Steam Frame, Steam controller and Steam Machine Revealed

Disappointed by all three especially the controller and WTF is that woke garbage ad? Gabe too busy on his yacht the purple hair lunatics are now running his company.
Grampa Simpson Grandpa GIF by MOODMAN
 
neat something GIF


Might get a Steam Machine for the living room, to replace my Series X. Why not?
 
Haven't heard anything about cables. This is what they say when it comes to connecting with your PC:



And about the full power:

Keyword there being "too", so I guess yeah you are able to steam your non-VR games and play them using your whole PC power. I mean, the Steam Deck already supports that, would be weird for this to don't

edit source: https://store.steampowered.com/sale/steamframe
Yeah that would be weird for them to lock us from using the power of our PC, but I want to be sure. Looks like it's gonna be very open and we will pretty much be able to do whatever we want.

I love it. I need one. Give it to me Gabe.
 
This is humiliating for Sony, not only do they give Valve all of their games, while Valve gives them none of their own games, now Valve are making their own console lite hardware as well. If Sony continues to port their games to Steam now they must be braindead. Either stop PC ports now or only release it on a PS storefront and launcher on PC.

Valve is no less a competitor to them than Nintendo, so porting stuff to steam makes about as much sense as porting it to the Nintendo eshop.
When was the last time Valve released a AAA game? 🤦 what a big loss for Sony
 
I love it. I need one. Give it to me Gabe.
I'm hyped as hell wtf. I love my Index but I hate being constrained by the cable and those little turrets taking space in my desk.

So why do I want one?
We all have that inner child that loves getting new, cool toys :lollipop_content:

I haven't touched my VR headset all year long and now I'm itching for the new Steam Frame, it is what it is lol
 
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you probably can get a 500€ PC with that spec. but the thing about this thing is that it is not upgradable aside from system RAM.
this means it will forever be stuck with 8GB or VRAM, which is creating issues even now, and will become a big issue once next gen systems are out.
Yep...that sucks. 8gb VRAM...really!?

Confused Liam Neeson GIF
 
Eye tracking is another feature i was looking forward but it doesn't seem that it will be used for fovated rendering but instead for fovated streaming lol.
In the PCGamer article, it's mentioned that they can be complementary. It's just that foveated streaming works with every game out of the box, while foveated rendering requires implementation by developers on a game-by-game basis.
 
I'm hyped as hell wtf. I love my Index but I hate being constrained by the cable and those little turrets taking space in my desk.


We all have that inner child that loves getting new, cool toys :lollipop_content:

I haven't touched my VR headset all year long and now I'm itching for the new Steam Frame, it is what it is lol

My wife says "I wish your inner child was more 'inner'l
 
Expected disappointment due to all the rumors just being Frame but super excited! I'm Day 1 on Steam Machine (depending on pricing) and controller for sure.

The Frame is really cool despite not caring about VR (partially just due to VR giving me migraines).

The specs of the "console" seem to line up pretty well with what the rumors were but it's still disappointing since it's below PS5 spec. CNET showed the inside of the device and the cooling is much bigger then what I imagined it would be.


Looking at everything, it would tell me that pricing should be reasonable just with specs and stuff however...

This is worrying though. This thing really needs to be console priced especially at those specs.
 
Linus dropped a bomb.

Steam Frame SteamOS can play PC games like Alyx yes... but it also can install normal android APKs which means whole Android (Quest3/Pico4 and others) ecosystem is ready to be released on SteamVR.

Essentially PC + ANDROID ecosystem in the same device.
From what I understand, Quest 3 games rely on proprietary API's to interface with the headsets hardware and software features, so the games aren't "ready to be released in Steam VR". In saying that, much of the foundation is the same so in theory it shouldn't require much of an investment to make a port.
 
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I will wait for more Frame feedback on these LCD displays, especially the Black levels/ contrast. I understand why they didn't go crazy resolution and OLED but was hoping for some secret sauce.

Sounds like they have nailed the tracking and wireless streaming which is huge plus though.
 
This is worrying though. This thing really needs to be console priced especially at those specs.
People said the same thing about the original Steam Deck price being as much as $650, laughable compared with the Switch. Nevertheless, the Steam Deck seems to have been a pretty big commercial success for them to want to branch out into other hardware.

Also, what is "console priced" these days? That new Xbox handheld thing is $1,000 and there are rumors that their next console will be $1,200. Shit's just expensive right now.
 
It's obviously a product ecosystem that competes with Microsoft's PC ambitions. I think it's smart to start at the low end and then introduce more powerful hardware later.
 
