Elgato has plenty of new goodies to grab, from its flagship Facecam, to its Wave Mic Arm that suspends the best gaming microphone, and Wave XLR interface to mix your audio. As someone that’s lost a Stream Deck to a faulty wire, however, it’s the iterative MK.2 version of the macro board that stands out more than anything with a few quality of life improvements – just don’t confuse it for Valve’s new Steam Deck, which is a very different gadget.
It doesn’t offer much to entice existing Stream Deck owners to jump ship, as the MK.2 largely functions the same as the original with 15 programmable LCD macro keys that seamlessly integrate with Twitch, OBS, YouTube, XSplit, Spotify, and more. But hear us out: it has a detachable cable.
While it’s not quite the flagship feature, overshadowed by hot swappable faceplates, it’s a minor improvement that would’ve saved us from having to chuck the original in the bin when the built-in wire frayed and broke outside of warranty. In fact, it’s a feature that should appear on all USB-connected devices considering cables are often the first to succumb to wear-and-tear.
The customisable faceplates are the cherry on top, helping you personalise your setup with the choice of seven $10 designs at launch. If the $150 Stream Deck MK.2 gains popularity, however, Elgato will likely expand the official selection, and it’ll surely attract plenty of 3D printed versions from the community.