xSneakI really don't see the point of this thing unless it is priced at $300. A playstation 5 or xbox series X outperform it while having a compact form factor; the steam machine is DOA.

Except a ps5 or xbox doesn't just have an upfront cost to play online, and xbox gamepass recently had a massive price increase.
Depending on what the Steam Machine costs I think it will be competitive, especially for those tired of paying subscription fees.

xSneakI really don't see the point of this thing unless it is priced at $300. A playstation 5 or xbox series X outperform it while having a compact form factor; the steam machine is DOA.

They're very unlikely to outperform it, actually. Leaving aside that the "performance" of consoles is just extremely aggressive variable upscaling and locked 30 or 60fps, in raw performance it's actually quite close. A PS5 performs similar to an RX 6700, both have 36CU of RDNA 2. A 32CU RDNA 3 RX 7600 outperforms the 6700, so a 28CU RX 7600M with boosted power limits and clocks will probably perform very similar.

Yes the consoles have greater memory bandwidth, but RDNA 3 has a hefty amount of cache to compensate, and the CPU in the Steam Machine wipes the floor with current consoles. In 99.9% of cases, the performance differences will be irrelevant.

And as another commenter above pointed out, once you factor in the cost of online play and the price of games, a Steam Machine becomes significantly cheaper. $100 doesn't even buy a year of internet access on a console, whereas $100 during a Steam Sale can give you thousands of hours of playtime.

xSneakI really don't see the point of this thing unless it is priced at $300. A playstation 5 or xbox series X outperform it while having a compact form factor; the steam machine is DOA.

I dunno. They aren’t exactly the same thing, and the marketplaces are quite different as well. You can’t play many of the older/classic titles on PS/Xbox, for example, because they are simply not available. You also don’t have to add a subscription to play online, and you also can tweak your game settings more than PS/Xbox. Whether that matters or not is up to the buyers, but one of the big things PS/Xbox offer is convenience, especially when hooking up to a living room set. This meets that user most of the way there, while still offering some distinct differences over the standard console. You can use it like a console, but you can also tweak it a lot more.

xSneakI really don't see the point of this thing unless it is priced at $300. A playstation 5 or xbox series X outperform it while having a compact form factor; the steam machine is DOA.

Uh, can you play your Steam games on an Xbox or a PS5?

TheDeeGee

This was hard to watch. That guy is clueless on so many thing. I dont think he really far from the actual performance, but saying things like CPU should be the weakest part ? That RDNA 2 is less affected by raytracing than RDNA3 ? Anyway there are many thing that will be interesting to know

Navi 33 is a PCI-E 4.0 16x GPU. It would be interesting to see if that is the case on the steam machine as it could help a bit smoothing out things with the 8 GB VRAM buffer. we will see. But anyway, when i look around at my non-enthusiast PC Gamers friends, i think they are right to say that its over 70%. my friend circle is a small representation but still.

On the other hand both argument can be true
- Steam Machine is 70% more powerful than average Steam user
- Performance increase isnt big enough for them to upgrade

if you bring in that factor of let say, having 50% more performance to upgrade, then that number could be 20-30%. Its still a lot of people overall but much less than 70%

I really think that the main case for this would be:

• People wanting turnkey and affordable setup
• People wanting something small on their TV for occasional gaming
• Geek (geek always geek)
• Steam deck user wanting the same experience but with more performance

But anyway, its really the price that will be the deciding factor and nobody know it.

Easy RhinoUh, can you play your Steam games on an Xbox or a PS5?

No need to play mouse and keyboard games on a console.

N/AThis is a 5060 Ti 16 GB 180 W on a 10 x 10 cm PCB. So anything is possible and it doesn't have to be notebook grade stuff. If the CPU is in a similar package, without a socket, the same applies. Even better, only 30 watts.

Look at what your image is missing... A CPU, A PSU, System Ram, storage. Add all of those things in and it isn't a flat 10x10 PCB. Have you seen a picture of the steam machine without the cover on? The pcb isn't that much larger than what you post. The size comes from the cooler mostly.

