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Steam Machine prices are out, waiting list available (thelemmy.club)
submitted 2 months ago by to c/games@hexbear.net
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i moved recently and don't have a TV anymore so my excitement for this kinda dwindled. the 2TB price seems like a bit of a hard sell, but honestly i expected them to be even wilder given the circumstances. personally much more excited for the Steam Frame

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[–] 25 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (3 children)

Its a tough sell when you can build a better machine for less money.

In the current market?

  • 16GB of DDR5 by itself is gonna cost you around $200.
  • A 512 nvme SSD is at least $100 (Searching on Newegg just now I see ones for ~$80 but let's just say $100)
  • A Ryzen 5 7500 is the cheapest Zen4 CPU you can get from AMD for $179, but if we want one with a similar clockspeed let's say the 7600X which is $299
  • A similar GPU (RDNA 3) is at the cheapest, gonna be $300 or so. $219 for a refurb 7600xt on Newegg so let's jsut say $200

That's ~$550-600 and not counting a case, motherboard, or peripherals. (although it doesn't come with a fucking controller to begin with lol)

Honestly I think the price they're asking for isn't incredibly crazy given the market right now, but yeah at the end of the day you'll probably save a couple hundred bucks if you're a smart shopper and don't mind refurbs/buying used parts/keep an eye out for promos & discounts

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  • [–] 9 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (1 child)

    There's also the custom-made PSU and thermal design you gotta put into it as well. Those won't make up the remaining amount to get to the cost, but it shouldn't be left from consideration. Apparently it took a ridiculous amount of R&D to get it to function inside that small form factor (according to a Gamersnexus video I watched when it was announced).

    That said, I have no fucking idea who in their right mind is going to buy this. Maybe someone looking for a lower-end gaming PC?

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  • [–] 8 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (1 child)

    I was curious because as I get older couch gaming is less isolating and having a quiet small system thats was a linux PC optimised for pick up and put down play that JustWorked with no effort on my part is appealing.

    But with the compromises inherent to it and the price point I'll probably pull my finger out of my arse and just build a small form factor PC

    edit: btw if anyone knows anything about budget quiet linux small form factor PCs for non tripple a gaming that can also double as a server (ideally sub 50W idle draw) I'd be extremely grateful for guidance

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  • [–] 4 points 2 months ago

    I'm actually right at that point myself. I really prefer couch gaming over sitting in my computer chair and I was hoping for this to be more affordable, but I cannot in good conscience spend $1050 on these specs. I'll probably just lug my primary PC into my personal room every once in a while.

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  • [–] 7 points 2 months ago* (1 child)

    I guess my point is if you just wanna play the latest GTA (which a lot of average people are gonna want) I would just point them towards a playstation 5 (and I say that as someone who doesnt care about most AAA gaming and specifically console gaming) I do see a specific use case for some weirdos like me though. I just dont see the potential for wider market adoption but I also think similar to the steam deck the steam machine was always gonna be an enthusiasts piece of hardware. Even at somewhat better prieces.

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  • [–] 6 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

    Yeah same, I wouldn't recommend this to anyone casual and I'm not buying it personally. I didn't mean to come off as I was discounting what your comment in general was saying, I just think the price itself is kinda shrug-outta-hecks because at the end of the day a pre-built PC of similar quality will probably run them the same amount when it's all said and done.

    actually you know what I'm wrong I just feel like the pricing isn't so bad in my eyes (although I have no real love for Steam in general) due to ram and storage pricing. But upon a quick google I do see now that you could probably get a similarly priced pre-built that is at least as powerful as a PS5 lol

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  • [–] 5 points 2 months ago

    Software support is also going to be an important part of the price - the Steam Deck made sense to me because it was Linux being shipped to a few variants of the same hardware so there's less involuntary guesswork/fucking around than there would be with a handheld-shaped PC and no OS to go with it.

    That being said at this price they should have figured out (after bundling a damn controller with the thing!) how to offer some discounted SSD/HDD enclosures with it so you can have it double-duty as a home-theater PC/Jellyfin server. Would also make a straight upgrade from an old computer easier (just pull the game drive).

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