Valve Unveils Steam Frame VR Headset, New Steam Machine, and Next-Generation Controller
In an important hardware announcement, Valve has lifted the curtain on three new products: the Steam Frame virtual reality headset, a new Steam Machine console, and a redesigned Steam Controller. The company intends for all three devices to hit the market by early 2026. Pricing is unknown.
Steam Frame: Wireless, Standalone VR Headset
Steam Frame, formerly known as Deckard, is a completely new initiative from the Valve Index and thus is not an enhancement to it. Rather, one calls it a wireless headset admittedly with a streaming-first concept. It can act as a standalone PC running SteamOS powered by a 4nm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor with 16 GB of LPDDR5X RAM.
- Wireless Connectivity: It employs a 6GHz wireless adapter for dedicated, solid connectivity. Dual radios separate gaming streams from Wi-Fi for prevention against competition of bandwidth.
- Displays: Pancake lens custom made with Field of View of 110°. Each eye receives 2160 x 2160 LCD resolution at 72-144Hz refresh rate.
- Tracking: Uses inside-out, camera-based tracking, so there's no need for external base stations. Four external cameras track the headset and controllers while two internal cameras provide eye tracking.
- Foveated Streaming: A major breakthrough in which eye tracking renders highest detail exactly where the user is looking to advantage image quality and bandwidth conservation.
- Standalone Play: Games validated for standalone performance will carry a "Steam Frame Verified" stamp.
- Design & Audio: Weighing around 440g, the headset is very light with integrated microphone and high-fidelity audio drivers inside the headstrap.
The Steam Frame comes with new controllers that support capacitive finger tracking for VR and have a traditional layout (D-pad, thumbsticks, ABXY buttons) for non-VR games. The AA batteries that power them are expected to last 40 hours.
The New Steam Machine: A Compressed Gaming Powerhouse
A decade after the first iteration, the new Steam Machine is compact like a 6-inch cube PC weighing 2.6kg, which Valve claims is more than six times the power of the Steam Deck. It is whisper-quiet even under the most demanding gaming loads and may serve as host PC for streaming to other devices such as the Steam Deck or Steam Frame.
The design, which bears a resemblance to the Nintendo GameCube, stemmed from thermal limitations. As hardware engineer Yazan Aldehayyat explains, the design was based on the dimensions of the fan necessary for sufficiently cooling a set of components placed in a rather difficult environment (the living room), onto which all of the other design considerations were grafted.
Specifications for the Steam Machine
| Category | Specification |
|---|---|
| CPU | Semi-custom AMD Zen 4 (6 Cores / 12 Threads), up to 4.8 GHz |
| GPU | Semi-custom AMD RDNA3 (28 Compute Units), 2.45GHz max sustained clock |
| RAM | 16GB DDR5 + 8GB GDDR6 VRAM |
| Storage | 512GB or 2TB NVMe SSD models, with a high-speed microSD slot |
| Display I/O | DisplayPort 1.4 (up to 8K@60Hz) and HDMI 2.0 (up to 4K@120Hz) |
| USB I/O | 2x USB-A 3.2 Gen 1 (front), 2x USB-A 2.0 (back), 1x USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 (back) |
| Networking | Gigabit Ethernet, Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.3 |
| Size & Weight | 152mm (H) x 162.4mm (D) x 156mm (W); 2.6 kg |
| Operating System | SteamOS 3 (Arch-based) with KDE Plasma desktop |
The Next-Gen Steam Controller
The new Steam Controller (a different product from the Steam Frame controllers) is engineered for use with Steam Machine, Steam Deck, and any PC. It introduces a set of next-generation features.
- Magnetic Thumbsticks: TMR (Tunneling Magnetoresistance) technology applied for better durability and precision.
- Grip Sense: A new input that allows users to hold and release the grips of the controller to enable or disable gyro aiming, and the action is mappable like a button.
- Haptics: Haptic feedback for an immersive experience.
- Wireless Charging: Includes a 'Puck' serving as both fast wireless transmitter and magnetic charging station.
- Battery Life: Active wireless gaming can be sustained for up to 35 hours.
