Steam Machine: How much will gaming perfection cost me?

Pocket-lint

By Rik Henderson

Published Mar 9, 2015

Pocket-lint

When it comes to Valve's highly anticipated Steam Machine concept we are finally in the last stretch. Versions of the gaming alternative to the traditional concept will start to appear from multiple retailers in November this year, just in time for Christmas.

But how much should you put aside for your ultimate gaming machine? Will it cost roughly the same as an Xbox One or PS4 equivalent? Or will it be more in the high-end gaming PC category?

The answer, it seems, is both.

The Steam Machine concept allows for interpretation by the manufacturers. There is a minimum specification standard that they must meet in order for the SteamOS user interface and games to run correctly, but it doesn't look like there is a maximum. That means manufacturers can build Steam Machines that cater for all audiences and budgets and, considering the prices of the launch boxes, that's exactly what's intended.

READ: Could Alienware's Steam Machine blow PS4 and Xbox One out of the water?

Alienware and iBuyPower, for example, plan to start their Steam Machines at the lower end of the scale, from $459.99 (around £305) for the iBuyPower SBX and $479.99 for the Alienware Steam Machine. They will each also offer more expensive models as, like with PCs, you can upgrade different elements of the final build for extra cost.

At the high end of the market you can expect to pay anywhere up to $4,999.99. Both Origin and Falcon Northwest will be happy to sell you a super-charged model for that. At that price you can expect to be able to run compatible games at 4K resolutions, have 14TB of hard drive space to play with and the very best in graphics cards and processors.

READ: Steam Machines finally coming in November and Zotac SN970 will be one of the first out of the blocks

To be honest though, we've been impressed with the tech spec of the less expensive boxes and for the cash, you'll be getting a very decent alternative to conventional console gaming for sure.

Here is the full list of Steam Machine boxes announced so far and their prices: