Valve revealed its lineup of upcoming {hardware} in November, together with a house PC-gaming console referred to as the Steam Machine and the Steam Frame, a VR headset. On the time of the reveal, the corporate anticipated to launch its {hardware} in “early 2026,” however the present state of memory and storage prices seems to have modified these plans.Â
Valve says its purpose to launch the Steam Body and Steam Machine within the first half of 2026 has not modified, however it’s nonetheless deliberating on remaining transport dates and pricing, in line with a post from the corporate on Wednesday. Whereas the corporate did not present specifics, it mentioned it was conscious of the present state of the {hardware} and storage markets. Every kind of laptop elements have rocketed in value because of massive investments in AI infrastructure.
“After we introduced these merchandise in November, we deliberate on having the ability to share particular pricing and launch dates by now. However the reminiscence and storage shortages you have seemingly heard about throughout the trade have quickly elevated since then,” Valve mentioned. “The restricted availability and rising costs of those essential elements imply we should revisit our actual transport schedule and pricing (particularly round Steam Machine and Steam Body).”
Valve says it is going to present extra updates sooner or later about its {hardware} lineup.Â
What are the Steam Body and Steam Machine?
The Steam Body is a standalone VR headset that is all about gaming. On the {hardware} reveal in November, CNET’s Scott Stein described it as a Steam Deck on your face. It runs on SteamOS on an ARM-based chip, so video games will be loaded onto the headset and performed immediately from it, permitting avid gamers to play video games on the go. There’s additionally the choice to wirelessly stream video games from a PC.Â
The Steam Machine is Valve’s house console. It is a cube-shaped microcomputer meant to be linked to a TV.Â
When will the Steam Body and Steam Machine come out?Â
Valve did not present a particular launch date for both. The preliminary expectation after the November reveal was that the Steam Body and Steam Machine would arrive in March. Valve’s assertion about releasing its {hardware} within the first half of 2026 suggests each will come out in June on the newest.Â
How a lot will the Steam Body and Steam Machine value?Â
After the reveal, there was a lot hypothesis on their doable costs. For the Steam Body, the expectation was that it will begin at $600. The Steam Machine was anticipated to launch at a value nearer to $700. These estimates may simply improve by $100 or extra as a result of present state of pricing for reminiscence and storage.
