Valve Seizes the Spotlight with a Radical Turn in Gaming Consoles

Besides the Steam Frame headset, Valve today unveiled two more products: the second-generation Steam Controller and the new generation Steam Machine. Photo Valve. The PC attracts the most interest. While previous Steam Machines were more of a concept that any company could embody with conditionally any parameters, the new model is entirely Valve’s brainchild. It can be said that this is a console from the PC world. There are no different CPU or GPU options here – the choice is only for storage. Photo Valve Photo The Verge. At the heart of the Steam Machine is a semi-custom AMD platform. Valve, therefore, followed the path of Steam Deck. The configuration includes a six-core Zen 4 processor (i.e., like the Ryzen 7000 line), but with a TDP limited to only 30W. There’s also a graphics card with 28 CU blocks (1792 stream processors) based on the RDNA 3 architecture. This resembles the Radeon RX 7600, but with slightly fewer stream processors. Valve says that the PC is designed for gaming at 4K/60fps, but with FSR activated. However, the GPU only has 8 GB of memory, so there are doubts regarding 4K, and TDP needs to be allocated at 110W. Moreover, the GPU itself is far from the most productive by modern standards even for Full HD. The PC also has 16 GB of RAM, an SSD of 512 GB or 2 TB, Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.3, a quiet (as Valve promises) cooling system, and it’s all packed in a rather compact case. It’s a cube with a side of about 160 mm, and the power supply unit is built-in. Additionally, the novelty has a removable front panel, and Valve will offer options with different designs. Of course, the PC runs on SteamOS, but technically it’s a full-fledged computer, so Windows can be installed here if desired. The novelty will also be released at the beginning of 2026, and the price is not yet available. However, Valve noted that it will sell its novelty at prices similar to initial PCs with similar parameters, so the effect that happened with the release of Steam Deck should not be expected. As for the Steam Controller, it looks somewhat atypical, but not nearly as original as the first generation. Photo Valve. The gamepad weighs 292 grams and offers up to 35 hours of battery life, which is a lot. The Steam Controller boasts magnetic sticks, four vibration motors, and two rather large touchpads, also with haptic feedback. There is also a gyroscope, which works quite unusually. To activate it, you need to hold and then release the controller at the bottom. Simply put, press and release your fingers. The gyroscope is turned off in a similar way. Prices are also not available, and the release date is the same.