None of these look particularly compelling, especially without pricing or release dates.
  • Steam Machine doesn't make sense as a product. Anyone who wants something like that is going to buy a console. If you want a PC, you're going to be much better off with a real pre-built or building your own. WIll live and die based on price.
  • The Frame looks like a more expensive Quest. I don't see how someone willing to spend $1000 on a VR headset would be compelled to buy this over the other options available, some of which will be cheaper.
  • The controller is kinda pointless. The Xbox controller is standard for games that support controller, and steam input makes it compatible with basically everything. The touch pads and other features are useful on something like a Steam Deck, but don't seem necessary for a PC. The design also looks like shit:
    • PS-style analog sticks. The Xbox offset style is much better.
    • Back buttons right where your fingers rest. I've hated back buttons on every controller I've ever used. They get in the way and make holding the controller less comfortable
    • Gyro is only good in games that support it natively. Otherwise it's a pain in the ass and not worth using.
    • The track pads are just taking up space. I get that they're supposed to be useful for games that don't support a controller, but then you're still trying to map keyboard/mouse actions to the rest of the controller.
 
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8gb of VRAM
HDMI 2.0
GPU Spec

Seems like with those low specs, DF feels $399 is a good entry point for this.

"For those who plan to use Steam Machine as an all-in-one living room box, be warned. Your favourite streaming service will need to function on Linux web browsers. Valve has no plans to offer bespoke media-streaming app downloads via the default SteamOS interface, and as you can currently test on Steam Deck, some streaming services' DRM implementations block access to Linux-based browsers by default.

We still don't know what Steam Machine will cost, and that number will likely colour our future impressions and thoughts. $399 for this combination of specs would go down a lot more smoothly than prices that reach or exceed current-gen consoles with, at least on paper, seemingly superior specs. We don't envy Valve or, really, any gaming hardware manufacturer that has to reckon with rising component prices in 2025, and there's a chance that number will be higher than consumers and Valve alike won't love.

If the price gets quite high, then it will be up to Valve's own software engineering efforts and optimisations to earn that price tag. A good-enough Steam Machine that can contend with the biggest 8GB VRAM offenders, exceed Windows performance on like-for-like hardware and squeeze out competent RT performance in select games would certainly be dreamy - but it's a dream at this point, not a reality we can test."


And this is coming in 2026? This won't stand a chance against the XSX/PS5 I am afraid.
 
People said the same thing about the original Steam Deck price being as much as $650, laughable compared with the Switch. Nevertheless, the Steam Deck seems to have been a pretty big commercial success for them to want to branch out into other hardware.

Also, what is "console priced" these days? That new Xbox handheld thing is $1,000 and there are rumors that their next console will be $1,200. Shit's just expensive right now.
Console pricing I guess has changed but I would say $399-499 especially with the specs. Valve was able to price the Steam Deck very well so I'll keep my hopes up for now.

Valve seems to have subsidized the Deck so I could see that continuing here.
 
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In the PCGamer article, it's mentioned that they can be complementary. It's just that foveated streaming works with every game out of the box, while foveated rendering requires implementation by developers on a game-by-game basis.
Does the Steam Frame have eye-tracking? That's the killer feature I miss on the Meta Quest 3.
 
Controller I 100% buy

Frame, I have to wait and see. There's no killer app on VR so far that really makes me want to splurge >$1000 on it. By the time the killer app releases for Frame, meta might have a competing headset anyway. LCD panel that seems to not use miniLED, and didn't go for high FOV when microOLED solutions are in that FOV range of 110°, monochrome pass through,... I feel like the headset can age badly in 2026 without much efforts from meta.
 
No colour passthrough........

120fov is nice

But considering how great the index was this seems pretty safe for valve to me

The 6e router dongle included is a great touch, but again seems underwhelming

I read it was 110 no?

I like it. The big problem for me is they have better standalone specs than the Quest 3, but will it have games on the level of Batman, Asgard's Wrath, Deadpool etc? I highly doubt they'll even try that and just use what's already on steam or the easy multiplatforms. We already know Batman and Asgard's Wrath is getting a sequel. Spec wise, this just gives meta quest 4 a bullseye to top them on every front, when its already a small gap.
 
Alright, the Steam Cube looks pretty interesting. I wonder what kind of hardware they can pack into that little space. It's not going to be anything close to a fire breathing gaming PC with a 9800X3D and a 5090 but if it's able to fit something decent like a 5060 or 5070 in there, it ought to be a very nice Steam set-top box for a TV
 
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