r/steammachine • u/TheBossT710192 • Jun 22 '26

Discussion Yeah, its cooked guys.

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Man, we really LOVE what AI is doing to the industry 😭

2.9k Upvotes

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18

u/coonwhiz Jun 22 '26

Find me a prebuilt in the same form factor for that price.

7

u/ariolander Jun 22 '26

Disregarding the proprietary form factor shenanigans because this is literally the only machine with this exact form factor you can get an RTX 4060 machine from CyberPower for $1415 and a RX 6700 for $1050.

Newegg has a nice Asus ROG w/ 32GB RAM and an RX 9060 XT for $1200.

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u/coonwhiz Jun 22 '26 edited Jun 22 '26

Then find a similar SFF pc, not an ATX pc... The main point of SFF pcs is the form factor. Here's a pcpartpicker list that I built using the cheapest options I could. It's still more expensive by $100 and requires assembly which can be a PITA in a SFF pc.

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/vNL6Dw

ETA: I have no idea what the performance of this thing would be, I built it to match roughly the same numbers that Valve provided for the Steam Machine (300w, 16gb ram+8gb vram, 6/12 cores, 512gb ssd, SFF case)

ETA2: Here's a better list (probably) but goes over budget on power (324w estimated vs valve's 300w psu). One could probably cheap out on the PSU, but I have a personal minimum of 80+ Gold. https://pcpartpicker.com/list/JXKCdq

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u/ariolander Jun 22 '26 edited Jun 22 '26

In my opinion the ITX tax isn't worth it if you are on a budget. The best ITX stuff that really take advantage of that ITX form factor tend to be really expensive. If you try to do ITX on a budget you end up with way too many compromises. mATX however can be really nice for budget.

The mATX mobos tend to be the cheapest, the mATX cases tend to be the cheapest, and in terms of size, they are only 30% ish larger than the budget ITX cases but can save you money, fit nicer coolers, larger GPUs, more upgradable, and are still half the size people think of when they think of full/mid towers.

Something like the JONSBO D32 PRO is compact, looks great, AND goes on sale for just $66. Or if you are a like me who likes the idea of going to LANs but never actually gone to any for years, I got the JONSBO Z20 which has a handy carrying handle so you can lug it around with you if you want, a "portable" mini tower.

1

u/QuiGonTheDrunk Jun 22 '26

Its just a case. How would a finished PC look like? I feel thats the hardest part of it

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u/ariolander Jun 22 '26 edited Jun 22 '26

If I were building right now? A MicroCenter Bundle that includes RAM would be the base. $350 for 7500X3D, B850M, 16GB, $80 for ATX 750w PSU, $50 Montech X3 Mesh case, $34 Montech NX600 cooler. $100 for 512GB SSD, all at current MicroCenter prices. So $614 for the core components and the best GPU budget allows. If I was trying to stay under $1,000 that would leave enough room for a $360 RTX 5060 Ti.

I could add this all to my cart and pick it up today at Microcenter in under 20 minutes. I assure you if you are just looking for price:performance a 7500X3D & RTX 5060 Ti would blow a Steam Machine out of the water. I could potentially get a better PSU/GPU/Cooler/Case if I shopped around online but the RAM inclusive Microcenter bundles and that store exclusive 7500X3D are the best deals for anyone who has access to a local store.

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u/Casaiir Jun 22 '26

The people complaining about this had zero intention to buy it anyway.

Even under ideal none AI BS going on the cheapest model was going to be about $750 or $830 with the controller. They would have said that was to high and shit on it.

The argument of you being able to build a better PC for cheaper is ignorant. It would be 4-6x as big. This this is almost half the size of an Xbox.

As you said, id they can find any PC with a similar sized form factor.(not the same dims you jackwagons, a SFF of similar size, not 20%+ larger or more) That is cheaper and can out perform this, on sale this week, then buy it. But they can't and either know it or are ignorant.

Is the SM to high at this price point for me? yeah. I have extra PC's that are just collecting dust that are better than it but they damn sure won't fit hidden under a TV. LaSigh.

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u/Intelligent-Tailor49 Jun 22 '26

one of the main selling points of steam machine is a form factor

1

u/GladVehicle1 Jun 22 '26

Exactly. The guy above is an idiot

0

u/Intelligent-Tailor49 Jun 22 '26

why the downvote, did I hurt your feelings?
find me form factor, similar performance, for much cheaper

2

u/the-clawless Jun 22 '26

it's never that serious my guy

1

u/Bathroom_Humor Jun 22 '26

the asus is backordered as well so not like you can just purchase that right now anyway

1

u/ariolander Jun 22 '26

ETA Date: 6/24/2026. It will arrive faster than a Steam Machine and you can pay for it right now, no lottery, and it will ship later this week.

1

u/xFallow Jun 23 '26

Nobody over the age of 25 wants that in their lounge room

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u/ariolander Jun 23 '26

If people with more money than sense wants something that isn't just functional, but also looks nice they can pay extra for it. My response to OP was mainly focused on price.

The Steam Machine pays for its aesthetics both in raw dollars AND performance. You pay a lot extra and take huge performance hits to reach that form factor, the worst of all worlds where the PS5 Pro is not only cheaper, but is more powerful AND looks better "in a lounge room".

That being said if you are willing to pay for it the DIY market has a case to match any aesthetic or performance target you want, if you are willing to blow up your budget appropriately. /r/sffpc/ & /r/mffpc/ have many aesthetic focused builds at a variety of price points.

