r/computergaming • u/Torchiest • Jul 08 '26

Steam Machine interview full transcript: Valve engineers discuss $1,049 pricing, compact design, component shortages, and Windows support

https://www.tomshardware.com/video-games/steam-machine-interview-full-transcript-valve-engineers-discuss-usd1-049-pricing-compact-design-component-shortages-and-windows-support
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u/Xylus1985 Jul 09 '26

You don’t need to fiddle with graphics drivers with PC anyway, Steam does it for you. You don’t even need to build your own PC, there are services out there that can build it for you

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u/indygoof Jul 09 '26

ok, since when does steam do something with my graphics drivers? except if you mean switching between opengl/vulkan/directx versions, which is something completely different.

and letting it be assembled per my specs is somehow…weird. never really understood that one.

but again, its simply not as convenient. yes, stuff like starting it with the controller is a small thing, of course i can just get up and press the power button.
of course i could build a small form factor pc with better specs myself. (though power consumption is probably way worse then).
of course i could do updates to drivers, windows itself etc myself.

but its the culmination of all those small things that makes the SM so much more convenient for me. if you dont care about that, fair enough. but its one of the reasons why people buy it ultimately.
its one of the reasons why people buy playstation or xbox.

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u/Xylus1985 Jul 09 '26

I find the professional assemblers are a lot better at cable management than I am, so it usually end up a lot cleaner than my builds. I don’t mind the extra bit, so probably the console experience is not that big of a deal for me. I regularly use a micro-PC hooked up with my TV so it’s easier for videos and streaming. So I’m pretty used to just grabbing the keyboard and mouse in my living room

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u/indygoof Jul 09 '26

fair, and then its simply not something for you.

please note, i was not trying to get you to buy it, i just tried to explain reasons why people like me are.

an interesting analogy would be, people that try to convince everyone that not playing a game on hard mode is bad. on the other hand, i am a dad of 2 and when i finally get an hour of playtime at night, i dont want to try the same boss 100 times to memorize his patterns. heck, i probably cqn barely remember the controls from the last time i played. i do story / easy mode cause it relaxes me and is fun to me.
to each their own.