On a random Wednesday afternoon, Valve—the developers of the popular online game platform, Steam—decided to announce three new Steam Hardware: The Steam Controller, Steam Machine and Steam Frame.
The Steam Controller is meant to be a new way of playing all your Steam games in a different fashion, making the experience new and refreshing. It is compatible with any device running Steam, like a Mac, or even a phone and is also compatible with any other Steam devices, so you can play whenever and however you want. You can even play games that weren’t made for controllers. It has features like a dual trackpad, gyro, and back buttons. The most exciting feature of the Steam Controller, in my opinion, are its magnetic thumbsticks that almost completely prevent stick drift, which is an issue that has plagued controllers for decades now. The Steam Controller has a battery that supposedly lasts for 35 hours. It also comes with “The Puck,” which is a wireless adapter and magnetic charger that is very easy to use.
The Steam Machine is an extremely small PC, it’s slightly taller than a soda can, but a little bulkier. It’s designed like a console though, meant for playing games on a big screen, like a TV or a monitor. The Steam Machine isn’t meant to be a standard gaming PC that boasts incredible performance, it’s meant for people who like to play on consoles, and don’t need super high performance. The Steam Machine is also customizable, in both appearance and specs. The front panel and programmable RGB strip can be customized however you see fit. It also has an SSD slot to expand storage, and since it is a PC, you can run whatever software you want. You can stream your games using the Steam Machine to your phone, tablet, laptop, TV, and even the new Steam Frame.
The Steam Frame is an impressive and extremely versatile wireless VR headset. Actually, it is also a PC, so not only can you stream all your Steam games, VR and non-VR, you can also just install them right on the headset. It is also lightweight, easy to set-up/use, and comfortable. It boasts incredible motion tracking using four high field of view cameras. The controllers for the headset have the same magnetic thumbsticks as the Steam Controller. The Steam Controller also pairs perfectly with the Steam Frame—helpful for playing non-VR games. The Steam Frame includes a wireless adapter that lets you stream your games from your PC to the headset over a fast and dedicated connection, optimizing the game for VR. The Steam Frame also uses new technology that allows for the highest resolution streaming exactly where your eyes are looking, called Foveated Streaming.
These devices aren’t perfect however, it’s mostly the pricing that will be the final checkmark that decides how popular these devices will be.
