For the average person, that is impossible. Also, you lose a lot of features compared to SteamOS. Also, the controls are (at least to me) a main selling point and there is no controller on the market that comes close to the capabilities of the Deck.

I can afford it and the chances are really nice, but I won’t buy the new version. There will be a Steam Deck 2 in 2-4 years with substantially better hardware and until then, the LCD version will do just fine.

The value lies in its flexibility. And it’s mainly targeted for existing PC players. I can play my whole 150+ games steam library on it. I can easily emulate my favourite childhood games. Also, the smallest version with like a 256 or 512 GB SD card is perfectly fine and a lot cheaper than 600$.

There are use cases where a traditional console is cheaper of course, but you can’t get AAA handheld gaming for less money.

Nobody ever seems to point out the various features like trackpads, back buttons and all the software goodness that you don’t get with the competition. That’s the main selling point of the Deck for me.