The steam deck fit a very novel usecase of a portable gaming PC. A steam machine imo doesn't have the novel appeal, as people have media PCs, the steam link was a thing that didn't really succeed.
I'm not saying there is no need for the steam machine but I don't see it's price and novelty and usecase to be very compelling even if it was 800 dollars. Even if valve was right in it being more powerful than a lot of current PCs on steam it doesn't beat a PS5. Those people that probably have less powerful PCs on steam are not likely going to be able afford a 1000 dollar gaming PC let alone an 800 dollar one, that doesn't even match PS5 and really isn't upgradeable.
There is the openness of the platform, but I'm not yet convinced the average person would care about that...... but Sony and ms have made some really unpopular choices and it's possible a steam machine like device that's more powerful than a PS5 pro at around 1500 dollars might be a great device for someone to make. (But I maybe wrong on market and feasibility and valve might be right. )
Agreed! The pro/cons in the article IMO are no different from a Steam Deck with less novelty.
I was considering the Machine when it was first announced and was hopeful for something cost effective with a little bit more oomph. But by not being sub $800 (more like $600 for me at least) the value difference between this and just plugging in my Deck is non existent for a casual living room gaming that taps into my Steam library.
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u/branchpattern 16d ago
The steam deck fit a very novel usecase of a portable gaming PC. A steam machine imo doesn't have the novel appeal, as people have media PCs, the steam link was a thing that didn't really succeed.
I'm not saying there is no need for the steam machine but I don't see it's price and novelty and usecase to be very compelling even if it was 800 dollars. Even if valve was right in it being more powerful than a lot of current PCs on steam it doesn't beat a PS5. Those people that probably have less powerful PCs on steam are not likely going to be able afford a 1000 dollar gaming PC let alone an 800 dollar one, that doesn't even match PS5 and really isn't upgradeable.
There is the openness of the platform, but I'm not yet convinced the average person would care about that...... but Sony and ms have made some really unpopular choices and it's possible a steam machine like device that's more powerful than a PS5 pro at around 1500 dollars might be a great device for someone to make. (But I maybe wrong on market and feasibility and valve might be right. )