So what can I say about the Lifesaver accessory for the Deck? Though it may be a simple, 3D-printed piece of plastic, it works wonders when it comes to keeping the Deck from slipping out from its case. Steam Deck HQ recently did a review on this, and now that I’ve got one, here’s my take on it.

Let’s face it: any of you Steam Deck owners out there have probably gotten lazy at one point and put the Deck in the case without zipping it up. Only to find out a few hours later that you forgot it’s not closed up, and when you lift the case by the handle, the Deck falls right out and onto the floor. Dang.

Well, leave it up to the community to come up with a solution. That’s where the Lifesaver comes in. You put it inside the case, put the Deck inside of that, and now when you lift the handle, the Deck stays in place! There’s even a little looping hole where you can connect the white ribbon cable; you can then use said ribbon cable to gently pry the Deck out of the Lifesaver’s grip. You can tell how popular of an accessory it is by the insane amount of upvotes it has over on r/SteamDeck.

lifesaver inside case Please ignore the fur my cat has shed inside the case

Only thing I’m not fond of is the font. It looks like it’s from the 80’s. But eh, different strokes for different folks.

When I first put the Lifesaver inside the case, I had a couple of issues, and so I got in touch with the creator of the accessory – Lupus Worax Custom (LWC). They patiently explained to me how to properly install the Lifesaver; that the hinges need to go under the seams of the case in order to secure it. When I told them the top clips feel a little too loose, they told me that’s set up intentionally:

The clamping force is not very high in general. (That’s on purpose.) That’s so you can take it in and out easily and also don’t scratch it…The clamps works towards gravity if you pick it up by the handle, so the lower side points downwards the weight of the Deck resting on the two clamps while the top-facing bigger clamp prevents the Deck from falling over.

That being said, you can add fabric tape to the clamps should you feel like the grip isn’t tight enough (or to prevent scratches).

deck inside lifesaver

You can have the case open up to 180 degrees and not have the Deck fall out. Tilt it any more, however, and it will, so be careful. Also, don’t lift the case by the lid; the top clamps won’t support the weight and the Deck will fall out. Always lift it by the handle.

If you have a skin on the Deck like I do, it’s probably worth taking a little piece of skin that’s leftover from the paper that it came from and adding it to where the bottom clamp connects. This will help prevent the skin from tearing.

Interested in trying this out yourself? If you have a 3D printer, you can download the STL file and print it. If not, you can buy it over on VersedPrints for $12.99 CAD. If printing it yourself, LWC leaves some recommendations:

  • use 15-20% infill and 1.2mm outer wall thickness
  • printing with ABS or PETG is recommended over PLA since they have better resistance against heat

lifesaver

Heh, it may seem like a short review but that’s all I really have to say about the Lifesaver. Once installed properly, you probably won’t ever have to worry about zipping up the case again. Only other thing I should note is that this accessory is not compatible with the DeckMate; you’ll need to take the grip off before you can put the Deck inside of the Lifesaver.

TL;DR

The good:

  • it lives up to its’ name
  • part can be printed with your own 3D printer

The not-so-good:

  • font is meh

Review unit sent courtesy of u/LunarMond1984’s friend in Canada.