CrackPebbles
Member
STRONG! now let me see the price.
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Valve reveals specs for prototype Steam Machines.
- Thread starter Silky
- Start date
Those products will come later. These initial products are designed to get early adopters on board. These early adopters will help Valve to shape the future of SteamOS/Steam Machines by providing feedback that will give Valve an idea of what gamers want out of SteamOS/Steam Machines. They can use this feedback to guide their development focus.
The early Steam Machines are probably going to be pretty poor overall, but every successive generation will be better than the last.
So yeah, for now, SteamOS/Steam Machines will be for a small niche of PC gamers, but that won't be the case in a few years time.
Mobius and pet octopus
Member
Yep it is going to be all about the pricing. If they can get some special bulks deals going on, they may be able to drive the price down a lot. Gotta consider the totality of the package before considering whether this is something people might want to buy into. They do seem to be going about it smart by having a lot of models out to fulfill exactly what you want. That in itself is a good strategy. All they need is to price them well.
lifa-cobex
Member
True.
It's like they are trying to introduce the middle-man for console to pc players.
It sounds like a very bold idea. I like it but there is no way it's gonna be cheep.
I've said it before. Valve just isn't that well known in the younger crowds who have only played 360's, PS3's and WII's.
To them its just gonna be some third rate company trying to mussel in with the big dogs.
I just cant see it being very successful.
(As much as I would like it to be)
who get bulk deals? I don't think Valve have any plans to sell these themselves. The 300 protos are to hand out to the community for feedback. I even doubt it will be valuable feedback personally - its just to drive interest and get people to sign up. what difference is 300 PCs in a shiny box really going to make when they are getting feedback from thousands of people using SteamOS when it is released?
They'll just set some guideline specs and leave it to other companies to actually sell the boxes.
That sounds good, but I'll probably go ahead and buy an Xbox One to go with my PS4 before then.
ashecitism
Member
There's no 30 days offline limit. I don't know where that's coming from.
Mobius and pet octopus
Member
My point was that the companies involved in making these products get reduced pricing on parts to sell them at a profit. If they sell them just like pre-built pcs we have today, it won't be a big deal in terms of saving cash. But if they find a good price point and deliver enough incidental value then we have something worth buying.
Steam's offline mode is designed to be able to run indefinitely. There is no set limit.
The CPU and GPU will be the most expensive components. Intel and NV especially have zero incentive to engage in margin dilution.
Mobius and pet octopus
Member
True, but I am fairly certain that intel and NV have big margins are their components when sold at retail. I am sure they could drop the price fair amount if they are given enough incentive to do so.
Do you know how much it costs to make a GPU like a titan?
Canis lupus
Member
One thousand two hundred and ninety nine U S dollars.
paolo11
Member
This is not an attempt to argue but how come I change my Steam to offline mode, exit properly and after 31 days when I play a Steam game offline, it states no log in credentials error message.
I did that to test to see if that offline mode 30 day thing is true or not. What did I do wrong?
I'd say the controller and the case and that's pretty much it. They're using off-the-shelf PC components.
Then you'll probably buy a Steam Machine too when, in 2015, you'll be able to pick up a $400-500 Steam Machine that delivers significantly better performance than the PS4/Xbox One.
And then you have the people who won't own a PS4/Xbox One for whatever reasons. The more mainstream gaming audience. They'll have been playing crossgen COD/Titanfall/Battlefield/whatever, and they'll probably be looking to upgrade in 2015 when the crossgen ports start drying up. Valve could step in here with a cheap low end box that delivers good performance (maybe not as good as the PS4/Xbox One, but I doubt this market segment cares that much - they just want a place to play the latest COD/Fifa/etc.) at a good price.
The next few years will be about two things; convincing early adopters that SteamOS/Steam Machines are a good idea, and getting information/data/research about what customers want out of SteamOS/Steam Machines so that Valve knows where to put their development efforts. That way, in 2015 (or whenever), when it really counts, they'll be able to deliver an excellent product that delivers on all fronts.
