Linux Console: Valve Announces New Steam Machine
A decade after the failure of the Steam Machines, Valve is trying again: The new Steam Machine is a cube with SteamOS.
(Image: Valve)
Valve has announced a new Steam Machine – a decade after the largely successful originals came to market. The new Steam Machine is a Linux computer with Valve's SteamOS, originally developed for the Steam Deck, which, thanks to its compact cube shape, can also be placed on the TV like a console.
The heart of the Steam Machine is an AMD Zen 4 chip with 6 cores and 12 threads and a clock speed of 4.8 GHz. It is complemented by a modified RDNA 3 GPU with 28 compute units and a maximum clock speed of 2.45 GHz. The motherboard has 8 GB of GDDR6 VRAM, plus 16 GB of RAM. Performance at the level of a high-end computer is not to be expected; the Steam Machine is more of a gaming PC for beginners. Since Valve has not yet announced a price, the price/performance ratio cannot yet be assessed.
It is already known that the Steam Machine will be launched in two versions, which differ in storage space: The first variant has a rather limited 512 GB of storage, while the second version upgrades to 2 terabytes. Both models have a MicroSD slot for storage expansion.
HDMI and DisplayPort
The new Steam Machine is 152 millimeters high, 162 millimeters deep, and 156 millimeters wide, making it quite cube-like. The minimalist black box is adorned with an LED status bar on the front, in addition to the ports. The black front panel of the mini-PC can be exchanged for more fashionable variants, but details are not yet known. From the back, the Steam Machine looks a bit like a PC power supply; the fan is visible through the mesh.
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New Steam Controller Also Announced
The Steam Deck is intended for use with the new Steam Controller, which Valve announced in parallel. It usually connects to PCs via a wireless puck that also serves as a charging station, but with the Steam Machine, it works without this additional transmitter.
(Image:Â Valve)
The Steam Controller differs from conventional controllers primarily through its two touch surfaces, located below the symmetrical joysticks, which enable mouse-like input. These joysticks are magnetic and thus protected from mechanical wear and the notorious "stick drift" that can cause phantom inputs on affected Switch controllers, for example.
Vibration motors in the Steam Controller are intended to provide precise haptic feedback, while gyroscopes in the grips enable motion control, such as aiming by lightly moving the gamepad. Valve has not yet provided any price information for the new Steam Controller either. Both the Steam Controller and the Steam Machine are scheduled to be released in early 2026.
(dahe)
