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Windows Central
Windows Central
Technology
Ben Wilson

Windows 7 running natively on a Steam Deck is an affront to science — this tinkerer has Microsoft's OS booting in portrait mode

Steam Deck mockup with Windows 7 desktop superimposed onto its screen.

Yes, it's true. Windows 7 can run natively on Valve's (usually Linux-based) Steam Deck, the world's most popular handheld gaming PC. Why? Well, it comes back to that age-old question that hobbyists and tech tinkerers usually fire back at skeptics: "Why not?"

I mean, fair enough, but even as a nostalgia-driven Windows sentimentalist, I was surprised to hear that anyone would go through the effort in the first place. I know Windows 7 was popular (possibly the most beloved version in Microsoft's history), but I'm not rushing to replicate what tech fanatic Bob Pony recently shared on Bluesky and other social platforms (via Tom's Hardware).

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