ONEoo7The higher end part with

You are comparing... thin and light notebook with an iGPU, to a beefy piece on the right?

In a video that concludes:



Are you ok?

It's a 1080p machine. I'd take a Switch 2 over this. For non Nintendo games I have my PC.

xSneakI really don't see the point of this thing unless it is priced at $300. A playstation 5 or xbox series X outperform it while having a compact form factor; the steam machine is DOA.

Xbox series X is 6.8 Liters. Play Station 5 is 7.5 Liters. This is half the size. I think people don't realize how compact this is...

xSneakNo need to play mouse and keyboard games on a console.

Try again. You cannot load your Steam games on a console. If you have a Steam account and hundreds of games you are not playing those on a console. The nice thing about the Steam Machine is you can play your Steam games like a console.

Kinda interested in this for some light 1080p games while I use my main PC for 2 other games at the same time.

Easy RhinoTry again. You cannot load your Steam games on a console. If you have a Steam account and hundreds of games you are not playing those on a console. The nice thing about the Steam Machine is you can play your Steam games like a console.

You can already play steam games in different room through steam link. This thing is being designed as a console competitor and I don't see how it has any value outside of not paying for xbox live or psn. The pc (steam) exclusive games are mainly mouse and keyboard, ones that aren't going to play well at all on a controller. There is not a big market of ex pc gamers that suddenly need to play pc games using a controller in their living room.
Additoinally, steam OS lacks anti cheat support for the major online multiplayer games which makes this thing even more DOA than I initailly thought.

That's a lot of marketing and discussion for a device that doesn't even have an official MSRP let alone benchmarks.

N/AThis is a 5060 Ti 16 GB 180 W on a 10 x 10 cm PCB. So anything is possible and it doesn't have to be notebook grade stuff. If the CPU is in a similar package, without a socket, the same applies. Even better, only 30 watts.

Mate, at least do some research and use complete mini-PCs as a reference.
You can use therecent Zotac Magnus as an example, which does come at a smaller 2.65L volume. But then like everyone else have mentioned already, this comes at a cost. Its power supply is external and so are its wifi antennae. And from the looks of it, it has zero potential for customisation. The Steam Machine's entire front is made to be replaceable, plus those RGB LED things (despite not being a fan myself, but still…).

Moreover, there is the acoustic side of things. From what little photos are available for the innards of both, the Zotac uses multiple, smaller fans for cooling, compared to the Machine that uses a monolithic heatsink with a large, thick fan. I'll leave it to you to predict which is going to sound like a quad-copter drone on sports mode 30 seconds past a game's main menu...

xSneakYou can already play steam games in different room through steam link. This thing is being designed as a console competitor and I don't see how it has any value outside of not paying for xbox live or psn. The pc (steam) exclusive games are mainly mouse and keyboard, ones that aren't going to play well at all on a controller. There is not a big market of ex pc gamers that suddenly need to play pc games using a controller in their living room.
Additoinally, steam OS lacks anti cheat support for the major online multiplayer games which makes this thing even more DOA than I initailly thought.

I travel and spend plenty of time in hotels. This is the perfect box to take with me. Better performance than a standard mini pc, should be significantly better than a handheld and easier to lug around than a console.

Vayra86Its also misleading to be convinced that the market for high end gaming PCs is bigger than the markets below it.

This has never been a thing, will never be a thing, and with the hardware price increasing, it will increasingly NOT be a thing.

The movement in gaming markets is towards entry-sub midrange level devices. The midrange is losing ground. The enthusiast segment is gaining too. Its quite similar to what we see in society's division of wealth.
Handhelds, SFF boxes, NUC, but also the 600 dollar laptop.

Steam Machine is hitting that segment with full force, with, in a relative sense, a capable and affordable product.

I'm not sure why you say its a joke, really, and why you think there is a sharp divide between gamers on higher end systems and those below it. They play generally the same content, they just time it differently. They might play Helldivers 2 in three years because now there's a device that plays it - or they have a console for those games, and a PC for the rest.