I probably won't pick up a Steam Machine when they launch next year. I don't have the patience to beta test stuff anymore. I'll definitely be grabbing one once Valve iron out all the wrinkles, though.
Who is going to pay them? They'd want it up front.
450W is acceptable. For me at 0.09€/KWH, it should be ok (average 60€ more on my year bill). I'm much more concerned about noise and heat.
But if there is less energy-eating boxes (like 150w ones), i would much prefer that.
I don't see it going mainstream, but i could see it making real damage to Windows considering it is eaten by tablets on low end, and will be eaten by this on high end. Desktop no more?
edit: for those high end boxes, price should be around 800€ or more, i can't see any less.
But if there is less energy-eating boxes (like 150w ones), i would much prefer that.
I don't see it going mainstream, but i could see it making real damage to Windows considering it is eaten by tablets on low end, and will be eaten by this on high end. Desktop no more?
edit: for those high end boxes, price should be around 800€ or more, i can't see any less.
I'm just wondering what will be the price of this.
NinjamicWZ
Banned
This is one set of specs. Even if they did, so what?
terrdactycalsrock
Member
Im not trying to be a dick, because its probably more of a classification of its own. But the lowest requirements will probably just be a streaming box
The problem with this theory is that early adopters by definition have already purchased. Their data and info will not translate into useful info and data about the potential consumers who have yet to buy a steam machine. It will only help valve improve steamOS features used by those early adopters. There could be a myriad of features that are used by later consumers that are required for later adopters who are more likely to expect a different experience from such a machine.
I see your point though. I guess it really depends on when steam machines launch, their price and specs and how they compare to ps4 and xboxone at that time. That will determine who the early adopters are.
I'm really not sure, never heard of that happening. This is right from a Valve employee: http://steamcommunity.com/discussions/forum/1/864969953572102601/#c864969953730401285This is not an attempt to argue but how come I change my Steam to offline mode, exit properly and after 31 days when I play a Steam game offline, it states no log in credentials error message.
I did that to test to see if that offline mode 30 day thing is true or not. What did I do wrong?
He does mention that there are known bugs. Maybe that's one of them.
So we're assuming that these machines will be about the same price as a similarly-spec'd Windows PC (maybe a little less since the manufacturers don't have to pay the OEM fee)?
And about the case, are you saying that Valve will design a case that manufacturers need to use?
FrozenCell
Member
I pity the AMD
who's gonna hold your mantle now?
who's gonna hold your mantle now?
megabytecr
Member
Wondering about pricing given they are using the most expensive in CPU and GPU. I am interested in a middle ground steam box, probably i5 with a 760.
I am thinking about building a PC with an AMD 8350 + 7950, but I am curious about steam box.
I am thinking about building a PC with an AMD 8350 + 7950, but I am curious about steam box.
GhostWriter24
Member
Sentenza
Member
I wouldn't really expect Valve to subsidize the price in any way. It's extremely unlikely.
On the other hand, if they are willing to keep low or null profit margins and to offer pre-built systems at a *fair* price (instead of 50% overpriced as most pre-built rigs are these days) they could already have a winner in their hands.
A Steam Machine could be the standard "gaming PC" that every Average Joe could buy in a generic store like Wallmart, without comparing dozens of different price tags or buying spare parts and then assembling the whole thing themselves.
On the other hand, if they are willing to keep low or null profit margins and to offer pre-built systems at a *fair* price (instead of 50% overpriced as most pre-built rigs are these days) they could already have a winner in their hands.
A Steam Machine could be the standard "gaming PC" that every Average Joe could buy in a generic store like Wallmart, without comparing dozens of different price tags or buying spare parts and then assembling the whole thing themselves.
