SteamOS 0.4.4 Beta adds a high sensitivity option for Steam Frame’s presence sensor. Find it at VR Settings > Startup / Shutdown > Presence Sensor. Valve says the option is intended to keep displays on under a wider range of conditions, including when using glasses spacers, but it has not published performance measurements or promised that the setting will prevent every unexpected blackout.
What the SteamOS 0.4.4 setting changes
Valve’s release notes describe a new “high sensitivity” option for Steam Frame’s presence sensor. The stated aim is to keep the displays on under a wider range of conditions; Valve gives glasses spacers as an example. The note does not explain the sensor’s detection threshold or quantify how much the behavior changes.
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The other change specifically listed under “New in 0.4.4” is improved tooltip sort ordering. The release announcement also includes accumulated notes from earlier SteamOS 0.4 updates, which are not new features introduced in 0.4.4.
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- Make sure Steam Frame is using the SteamOS Beta channel. Valve’s update-channel path is Settings > System > System Update Channel.
- Open VR Settings > Startup / Shutdown > Presence Sensor.
- Select the new high sensitivity option if you want the displays to remain on under a wider range of conditions.
SteamOS 0.4.4 is a beta-channel release for Steam Frame, and Valve says the channel includes features still being tested. The setting may therefore change as testing continues.
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Will high sensitivity stop the Steam Frame display from going black?
It may help in circumstances where the sensor would otherwise turn the displays off: that is the behavior Valve says the option is designed to address. GamingOnLinux reported user complaints about displays going black during some movements, but those reports do not establish that every blackout has the same cause or that this setting resolves every case.
Valve’s release note provides no controlled comparison, success rate, or user-outcome statistic. The practical test is whether the displays stay on more reliably with the option enabled in your own fit and wearing conditions.
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What Valve has—and has not—specified
- Specified: a high-sensitivity choice, its settings location, and the intended broader conditions for keeping displays on, with glasses spacers as an example.
- Not specified: a numerical sensitivity scale, detection threshold, test protocol, measured improvement, or guarantee that all unexpected display shutoffs will stop.
Valve’s official SteamOS 0.4.4 Beta release notes for Steam Frame are the source for the feature description and menu paths. The product is also listed on Valve’s Steam Frame page.
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