The reality is, 'we' the enthusiasts are the bigger idiots for overpaying for what is essentially the same experience ;) But we want to do that, right?


Its called elitism and thinking every product should be aimed at yourself.

What does any of this have to do with misleading advertising and bad value? They are implying that this compares to high end pc segments while using the entirety of the market, regardless of year, to justify numbers. This is also not an upgrade able product. Better to build your own potatoe and allow yourself to have an upgrade path when you can afford it.

Blue4130I travel and spend plenty of time in hotels. This is the perfect box to take with me. Better performance than a standard mini pc, should be significantly better than a handheld and easier to lug around than a console.

And what are you going to do about having a screen? Seems like a gaming certified laptop would be the better choice.

You can't build a similar machine for less $$$

It's a Hawk Point Refresh, Ryzen 5 220 and 7600S Mobile parts bin special. The 7600S/7600M XT is turned up to 110-130w, and equal to a 4060 desktop in Timespy.

The 4060 desktop is the middle average of what people have in the Steam Hardware Survey, and is the right power to run the Steam Frame headset.

FSR4 does (or will) run on it, and 4k/60 medium is real. If you want better, you'll be spending double...

xSneakAnd what are you going to do about having a screen? Seems like a gaming certified laptop would be the better choice.

Every SINGLE hotel that I have stayed at in the past 5 years has had a 65 inch tv with hdmi ports available. As for laptops, I hate the form factor of laptops, especially for gaming. Who wants to game on a 17 inch screen? (not to mention any gaming laptop will almost certainly cost double if not more than what this will cost.)

drpoorWhat does any of this have to do with misleading advertising and bad value? They are implying that this compares to high end pc segments while using the entirety of the market, regardless of year, to justify numbers. This is also not an upgrade able product. Better to build your own potatoe and allow yourself to have an upgrade path when you can afford it.

You -wrongly- inferring that they are saying it compares with your definition for “high end” does not mean they are implying so.
I for one can’t don’t really read “4K@60fps with FSR” as high end, even without factoring in that AAA games are a small sliver of the furthest ends of the distribution’s right tail. “70% of the market” also does not imply historical data.

As for the value, it may be bad, it may not. Leaving aside the partial-subjectivity* of said label, we do no know yet how much it would sell for. Concluding either at this point makes as much sense as your typical horoscope reading.
I personally would not be surprised if the entry model retailed for US$1000. But even if I were to take my guesses as facts I wouldn’t rule out others finding value in it. The platform has enough idiosyncrasies that it may carve a niche. The current state of the market may even make the price tag slightly justifiable.

mikesgYou can't build a similar machine for less $$$

It's a Hawk Point Refresh, Ryzen 5 220 and 7600S Mobile parts bin special. The 7600S/7600M XT is turned up to 110-130w, and equal to a 4060 desktop in Timespy.

The 4060 desktop is the middle average of what people have in the Steam Hardware Survey, and is the right power to run the Steam Frame headset.

FSR4 does (or will) run on it, and 4k/60 medium is real. If you want better, you'll be spending double...

I've got a mini pc with the Ryzen7 255, the igpu it's 12CU and can play well many titles, actually I'm playing horizon zero dawn remastered, with fsr4 (fp8 mod) balanced and FG can run in 1080p medium details (high texture) at 55 fps, very very playable on a 55" TV, i'm at 4mt distance so at my eyes the game looks great, a 28CU igpu can probably play well in 1440p high with quality fsr4, not bad for a small pc, but it will need to be under 600€, so I could think of sell mine for 300-350 and do the upgrade, because honestly it's the second PC, used for casual gaming on living room, that is the steam machine location, if they ask for more, i will use first pc for any games I can't actually play well on the couch.

EsaTBut is it gaining anything else than ever higher prices?
Because basically only the wealthiest/those with highest income have had their income rise faster than cost of about everything has been rising.

If you believe the enthusiasts, they have access to a whole other world of gaming where the rays cast accurately and the framerates go to 9000.

