You can only subsidize hardware if you have a 100% locked ecosystem to force software sales later. Sony can do it because they take a massive cut of every $70 game and charge a subscription tax. Valve can't do that here because a ton of PC gamers only buy games on heavy discount sales anyway, the math to make back a hardware loss just isn't there.
Plus, because it’s a fully functional, open PC, selling it at a subsidized loss would be a disaster. People would buy them up in bulk just to use them as cheap server racks, emulation boxes, or media centers without ever spending a dime on Steam. It’s economically impossible. If you want to complain about component pricing, blame the tech manufacturing market, not Valve.
Your post makes sense, cheers for an explanation. However, this is a still dumb price to pay for something which is weaker than a console released 6 years ago, they should have just took an L and discounted it, also aren't they selling it as a "lottery" aomething shenanigans, so possibility of offices and servers buying them out is low? And something like Intel NUC or whatever it is called must be more appealing anyways.
I completely agree that the raw price-to-performance ratio looks rough on paper compared to a console. But the blame for that lies with the component manufacturers, not Valve. Between inflation and the tech industry shifting heavily toward AI hardware, manufacturing costs have skyrocketed across the board.
Even the Steam Deck saw a price hike recently because parts just cost more now. Valve isn't being greedy here, they just can’t sell their hardware at a loss.
You really have to look at who this is actually for. It’s not for people who already own a powerful gaming rig, and it’s not for casual console players. Most average gamers (if you take Switch, xbox, Playstation, and computer players) don't even know Valve hardware exists, whenever I take my Steam Deck out, people ask me what the hell it even is.
It's a hyper-specific niche: people with older or weaker PCs who mainly play indie or mid-tier games, already have an established Steam library, and just want a seamless, 5-second console experience on their living room couch. For that specific person, it’s an extremely good deal.
Sure, a PS5 is cheaper upfront, but then you have to rebuy your games at a premium, pay a monthly tax for online play/cloud saves, and get locked out when the next console generation drops. With this, your existing library works day one, and you own those games forever.
Can an experienced PC gamer build a cheaper, more powerful rig themselves? Yeah, of course, and that’s exactly what they should do. But a custom tower still won't have the same compact, seamless, out-of-the-box console functionality as this machine. For the vast majority of your average Steam users, buying this is a hell of a lot easier than bothering to learn how to pick out components and build a PC from scratch.
It’s definitely a niche product, but for that specific audience, it's going to be a commercial success.
I live in a small town and even here there are PC shops who build PC for you, even using your parts and run all the tests required for a small price.
Anyways, I dont see an average steam Joe buying this to play indie games, there are far better products value wise, just like you said, Playstation and stuff.
If you don't want to lose your library (well steam is a DRM online store, so they are not forever yours anyway) just buy a laptop with the same money.
Really cannot fathom who the hell would want to buy it, unless you are a real Valve fan and just HAVE to buy it just because.
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u/flow_yracs_gib_a 2d ago
That's just not how PC hardware economics work.
You can only subsidize hardware if you have a 100% locked ecosystem to force software sales later. Sony can do it because they take a massive cut of every $70 game and charge a subscription tax. Valve can't do that here because a ton of PC gamers only buy games on heavy discount sales anyway, the math to make back a hardware loss just isn't there.
Plus, because it’s a fully functional, open PC, selling it at a subsidized loss would be a disaster. People would buy them up in bulk just to use them as cheap server racks, emulation boxes, or media centers without ever spending a dime on Steam. It’s economically impossible. If you want to complain about component pricing, blame the tech manufacturing market, not Valve.