Valve updated their article about when the Steam Machine/Controller/Frame will ship.
Previous message:
We hope to ship in 2026, but as we shared recently, memory and storage shortages have created challenges for us. We’ll share updates publicly when we finalize our plans!
New message:
We shared recently that there have been challenges with memory and storage shortages, but we will be shipping all three products this year. More updates will be shared as we finalize our plans.
Bring me the head of Sam Altman.
Gabe: will nobody rid me of this troublesome AI CEO?
Or better yet, show me a picture shooting that head out of a Canon against a huge roach in a data center.
… Like, a Canon printer/photocopier?
So its just projectile vomiting generated images of the scene you likely intended to describe?
Just gimme the controllers (I want the Frame controllers as well) and I’ll be happy.
Controllers but not the Frame itself? I want a modern VR headset that runs without a tether and ISN’T produced by an evil cloud/social-media company
Yeah, that as well. But that will probably be over my budget.
I’m really hoping it isn’t like the Index at $1000. Valve seems to actually want VR adoption, so there needs to be a reasonable product at a reasonable price. They can make that. The Index is top end consumer grade. From what we’ve seen, this one will not be as high quality, but it does come with some extra features that also add extra cost (like it being a standalone computer on its own). I wish they would have also gone with a wifi/tether only option too, because that’s good enough for me. I don’t expect to have a need for it to be portable. It’s nice to have, but I’d rather have a lower cost.
I would love to buy the Frame, but I really hope the controllers will be available soon.
I don’t think you can do a whole lot with the Frame controllers without the Frame though.
As far as I recall they did say that you can use them with the Steam Machine.
I just want a good controller where the hands aren’t forced to be together. The Switch ones are too small for me.
Do you recall where you saw that? I can’t find that statement. Would be cool if true though. Wasn’t possible for Index Controllers.
Probably one of the early videos when they were announced.
Wouldn’t the controller just work with Steam on their own? I imagine they might not work on a console, but they should work with Steam.
If they work like the Index controllers, no, they won’t connect without Steam VR running and the HMD connected. But maybe they’re different.
The HMD served as a Bluetooth (or related protocol) hub for the peripherals. Also wondering if the Frame will use lighthouses Pl like Index does or have the tracking from the HMD like Oculus and newer HTC’s do. I’m hoping for that with accurate hand/finger tracking
The tracking is internal. No lighthouses for this one.
I just want the controllers as well. I’ve put off replacing my PS4 Pro controller that’s getting harder and harder to charge and doesn’t hold a charge very long any more. It’s getting to the point where I’m going to have to buy something, anything, because this thing is going to give up entirely before long. I was hoping the Steam controller would launch early this year even if the other hardware wasn’t ready. But looking like I’m going to miss out entirely if I’m forced to buy something else due to imminent hardware failure.
Seriously this. Fuck everything else; I already have a PC and a VR headset. I just want the new Steam Controller. Badly. I’ve been waiting since Christmas! Got some Steam gift cards and they’ve been sitting in my account ever since.
they’re trying to beat the age verification laws to market because they know afterwards will be a shit show.
they know customers won’t be spending money on hardware that is ID nerfed.
if valve gets the hardware to market now, along with the software it’s more likely that people will buy the hardware later and flash older firmware later that doesn’t require ID verification.
Fuck off Polygon, we said 2026
What good will be the release if it’s unbearably expensive?
Not a lot of good options at this point:
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Wait for RAM to come back down to hit a more competitive price point. Could take years, during which the hardware performance is aging and losing competitive edge.
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Release this year at a higher price point, and risk the price killing adoption rates, potentially dooming the hardware.
At least with option #2 we will get the steam controller sooner, since it’s price probably won’t be negatively impacted by RAM.
If I was Valve, at this point I’d probably scrap the project and develop a new console with a planned release in late 2027 or so. Hopefully the prices will get back to normal until then and they could use actually good hardware instead of relying on a 8GB FSR3 GPU.
Reviewers have already stated their fear that it might be dead on arrival when the price is not as competitively set as the Steam Deck’s and this was long before the RAM price increases. So I don’t really see a chance for a successful product launch in the current market.
They probably already have way too much hardware to just scrap the Frame and Machine.
They might just do a limited release though. I guess that’s what I would do.
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Oh come on, they could just open up preorders and trickle them out. Charge a bit more at first to cover the cost while promising to lower the price as RAM gets cheaper.
I want my Frame :(
as ram gets cheaper
HAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
Price has already stabilized and even had some dips. My 2x32 GB 6000 CL30 kit that I bought for 200€ early 2025 spiked to 900€. But now it costs 800€ and in the last weeks it was even possible to get it for 609€ when price dipped.
Don’t forget that the Chinese are entering the DDR5 market, it will take a year or two, but more supply is coming.
When the AI bubble pops (which can still take a while) the memory price will also plummet. The main reason price is up is the memory companies being careful this time around. Last time they built factories and raised supply, only to get burned. Now they are hedging their bets instead of expanding.
A price going from $200 to 900 then “stabilizing” at 3X its price ago doesn’t really help.
Not having fluctuation is good, but a 300% increase in about one year is insane.
Of course it’s insane. But a Steam Frame “only” has 16 GB unified RAM. That means a price jump from around 70€ to 200€, as in 130€ difference. If the entire device was planned to cost 800€ you are now looking at 930€, which isn’t great, but totally sellable by Valve.
In this economy?
One vague rumor suggested the memory pricing hill might be leveling off; sadly Valve might be paying upfront for it still, but at least it won’t get worse.
If they sell it BYO RAM, I can swap the RAM from my other PC into this when I want to play. That’s the new video game meta: swapping RAM between computers because it’s too expensive to have dedicated RAM.
The future of gaming is this. Move the Memory Pak®️ around into whatever system you’re currently using.
Anybody having config issues on their high end machines with super fast on-die unified memory are going to be the new “waaah, my Ferrari has a flat tire” gang, lol.
I think they’re just pooling stock because the RAM prices are already screwed.
AYN already announced that their supplier is bumping prices, so their console prices are definitely gonna increase by the next batch.
The bubble will eventually pop, it just won’t be rapid or soon enough to halt product sales and wait it out.
Which sucks because a year ago, the GabeCube would have sold at a seriously competitive price to the point where it would have legitimately challenged Xbox as the superior product, despite much lower unit count.