The price? ah... that's an afterthought, I mean look at my 4 slot GPU, and it can do AI too!
Enthusiast segment has always been like this, the target audience has just widened because more people in general are gaming. Is it gaining anything else? Nope. Its just expensive hardware for an experience that historically became more similar between different types of hardware than it has ever been :D

But hey, if it makes people feel special, power to them! This is where the term fools & money is coined, really.

shuffy_losysI don't really trust Steam surveys to represent what's going on in the wider market:

• It requires the person to have Steam installed, was asked to submit their computer information (this appears random, I don't get asked every month), and if the user consented to submitting information
• You can find weird trends in the data that don't make sense. I forget the exact time, but there was a case in one month, a video card had like 4%, but the next month, it had dropped a few percentage points. It doesn't make sense that that percentage points of people dropped the video card for something else, especially since it was a fairly recent one.

Steam's Survey is representative for Steam users.

Its not a representation of the PC gaming market, or gaming in general. It is what is says it is: a survey among steam users.
People always prop it up as being more than that, but its not and it never will be, unless you also believe Steam is the only access point to game on a PC or gaming in general. Gaming is ever more platform and hardware agnostic. The survey's value is diminishing by the day, and with the release of Steam Machine, it diminishes further, as more and more variations and alternatives exist that all 'just game'.

PunkenjoyThis was hard to watch. That guy is clueless on so many thing.

Welcome to Youtube. I don't even click those nitwits honestly. Valuable minutes and avoided brainrot I do prefer over anything coming from these talking head losers.

The only correct response to idiots with a mic in a decor is: get a fucking job already.
There's a reason I don't watch TV either. This is it. Its mind blowing how people have gotten it in their heads Youtube is any different than linear TV honestly.

xSneakAnd what are you going to do about having a screen? Seems like a gaming certified laptop would be the better choice.

Any existing monitor TV is a screen that you already have, all it takes is a cable.

What is a 'gaming certified' laptop? Something about this is telling me you're either very casual or very young. Anything with an APU in it can game, and has gamed for decades now. Consoles are just as gaming certified as any system with an IGP in it, heck they're even variations of the same chip and base technology now.

Laptops have historically been notoriously poor gaming machines - very highly priced for the performance, relatively low lifespan / prone to breaking and heat issues, and in every way less performant than a desktop system. The advantage of laptops is their portability, in every other aspect its the shittiest possible machine to be gaming on. You'll need a power plug, too, if you want more than 1-2 hours of fun, so that also kinda kills the whole 'portability' aspect in a way.

drpoorWhat does any of this have to do with misleading advertising and bad value? They are implying that this compares to high end pc segments while using the entirety of the market, regardless of year, to justify numbers. This is also not an upgrade able product. Better to build your own potatoe and allow yourself to have an upgrade path when you can afford it.

They're not implying that at all, that's just what you've interpreted it as.

4k60 is something that's also propped up in relation to the current crop of consoles, the Nvidia SHIELD, and various other set top boxes worth anywhere between $50,- and $1000,-. High end? If anything it shows how easily you've fallen for marketing and have stopped thinking about what you read.

As for bad value... interesting conclusion if you have no sale price.

xSneakYou can already play steam games in different room through steam link. This thing is being designed as a console competitor and I don't see how it has any value outside of not paying for xbox live or psn. The pc (steam) exclusive games are mainly mouse and keyboard, ones that aren't going to play well at all on a controller. There is not a big market of ex pc gamers that suddenly need to play pc games using a controller in their living room.
Additoinally, steam OS lacks anti cheat support for the major online multiplayer games which makes this thing even more DOA than I initailly thought.

I have a Steam account with one hundred games. I do not have a PS5 or Xbox but would like a console or something to play games in my living room. Hrm... I could buy a PS5 or Xbox and have to "re-buy" all my games just to play on that console OR I could buy a Steam Machine which allows to play my already paid for games the way I want. Also, the Steam Link sucks.,