Samsung TVs come with several gaming-related features. Apart from Samsung Gaming Hub, smart TVs from the company also feature Steam Link, an app that lets gamers access their games from PCs on their TV wirelessly. However, that feature is going away soon, as Valve has announced that the Steam Link on Samsung TVs is getting discontinued.
Steam Link app for Samsung TVs, developed and maintained by Samsung, is shutting down in December 2023
Valve announced earlier this month that the Steam Link app is being discontinued on Samsung TVs, and the app will no longer work after November 30, 2023. Apparently, the Steam Link app was created and maintained by Samsung, and it isn't linked to Valve's Steam Link software. The company said that users can access the Steam Link app on Apple TV or an Android TV device, suggesting that they can connect an Apple TV or an Android TV dongle to their Samsung TV.
Valve launched a Steam Link dongle in 2015 to let users stream their PC games to their TVs, but that dongle was discontinued in 2018 in favor of an app. The Steam Link app was developed by Samsung for its smart TVs, but it stopped maintaining it properly after the launch of Samsung Gaming Hub in 2021. Several Samsung TV users have been reporting issues with the Steam Link app. Some said the right thumbstick on their controller controlled the volume of the TV, while others said the app froze when streaming games at resolutions above 1080p.
Now that Steam has re-entered the hardware business with the Steam Deck, it should look at bringing back a new Steam Link dongle so that people can use a first-party dongle to stream their Steam games library on monitors and TVs without having to rely on unreliable apps.
