Valve's Steam Machine could undercut console pricing — if it can dodge tariffs and hardware shortages driven by AI

Valve, the company that owns the immensely popular Steam storefront and that kicked off the handheld gaming craze in 2022 with the Steam Deck, just covertly announced three new Steam devices today.

The entrée is an all-new Steam Machine powered by a six-core AMD Zen 4 CPU and a semi-custom RDNA 3 GPU, together capable of delivering "4K gaming at 60 FPS" when using AMD's FidelityFX Super Resolution (FSR). It's sort of like a console, except it has access to Steam's gigantic library of PC games and it runs on SteamOS.

This is actually a revival of Valve's earlier small-form-factor devices, which debuted in 2015 but mostly fizzled out by 2018. Will this second attempt at making it work gain more traction? That's anyone's guess, but the immense success that the Steam Deck has enjoyed suggests that Valve really knows what it's doing with its hardware and ecosystem.

Joining the Steam Machine are a new Steam Frame VR headset and a new Steam Controller to tie everything together, with compatibility across all of Valve's modern devices and regular PCs.

One piece of data that's missing from Valve's announcements is pricing. Valve is targeting a Spring 2026 launch for its new hardware, so there are a few months left for tariffs and supply chain breakdowns to muck things up.

However, by looking at similar hardware and Valve's competitive nature, we can surmise as to what the Steam Machine might cost when it finally debuts.

Valve didn't reveal a price for the Steam Machine — Here's what I think it will cost

Valve hasn't yet set a price for the Steam Machine, so I'll preface this by reminding you that it's all speculation.

Jumping back to the Steam Deck's launch in 2022, Valve focused on attractive pricing and a tight ecosystem with its custom OS and massive collection of games rather than raw power.

The Steam Deck's custom AMD chip wasn't cutting edge, and its display was rather ordinary. You could pick up an introductory model for $399, though, which was too good a deal for many gamers to pass up.

I'm expecting to see a similar situation with the Steam Machine. Valve has opted for a Zen 4 processor and an RDNA 3 GPU to power the device, both of which are a generation behind the latest Zen 5 and RDNA 4 architectures from AMD. Regardless, Steam says the Machine should provide more than six times as much performance as the Steam Deck.

Here's a quick look at the raw specs of the Steam Machine.

There's also not really one standout feature that I can see will drive the Steam Machine's price up, other than the option for 2TB of storage. There are no Thunderbolt licenses required from Intel (nor any USB4 for that matter), no Windows 11 licensing fees, no display, no wacky case design, no built-in controls, and basic performance specs.

Considering you can currently buy a new Steam Deck with an OLED display, four-core Zen 2 CPU, RDNA 2 GPU, 16GB of RAM, and 512GB of storage space for $549, I wouldn't be surprised to see the new Steam Machine debut somewhere between $650 and $750.

It's worth mentioning that the Xbox Series X Digital Edition now sells for $599.99 in the US, jumping to $649.99 for a version with a disc drive. The PS5 Pro costs a whopping $749.99, but you can pick up the standard Slim edition with a disc drive for about $550.

It's expected that the next console generation will be more expensive as Microsoft attempts to further bridge consoles and PCs, but that's still a way out.

This makes it extra important for Valve to set the Steam Machine's price at something both console and PC gamers can appreciate. Too expensive, and console gamers will simply wait for the next Xbox. Too expensive, and PC gamers will build their own system for less or check out the growing selection of great mini PCs already on the market.

Steam says it plans to sell the Steam Machine alone or bundled with its new Steam Controller. With long battery life, magnetic TMR thumbsticks, and dual touchpads, I'd wager that the Steam Controller should cost somewhere between $100 and $200. Whether or not you'll see a discount with a bundle remains to be seen.

Valve's secret weapons: free online play and affordable games

Something that might get overlooked is the value that Valve's ecosystem delivers. Like the Steam Deck, and Steam Machine will run SteamOS, a custom Linux-based operating system that's stripped back to focus on performance and ease-of-use.

Valve's Steam store, the largest vendor of PC games in the world, is also a huge boon. There are countless PC-exclusive games that I wish my console gamer friends could enjoy, and the timely sales events often drive prices to unbelievable lows.

Steam's ecosystem also includes powerful social tools, making it easy to game with your friends. Best part? There's no monthly fee to get online and play, which is a requirement for console gaming.

Will tariffs, supply chains, and memory shortages drive up the Steam Machine's price?

The tech market has been under siege from tariffs, supply chain breakdowns, and component shortages for months, and the future isn't exactly looking bright. I can't predict what global trade will look like next year, but I do know that AI could cause a problem.

One of the biggest issues I see affecting the Steam Machine's Spring 2026 launch is memory and storage pricing. There is a massive DRAM shortage right now caused by the frantic buildout of AI infrastructure, and it's not expected to end anytime soon. The same surge is now affecting hard drive prices.

I have no idea what Valve's supply chain looks like, but it's hard to imagine it can escape the same squeeze that is driving $100 RAM modules for your PC up to $500 and beyond.

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