don't editorialize the title please. valve didn't say this, this is just one ign writer's speculation based on a very vague answer ("probably similar"). the said writer, btw, can't even do simple math...
this post was submitted on 23 Jun 2026
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Steam Hardware
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Kinda an accident to be honest, the article title is "The Steam Machine Was Originally Meant to Cost About $750", but when I submitted it to Lemmy, the default title for the URL was instead ”Valve Says the Steam Machine Saw a Similar Price Increase as the Steam Deck...”, so I tried to change it back to the actual article title from memory. I was on my phone at the time, so I didn't double check the title as I should have.
I'll fix it now.
you don't have an eidetic memory?
boil them in gallium!
I'm dreading what the Steam Frames are going to cost.
To be fair, the Frame was never going to be cheap.
I feel like 1200-1300 was probably likely before the price bump. I'm not confident it will come out under 15 at this point
They said it would be cheaper than Index at the time, so no.
Yeah, that makes sense. If that's the case, then a 1300 ish range seems pretty likely assuming comparable price increases
If we look at the Steam Deck, it got a ~43% price increase. If we apply that same increase to the $750 Index + controllers, you're looking at ~$1075.
Launch price was $1k
Well they didn't say launch price...
They didn't say current price.
What are we doing here? This is all speculation anyway
Haha that's fair.
Yea.... That was then.
If they had planned to have the machine at 750, then we can extrapolate from that a frame cost. Up from around 900.
Yea.... That was then.
Yeah... That's what you said?
Huh?
I feel like 1200-1300 was probably likely before the price bump.
That wasn't from me. :)
Relative to what? I don't think it's shooting for pimax dream or even valve index price points (well, outside of the component pricing crunch)
The original announcement (or some interview or something around that embargo) mentioned that it was going to be cheaper than the Index. Granted that was before the current component crunch and they did not specify whether they meant the base model Index or the full kit with base stations, controllers, etc.
Which makes sense in some ways. The Frame should be more capable and powerful by itself, but the Index needed those damn base stations which cost a bit just by themselves
I'll be honest, I've been pretty out of the loop and totally spaced on that. I was basing it from the general product offering (omitting base stations, high bandwidth display cable throughput, overall display specs), and super old leaks from the time where we knew it only by its codename (deckard), suggesting a much lower cost, partially modular system.
I wouldn't be surprised if the Index remained the overall higher quality VR solution for now
Index might still have an edge in tracking and controllers, everything else should be improved.
Nah, while the Index controllers were awesome, the potentiometer used for the thumbsticks were total garbage and break super easy. I'm so ready for a tmr (magnetic thumbsticks) fix.
Apparently the thumbsticks were actually shite? Mine never went out, but I've heard from other people.
I think what sanpo meant was the actual tracking of the headset and controllers, since the index used base stations PLUS accelerometers, giving them VERY precise location and movement. Whereas the frame controllers seem to be only inside-out optical, maybe with accelerometers?
We will have to wait and see. With them being better or worse than the index, we'll have to wait and see. I'm still excited.
Yup i have 3 base stations, but i also found even with covering all reflective sources, you can suddenly lose tracking for no apparent reason and often made some games annoying to play. I hope the inside out tracking isn't worse, too bad they didn't add some backward compatibility for those who still have base stations.
You can still buy and use the original base stations and they should work with the new headset.
I don't think this is true, they use different tracking technology.
The entire index kit was 1000 before all the bullshit.. iirc, you could buy just the headset for like 650, because the base stations were like 100 each and the controllers were separate too. My memory is a little fuzzy on that.... But let's say 1000 for all of it. Putting the frame, with all extras at like.... 800 target price point before all the fascism scarcities, and considering the about price-doubling of ram, would put it at right about the same price as the steam machine? Maybe if they were targeting 600, it might be like 1000 now?
If the index cost $1000 without a battery, storage, memory and a SoC in 2019, I can't imagine the frame is going to be anything below $1,500 with 2026 pricing.
Though the Index did use an intricate OLED screen and it had the lighthouses and finger tracking controllers (they have 87 different sensors per controller). Without the AIpocalypse, the Frame was originally supposed to be the cheaper of the two.
2026 prices though, who knows.
The Index did not have OLED screens, they used regular LCDs.
I am deeply concerned
$1050 is the new $750. LOL.
I was prepared to pay $1,000 plus extra for the Walnut faceplate and controller.
Having to get the 2TB version to do that stings a little.
I'm running on fumes.
My budget is out of steam.
I've condensed my spending habits.
Take your pick!
And even then, it would have a hard time competing against the base PS5 unfortunately. AI has risen the cost of everything for everyone, turns out
The RAMpocalypse has widened the price gap between console makers that subsidize their hardware and Valve more than ever. PS5 got a $150 increase, Steam Deck (and presumably Machine) got a $300 one.
Except for the billionaires running the AI shitshow.
We wouldn't want them to run out of money.... Or life, would we?
512gb is Kong o ridiculous for minimum storage these days.