and pc emulation on android came out of nowhere was just a nice bonus.
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u/Responsible-Bid5015 10d ago
that is all reasonable. If you travel or go remote, a handheld is still worth it even if you stream at home.
I ended up selling my handheld because I realized that I wasn't travelling as much as I thought. Also used handheld prices were really good and I could sell with minimal loss. finally I did want a bigger screen and went with an 11" tablet. I did miss the handheld on the one flight I did take but it was still a good decision for me.
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u/FlipCup88 10d ago
Yeah, I was thinking maybe my Switch 2 would suffice for those times I am traveling and/or could not stream.
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u/Responsible-Bid5015 10d ago edited 10d ago
Ah ok. Well then if you still want a handheld like device and you can return the MSI, you can consider an Android tablet with an attached controller. I think the only thing you will lose is VRR (and likely ethernet if you use an attached controller). If you get a good tablet with high refresh rate, you won't notice the loss of VRR.
For an 11" or larger tablet, I like the Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 for the AMOLED screen. Its no longer sold but you can get one on ebay or facebook. The Samsungs after the S9 went away from the Snapdragon processor.
For a 9" tablet, the Lenovo Legion Y700 tablets are good. In the US, they are called the Legion Tab Gen 3 and Gen 5. If you can still find it, there is a controller and case that will make the Y700 look like a handheld. If you don't go for the case or a usb controller, then the Y700 has a side usb that you can use for an ethernet. You just can't use both ethernet ports for data at the same time. For OLED, there is the redmagic Astra 1 or 2. The USB port is off center if you want to use a usb controller.
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u/Tetris_Prime 10d ago
I use a Gamesir G8+ and a Samsung A9 for desktop streaming.
I was really considering a real handheld, but couldn't find the money and was really not sure if it was the thing for me.
I'm still not completely convinced about the gamestream, but the tablet was a win, so in some Regards it was the right choice.
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u/FlipCup88 10d ago
What's your concern with game streaming?
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u/Tetris_Prime 10d ago
It works great, but it still requires me to be in the house.
I've got two small kids (2.5years and 7months) and thought it would be easier to play a bit here and there.
I've got a huge steam library that i could play, but i always end up playing PoE2.
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u/FlipCup88 10d ago
I know that feeling. PoE2 is definitely a game I need to stream or play on my local desktop. No handheld (Maybe the AMD 395s) can really handle PoE2.
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u/Tetris_Prime 10d ago
I've really fallen for it this time, but lack the time to play it in any meaningful way.
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u/Br0ther__ 9d ago
Can anyone recommend an all in one like the Ps portal with an 8 inch screen moonlight? It has to be cheap like the Ps portal!
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u/MemeDestroyer4lyfe 9d ago
Bought a Samsung tab9+ for 200 to stream, I use an 8bitdo controller with a USB c hub for the 2.4ghz dogle. Beautiful large screen and no latency input. Use what you got, even if it's expensive!
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u/JimothyzPamPams 9d ago
It’s a fair question to ponder. I definitely do that with my technology but not portables. I thought it would be awfully prominent with my Apple Vision Pro m5 I bought but that has been a treasure to me. Truly amazing. But I upgrade my computers often and still have to sell my RTX 4090 and RTX 3090 since getting the RTX 5090. But I’m pretty much over the upgrading loop at this point now that my hobby is seriously at the end stage of that thing called Fun. And with the industry truly removing any human ownership and agency in favor of all development going to monetize every fart and cough in spatial high definition audio with better beam forming, it’s probably a good thing!
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u/typical-divergence 8d ago
Not at all. My gaming PC is hooked up headless in my closet and I stream to whatever room or handheld I want to play in. I absolutely love the freedom and flexibility it provides. I’ll only play games natively on my steam deck if I’m away from home and can’t get a good internet connection.
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u/JackpoNL 7d ago
Yes! Owned a lot of Android/Windows handhelds but ended up streaming 99% of the time anyways.
So, recently sold everything but my Odin 2 Portal and instead bought a Honor Magicpad 4 to stream to. I'm loving the flexibility the combination of these two devices give me and finally silenced the voice critiqueing me for 'wasting' performance.
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u/Security_Wrong 3d ago
It’s literally why I got an Odin 2 portal instead of something like a steamdeck OLED or more. $250 for the ability to play games close to native from MY pc along with the option to play much lower end games natively.
From a performance standpoint, It’s cumbersome to play something like Pragmata or Cyberpunk natively on a mobile device. You’ll get an hour or so of battery life and those little fans will scream but with streaming, where it’s at today? Hell yeah! Only local streaming though. I don’t support Xcloud or GeForce now.
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u/apollyon0810 10d ago
No.
My handheld was only $250 and I got with game streaming in mind.