Why You're Not the Target Audience for Valve's Steam Machine

Valve has finally revealed the price of its long-awaited Steam Machine, and thanks to the tech that's destroying AI bros for all of us, it comes with a price tag that many would consider unacceptable.

Starting at $1,049/£879 for the 512GB model and rising to $1,349/£1,149 for 2TB of storage, this is a machine that, like regular game consoles, has limited range for upgrades like a PC. It also costs significantly more than Sony's hefty-priced PlayStation 5 Pro ($899.99/£789.99), despite being technically weaker.

Now, I understand. Many of you were excited for Steam's new Cube, which promised a lot when it was first revealed. It still does — the official store cites 4K gaming at 60fps using FSR, and the claim that it “can play your entire Steam library, including your favorite triple-A titles” remains true.

Early hands-on reviews, such as this one from PC Gamer, have suggested that it has major caveats compared to similar PCs. If you're playing the likes of Cyberpunk 2077, hitting 60fps even at 1440p is a pipe dream. Ultimately, its low specs relative to the cost make it a draw for many, and that's totally fair.

However, here's where I paint a target on my back — this machine is not for you, and never was.

Gaben's eyes see everything, especially your hardware

An important point that seems to be forgotten by many currently involved in the online discourse is that Valve has a large amount of information about what hardware Steam accounts are running, thanks to its monthly survey. This gives it granular data about CPUs, GPUs, RAM configurations, and how much hard drive space players have to play with. And it's apparently this data that has driven Valve's decision-making in creating such hardware.

Let's compare Steam Machine specs in a survey, most commonly in terms of feedback:

So, when you factor in the fact that the Steam Machine uses more up-to-date components like DDR5 RAM and GDDR6 VRAM, Valve claims it will be 70 percent more powerful than what Steam users have at home.

PC Master Race? You are missing the point

Questions about who the Steam Machine is for are perfectly valid. It's ambitious in its desire to be a viable alternative to your PlayStation, Xbox, or Nintendo Switch, but its pricing has eroded that ambition, at least for the time being, leaving it in a strange place. However, one thing I think we should all agree on is that this PC was never designed for purists, many of whom are the loudest dissenting voices online. They might want to put a Steam Machine under their television, but I bet most of these people have powerful PCs and a few consoles.

It's not a Frankenstein's monster, put together with separate parts from multiple manufacturers, like regular PCs. Sure, it looks amazing on the surface, but we need to stop looking at the tough specs and think of the steam machine in another light – as a highly customized piece of kit designed for relative ease of use. A console, however no Console, as it usually comes with the advantages of Steam and PC gaming (for the most part). This is an important new platform.

And like consoles, Valve will roll out updates aimed at further optimizing the machine, such as AMD's planned update to an improved FSR 4. The Steam Verified program aims for a base of 1080p at 60fps – six times the power of the Steam deck – which shows whether it's prioritized for a physical graphic or smooth graphic experience on your TV. Sun rays.

There's no juggling Windows, Nvidia Control Panel, AMD Adrenalin, or any other tuning programs you'll need to get your regular machine ticking nicely. The Steam Machine, to me, is really for the people don't do Want the hassle of micromanaging a PC.

Best value for the average valve user

valve

I'm far from a PC technician, but I used PCPartPicker to find the components that were the closest match to the Steam Machine based on known specs like clock rates. The four main components of CPU, GPU, RAM and storage came out to around £700. That's not factoring in the case, cooling, motherboard, power unit, and other necessary components. Not even considering the fact that the CPU and GPU in the Steam Machine are semi-optimized, Valve has worked with AMD to design chips that work better with the hardware than just throwing in any old retail chip.

A quick, uneducated look at retailers like PC Specialist, SCAN, Currys and Argos tells me that similarly priced prebuilds either come with outdated components (eg DDR5 or DDR4 over 6 RAM) or straight-up bad parts. So, while more experienced heads might be able to find better options than me or build custom rigs, it seems like a lot of work to do so.

Any way you look at it, Valve's offering is still going to be excellent value current marketfor the target market. Dirty casuals, not master race doyens.

Time to say goodbye, Windows

Despite the hype, I fully expect Steam Machine to sell. There are many who buy one because it's a shiny new thing, and many who buy because of the unique social relationships people have with hardware manufacturers or platforms. I see similar mass appeal with the Xbox Series S which, according to leaked court documents, at one point outsold the much more powerful Series X three times better. It provides a gateway to PC gaming without such a high barrier to entry.

I also see it occupying a wider niche for people like me, who want to upgrade from an older PC or laptop to the convenience of a plug-and-play PC, or (eventually) Windows for a better price point. I tend to play things like DayZ or Final Fantasy 14 on my laptop, and reserve AAA games for my PS5. I don't need something that can solve dense linear equations.

With Steam Machine, I get everything I need from a PC, with a better and more optimized user experience, for £879. The reality is that computers cost so much money these days, and that doesn't seem to be changing anytime soon. Let's all get back to raging at the AI ​​bros, shall we?

brand

valve

Original MSRP (USD)

$1,049 (512 GB) / $1,349 (2 TB) – without controller

operating system

SteamOS 3 (Arch-based)

processor

Semi-custom AMD Zen 4 6C / 12T up to 4.8 GHz, 30W TDP

resolve

Up to 4K@240Hz or 8K@60Hz

HDR support

yes