Price comparison: Steam Machine is significantly more expensive than faster gaming PCs
The Steam Machine will soon be available for pre-order at prices starting at $1,049. As initial tests show, the hardware certainly has its merits: the unit is not only compact but also whisper-quiet, and the case’s appearance can be customized in just a few simple steps thanks to a magnetically attached front panel. In terms of performance, however, the price is relatively high.
As the review by Gamers Nexus shows, the Steam Machine’s graphics chip offers roughly the same performance as an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060, an Intel Arc A750, or an AMD Radeon RX 7600, while the Intel Arc B580 and the Nvidia GeForce RTX 5050 are already slightly faster. The processor, with six Zen 4 CPU cores, is limited to a power dissipation of just 30 watts and is therefore only about as fast as an AMD Ryzen 5 5600X.
A quick look at price comparisons shows that similarly fast gaming PCs can be found for significantly less. For example, a Zotac MEK with AMD Ryzen 5 5500, GeForce RTX 5050, 16 GB RAM and 1 TB SSD costs $899 on Amazon, while a Novatech Titan Pro with Ryzen 5 5500, significantly faster GeForce RTX 5060, 16 GB RAM and 1 TB SSD costs $999. On the more compact side, a Twelf Nyx D32 with Ryzen 5 5500, Radeon RX 7600, 16 GB and 512 GB is available for $899, while a much more powerful Ocean of Stars with Ryzen 5 7600X and AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT is offered for $1,369.
While the Steam Machine is significantly more compact than most competitors, conventional gaming PCs can be upgraded later – the Steam Machine does not allow for processor or graphics card upgrades, and the RAM cannot be upgraded after purchase either. For those who prioritize value for money over compact dimensions and native support for SteamOS, it may be worth taking a look at alternative gaming PCs.
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