In the wake of the Steam Machine launch, we now have some idea about Valve’s original pricing plans prior to the RAM and storage crisis. It looks as though the now £879 / $1,049 device likely cost closer to £650 / $750 before current market conditions reared their ugly head.
In an interview with IGN, Valve engineers Pierre-Loup Griffais and Yazan Aldehayyat discussed the initial cost of the Steam Machine prior to sky-high RAM prices. While neither coughed up a specific value, they did say that any cost increase was “probably similar” to Steam Deck price rises earlier this year.
Given that Steam Deck hardware is markedly different to that of the Steam Machine, a 1:1 increase in price is unlikely. After all, we’re talking about soldered LPDDR5 RAM on the handheld, and modular DDR5 SODIMMs on the latter, for starters, let alone their markedly different CPU and GPU. However, it serves as a foundation for a solid estimate.
The Steam Deck 512GB models increased in price by 35% in the UK and 44% in the US. If the Steam Machine’s present prices reflect similar rises (£879 / $1,049), then the system would have cost £651.11 / $728.47 prior to those hikes. Valve’s friendly-looking prices wouldn’t have been this precise, of course, but we think an estimate of around £675 / $750 is reasonable here.
At those prices, Valve’s black box would prove a more tantalising purchase in terms of value. However, the system would still prove more expensive than the PlayStation 5, which now retails for £569 / $599, although Sony’s economy of scale naturally dwarfs Valve’s.
These pricing realities certainly don’t bode well for the Steam Frame, with the likes of the Meta Quest 3 also increasing in price. Valve is yet to provide any indication as to how much the VR headset will cost, nor any launch window beyond summer 2026, but I wouldn’t expect a pleasant surprise.
You can expect our Steam Machine review to arrive soon, but you can check out our Steam Controller review in the meantime.
