I left the rig to its default "balanced" setting if this box is going to beat out my absurdly practical wire-through-the-wall approach, it's going to need to "just work" without a second thought. Here, you can adjust the display for overscan compensation, change your WiFi and network setting, tweak language preferences, check for firmware updates and choose among three streaming quality options: fast, balanced and beautiful. There's not much to the Start Playing and Support sections (one starts Steam's In-Home Streaming feature and the other simply redirects to a support site), but the Settings menu actually has quite a few options. Only three options appear on the device's home screen: Start Playing, Settings and Support. The Link's main menu doesn't offer much, but at least it's easy to navigate.
That was it - the Link automatically powered on (and turned my TV on via HDMI-CEC), and then connected to the internet and updated its firmware.
Setup is pretty simple: All I had to do was plug the Link into the wall, connect it to one of my TV's spare HDMI ports and snap in an Ethernet cable. It's extremely discreet, and disappears behind my television as easily as a Chromecast or Roku box might. The device doesn't even have an LED light to indicate if it's powered on or off. An extra USB port can be found on the Link's side, but that's all there is to it. There isn't much in the way of connectivity here, either: The Link's back edge features just two USB ports, Ethernet, HDMI output and a tiny hole for an AC adapter. Picture a portable hard drive etched with a tiny Steam logo on its top, and you've got the look down pat.
The Steam Link isn't much to look at: It's a simple black box that's the same size as a US passport and a little thicker than a wallet. By subscribing, you are agreeing to Engadget's Terms and Privacy Policy.
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