I never check my email. I just learned I missed the Steam Machine purchase email 10 days ago. I didn't even think I was in the queue! I got the original "you're not in the queue" email. I must have been close to the top of the waitlist.
In any case, I don't really want it anymore. It's basically not upgradable, and even adding RAM is hard. It's a cool looking machine that takes up little space, and it's neat that companies can make new faceplates and stuff for it, but as a computer, I'm just not sure it's the best value.
Instead, I'm looking at mini PCs that feature an Oculink port. It lets you connect to an external GPU with a cable. Something like the GMKtec K12 has an integrated Radeon 780M, which is good for lots of gaming, but you can add a GPU for high end gaming. And then the GPU is upgradable.
I have an old RTX 3060 12 GB sitting around (which I'll keep for CUDA tasks like photogrammetry) but I'm looking at maybe a Radeon 9060 XT or 9070 XT for gaming. I don't have to decide now, and I can upgrade later. Turns out the 3060 is almost identical in performance to what's in the Steam Machine but has the advantage of 12 GB of VRAM.
Maybe I'm not the average potential Steam Machine buyer. I happen to already own a GPU and an ATX power supply, so I only need to buy these things:
- $689 GMKtec K12 (32GB RAM, 512 GB NVMe SSD)
- $110 Minisforum eGPU dock
- $25 Oculink cable
$824 total
But that's because I already paid $250 for a used 3060 12GB years ago, and ~$80 for a power supply.
So the real total for buying this system from scratch right now is about $1,150 but you get an upgradable GPU and 32 GB of RAM. The CPU is also better. Sadly, you don't get a Steam Controller.
The big downside of Oculink is the machine has to be powered off before you plug it in. It's not hot swappable. It's literally just external PCIe. However, some eGPU docks support USB-C or Thunderbolt 4/5, which are hot swappable, and there's even new tech on the horizon called MCIO which is like Oculink but has 8x PCIe lanes instead of 4x. Not that 4x is much of a bottleneck for gaming. Gaming just doesn't require that much bandwidth.
Anyway, I just figured I'd share my thoughts because I'm sure other people are in the same boat: wanting a Steam Machine but can't get one, or they want something a little more upgradable.