Steam Deck - SteamOS 3.6.12 Beta released as the first Release Candidate

Valve are closing in on the final stable release of SteamOS 3.6 for Steam Deck, with SteamOS 3.6.12 Beta out now as the first release candidate.

The release announcement doesn't mention that it's an RC, but this was confirmed via developer Pierre-Loup Griffais on X / Twitter. Here's all that's changed:

General

• Fixed a rare 3.6 issue that could cause filesystem corruption on Steam Deck 64GB.
• Fixed a 3.6 regression where an already-inserted SD card would not always be detected on cold boot and would require re-insertion.
• Fixed an issue where updates would could sometimes be applied incorrectly if the unit was powered off abruptly near the end of an OS update.
• Fixed an issue with copy-pasting UTF-8 text across applications.

Display

• Improved frame pacing with VRR on external displays.
• Fixed an issue where internal display could be abnormally limited to a lower frame rate after disconnecting an external display with VRR enabled.
• Fixed a 3.6 regression where the screen would be blank during part of the boot sequence.
• Fixed a 3.6 regression where the frame limit would not apply properly in specific conditions.

Developer

• Split package reinstallation step out of `steamos-devmode` command and into new `steamos-unminimize` command. `steamos-devmode` now simply enters read-write mode and initializes the pacman keyring for use, and is much quicker.

To access the update you need to opt into either the Beta or Preview channels via Settings > System > System Update Channel.