Reallink
Member
I think it's a mistake focusing on multiple configurations, doubly so ultra enthusiast configurations that will do nothing but resurrect the LOL $3000 PC Required meme. This "Living Room" segment they're supposedly targeting is not interested in wading through the techno jargon of CPU/GPU hierarchies. They're also not going to be buying $3000 boxes, or even $1000-$1500 boxes. It would have been much better to put all their effort and focus into a singular bang-for-buck spec and worked on selling it as cheap as possible, side-stepping all the middle-man mark ups with the value to OEM's coming from volume and branding (similar, but not identical to what Google does with the Nexus line). Ideally this singular box would be branded with the year (e.g. Steam Machine 2014 Edition) and updated annually. The core components (e.g. GPU, MOBO/CPU) could also be sold as Steam Machine branded upgrades separately at similarly reduced margins.
Sentenza
Member
People who buy stuff.
I'd imagine that will be the case, though it won't be the price of usual prebuilt PCs. I think, considering Valve is a software company that might only really care about getting more people into the Steam ecosystem, they'll go for low profit margins on the machines and, pricewise, come pretty close to what self-built PCs of the spec prices go for (minus windows). Maybe they'll get a slight deal on the components if they buy enough and might be able cut prices a bit further, but I'm not sure what everyone else thinks.
As for the case, I can't say for certain, either, but I'll be surprised if they're not designing their own case (no clue if with or without a proprietary motherboard design or if with ATX/BTX/ITX if not) or at the very least have the Steam logo on them.
Interesting prototypes... I'm not overly concerned with costs. Any producer of them will have access to cheaper parts then we do via retail channels. I wouldn't be surprised if the i3/660 model is price competitive with the XB1... at a stretch maybe the PS4. People vastly over estimate the PSU they require to run hardware. It's refreshing to see them use reasonable units.
The interesting thing to me is the exclusive use of Nvidia GPUs. Purely from that I'm going to assume the streaming functionality of it will be limited to those who buy Nvidia GPUs. I was hoping that wouldn't be the case, but unfortunately I think it will be.
The interesting thing to me is the exclusive use of Nvidia GPUs. Purely from that I'm going to assume the streaming functionality of it will be limited to those who buy Nvidia GPUs. I was hoping that wouldn't be the case, but unfortunately I think it will be.
Why not? If this is about expanding Steam, that has an associated dollar value. You count that in towards what the system should sell for. If by some chance this could double the Steam install base, they would be practically giving it away. Sony and Microsoft have the hardware but not necessarily the digital store. It's the opposite for Valve. They can afford to take a big loss on the hardware and gain it all back in Steam revenue.
Mutanthands
Member
All I need is the case. If it's all off the shelf parts, I want to build my own Steam Machine in a box that size.
Hopefully, someone will license and manufacture it for DIY people.
Hopefully, someone will license and manufacture it for DIY people.
MrCunningham
Member
8GB's of SSD for a snappy operating system and the rest for game downloads.
Well, the goal is to get the early adopters to evangelise the product. Basically spread the word about how amazing Steam Machines are.
I'm the most technically minded person in my family. Whenever someone's wanting to buy a smartphone, or a videogame console, or a tablet, or whatever, I nearly always get an email asking for my opinion on what they should buy.
If Valve convinces me that Steam Machines are genuinely good products, I'll recommend them to others.
Oh, and I forgot to mention in my last post; Valve has two other things they need to do. Court developers, and court hardware manufacturers.
If Valve adopts Google's Android strategy (and they should), they could approach hardware manufacturers and push them to develop hardware while Valve supplies the software. Get people like Samsung, LG, etc. in on the act - companies that don't traditionally have anything to do with the videogame market. There's a lot of potential here.
In that case - probably not you
Short answer: Steam users, and potential Steam users who want an elegant form factor for the living room.
Maybe instead of subsidize the Machine they could sell them with contracts. For example a normally 700$ Machine would be 350$ + 20$/Month for two years and you get 20$/Month in your Steam Wallet.
This way Valve can be sure that people will use Steam when they buy this box.
I would buy a new PC each 2-3years this way ^^
This way Valve can be sure that people will use Steam when they buy this box.
I would buy a new PC each 2-3years this way ^^
This is probably the best answer for people who ask "Why don't I just build my own?" Valve and other manufacturers will come out with cool, small designs and many will not be openly available.