Here are the first Steam machine specs
Valve updated the company's store yesterday with Steam Machine information and pre-order options. The information displayed depend on the region you are in. If you are connecting from Germany for instance, you don't get any information besides the base price of each device on offer while gamers from the US get pre-order links and stats for each machine that they can order.
The following guide lists stats for all Steam machines that are currently offered on Steam. That's the Alienware Steam machine starting at $449 and the Syber Steam Machine which starts at $499.
Apart from that, you may also order the Steam controller for $54.99 and Steam Link, a device that projects gaming via a home network on a TV.
Steam Machine overview
Name | Price $ | CPU | RAM | Video Card | Hard Drive | Extras |
Alienware | 449.99 | Intel Core i3 4130T DC | 4GB DDR3 | nVidia GeForce GTX GPU w/2GB GDDR5 | 500GB 7200rpm | Steam Controller, 1x1 802.11 Wireless Card |
Alienware | 549.99 | Intel Core i3 4130T DC | 8GB DDR3 | nVidia GeForce GTX GPU w/2GB GDDR5 | 1TB 7200rpm | Steam Controller, 1x1 802.11 Wireless Card |
Alienware | 649.99 | Intel Core i5 4590T QC | 8GB DDR3 | nVidia GeForce GTX GPU w/2GB GDDR5 | 1TB 7200rpm | Steam Controller, 2x2 802.11 AC Wireless Card |
Alienware | 749.99 | Intel Core i7 4765T QC | 8GB DDR3 | nVidia GeForce GTX GPU w/2GB GDDR5 | 1TB 7200rpm | Steam Controller, 2x2 802.11 AC Wireless Card |
Syber Steam Machine I | 499 | Intel Core i3-4160 | 4GB DDR3 | Nvidia GTX 750 1GB GDDR5 | 500 GB SATA III | WiFi 802.11ac/g/n |
Syber Steam Machine P | 729 | Intel Core i5-3.40 GHz | 8GB DDR3 | Nvidia GTX 960 2GB GDDR5 | 1TB Sata III | WiFi 802.11ac/g/n |
Syber Steam Machine X | 1419 | Intel Core i7 4.0 GHz | 16GB DDR3 | Nvidia GTX 980 4GB GDDR5 | 1TB Sata III | WiFi 802.11ac/g/n |
All Alienware Steam machines include the Steam Controller (a $49.99 value). It is rather unfortunate that Alienware does not disclose the video card used in the machine as you don't really know what you are getting when you buy it or if all Alienware machines share the same video card or if there are differences after all.
All machines are capable of running the majority of PC games. While you may not be able to run cutting edge games in the highest available quality, you should be able to play all games using any of the Steam machines if you don't mind running the game in lower quality mode.
Remember that Steam machines run Steam OS, a special operating system based on Linux. The operating system has been designed to run Steam and Steam games, but comes with a desktop mode as well that you can Linux applications on.
Overall game availability is restricted as a consequence which means that you won't be able to run non-Steam games that are not released for Linux.
Closing Words
Steam Machines may work well for you if you only game on Steam and want an entertainment system that bridges the gap between PC gaming and TV.
The machines are not suitable however if you use different gaming clients as well, Origin for instance or Gog, as you won't be able to run most of the games on the Steam machine.
Now You: What's your take on Steam machines so far?
Some questions as I read this:
* Any word on 3D gaming support? If you’re spending $1,500, you probably want 3D as well.
* I’m wondering why they’d go with the Intel processors. I would think the AMD APU system would be a lot better for low and mid-range gaming systems. Maybe better Linux support?
* There’s a little bit of a chicken-and-egg thing here: big developers won’t make Linux-platform games without a popular Linux platform but you need the games to drive the platform. That’s why big companies use beloved games like Halo, Uncharted, and Mario to drive adoption of their new console. Why didn’t Valve release Half Life 3 for these?
* Any side-by-side analysis? I’d like to see some side-by-side comparisons to XBox One and PS4, especially on some of the latest and greatest games. I think that’s going to be compelling for console gamers who might think themselves as wedded to one platform. If the latest game in your favorite series costs less and looks better on a SteamMachine, that’s hard to ignore.
I always build my own systems, so I don’t really care about Steam machines.
It’s easy enough to build a computer with an i3, 4GB RAM, a 500GB drive, and a 750Ti for $500, but it’s not easy at all to do so in the Alpha’s form factor.
Being a little smaller than a PS4 is hardly a killer feature, unless the target market are people working on submarines. If people are planning on plugging these into their monster living room TV, they are not likely to be worried about a few inches of space in the entertainment center.
I prefer to spend my hard earned money on something else than an eye candy computer – all I care about is computing performance, not looks. But I am aware that other people have other needs.
Because it’s sitting in your entertainment center, not a desktop PC. The alpha form factor is a huge part of what makes it sexy. It’s much smaller than even the PS4.
True. However, why would I want the Alpha form factor ? :)
Overpriced linux boxes, IMO. For $1400, you could build a beastly windows 7/8/10 PC with a nice monitor, and probably an SSD as well.
All the alienware steam boxes use the 860M GPU, which is essentially a 750Ti. It will play most modern games at 1080p at medium quality at ~30fps. Roughly equivalent to a modern console, but much less visual fidelity and lower framerates than a gaming GPU you’d be likely to buy separately.
That’s why I haven’t purchased one. For me, a minimum spec would be a GTX960 (note, not a GTX960M), which can play most 1080p games at high quality at well over 30fps.
The machines look fine but I’m still not sure exactly who they are aimed at. Hardcore gamers are almost always going to want their own rigs that they work out themselves, and more casual gamers aren’t likely to pay a premium for hardware they can do less with.
Ha, what a joke.
Valve should release a Steam Link app for Roku and Amazon Fire TV. Problem solved.
Regarding the Alienware machines, what exactly is a “nVidia GeForce GTX GPU w/2GB GDDR5”? It doesn’t say anything about the most important bit about the GPU.
If they’re hiding that info, that’s a big red flag.
Yea, these machines are aiming at gamers, and they think gamers are stupid to ignore that part? lol
Yeah that is a big problem. No information was provided unfortunately.