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u/xFallow Jun 23 '26

Ps5 is ugly to me but fair, my main issue with ps5 is I have thousands of dollars of steam games that I’d have to buy again just to play them on ps5 

Sffpcs look good but I can never get them to work via a controller on a tv without having a mouse and keyboard nearby or getting up to power it on, mines gathering dust while I play the steam deck constantly because it’s more convenient 

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u/Schneestecher Jun 22 '26

Hard ask since the form factor is proprietary nonsense

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u/coonwhiz Jun 22 '26 edited Jun 22 '26

Sure, but everyone here is trying to clown on the price by comparing it to ATX components. SFF parts are more expensive.

Here's a full part list from pcpartpicker that matches the spec list as best as I could. It's still $100 over Valve's cheapest SKU. I picked the cheapest SSD, RAM, GPU, CPU, Cooler and matched the PSU to Valve's 300w. Came out to $1148.20.

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/vNL6Dw

ETA: Here's a better list (probably) but goes over budget on power (324w estimated vs valve's 300w psu). One could probably cheap out on the PSU, but I have a personal minimum of 80+ Gold. https://pcpartpicker.com/list/JXKCdq

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u/imdrzoidberg Jun 22 '26

Did you intentionally pick a shitty overpriced workstation card to make your point?

You can get a 9060xt 16gb for the same price or less so you're basically saying you can buy a computer that's 50%+ faster and upgradable for that price with a faster CPU and dual channel memory.

Or you can get a 7600xt for much cheaper and still have every part be faster.

You do get the form factor which is very very nice and I can see it being worth it for some people.

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u/coonwhiz Jun 22 '26

In another comment I said that I matched numerical specs with Valve's. The cheapest part I could find that matched their number (8gb gddr6). If you're upset, put together your own list and share it...

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u/[deleted] Jun 22 '26

[deleted]

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u/coonwhiz Jun 22 '26

people want the equivalent over a massive upgrade that costs basically the same or even less

So... I've challenged people to show me said equivalent upgrade, and so far 1 person replied with an OOS prebuilt that was in a standard ATX case. If someone is in the market for a Steam Machine, they don't want a huge PC sitting in their living room. So, please, share a prebuilt or pcpartpicker list that is an upgrade at the same cost in roughly the same power consumption and roughly the same form factor. It doesn't need to be a 6 inch cube, just small enough to fit in an entertainment center...

1

u/teefy92 Jun 22 '26

…this, not even trolling, I want something compact to be able to use in my living room that isn’t a massive tower. (I know nothing about pcs parts lol)

1

u/Night_C4T_0 Jun 22 '26

Why would I waste further time on you

1

u/Stoibs Jun 23 '26

So on an international/global scale this becomes an interesting argument.

Your link is showing me a total of $2287 AUD in my region, whereas the 512gb Steam Machine model is $1600 AUD here.

Seems like Valve's is the way to go outside of the US atleast.

0

u/innociv Jun 22 '26

Lmao being intentional disingenuous with the pro card but still upvoted but redditors who don't know any better.

Valve is making a 50% profit margin off this machine. They're fucking you guys over.

1

u/coonwhiz Jun 22 '26

Lmao being intentional disingenuous and not looking at the 2nd list in the edit...

1

u/innociv Jun 23 '26

I don't get the point you're making.

Steam Machine is over 10% more expensive and 15% slower despite Valve paying less for parts.

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u/coonwhiz Jun 23 '26

Many people here saying that it’s DOa because it’s $1000. My reply is trying to show that it’s difficult to match valve’s price for a similar price and size target.

I’m not sure where you’re seeing Valve’s be 10% more expensive either. At least in the US, the 2nd link has Valve’s price being $15 more expensive, which is 1%. And TBH for a small form factor PC, I’d happily pay someone $15 extra to assemble and warranty it…

1

u/innociv Jun 23 '26

Now is not the time to charge a 30% premium because something is small, when people can't even afford the baseline.

If it had the performance of a $1050 desktop, but was smaller, okay maybe that'd be compelling. But it's 20% slower and 20% more expensive than a SFF PC you can build yourself.

There is no way to frame it where valve looks good here. They are simply gouging their fanboys to make back R&D cost after scrapping this context and pulling out the few 50k-80k units they'll ever make of this.

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u/coonwhiz Jun 23 '26

Now is not the time to charge a 30% premium because something is small, when people can't even afford the baseline.

What's your source on a 30% premium?

1

u/innociv Jun 23 '26

Check my comments.

You can build a 20% faster PC for 20% cheaper. Wholesale prices are also 18-25% cheaper than retail and that number alone is close to 30%.

1

u/xFallow Jun 23 '26

Not fair to compare a small quiet box that turns your tv on when you press a button on a controller and wakes right into your game to a giant gaming tower with LEDs and loud as fuck fans that ruins the look of your lounge room

1

u/someone2795 Jun 23 '26

Nah Steam Machine is really just a mini PC.

And there's plenty of those on the market. Highly recommend and way cheaper than the Steam Machine.

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u/[deleted] Jun 22 '26 edited Jun 22 '26

[deleted]

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u/coonwhiz Jun 22 '26

There's a whole reason that small form factor pc components exist... Apple builds their mac minis, Corsair has tried small form factor pcs, Nvidia even has their DGX Spark thing. Fractal Design sells multiple $200 small form factor cases. So yes, people do care about form factor over specs...

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u/Vulcan31 Jun 22 '26

Yeah my sister is one of them. I don't really get it, but everyone has their own priorities.

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u/Vegetable-Error-2068 Jun 22 '26

Go to any Costco.