In a new video posted to their YouTube channel, Linus Tech Tips has broken down the cost of the hardware that will be added to the Steam Machine to get a sense of how much the console be priced. Spoiler alert… It’s likely to be much more than people thought online.
According to Linus Tech Tips, the parts at their historical low price will cost around $602, but that number has increased significantly in recent months by a whopping 50%, bringing the price to around $900.
As Linus Tech Tips rightfully pointed out, though, these prices are for name brands, and they think the cost can be reduced to around $813 at retail. However, Valve does have a direct-to-consumer model, meaning that it doesn’t need the traditional retailer margins of around 10%.
The question is then, how much profit does Valve want per console? Traditionally, console manufacturers have subsidised or even taken a loss on their consoles, while subscription models and software are their profit centres.
Steam Machine Will Cost $700?
The conclusions led Linus Tech Tips to believe that the Steam Machine will cost approximately $699, if the hardware prices remain at the prices they do today. Linus Tech Tips then went on to say $800 at most if the hardware market continues to climb at the unprecedented rate it has been going. That could be a hard sell when the PlayStation 5 is only $399 at the moment.
And remember… This is for a model with a 500GB SSD… Not 1TB / 2TB.
You can watch Linus Tech Tips’ full analysis and breakdown below:
Personally, though, I think that the Steam Machine might be a little pricier. I would think that $799-849 would be the 512GB version, with a 2TB costing $999. But then and again, maybe I am just a little loopy when it comes to pricing.
What do you think the Steam Machine will cost? Leave a comment below and on the official Insider Gaming Discord!
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Tom Henderson is Insider Gaming's Co-Founder and Editor-In-Chief. When he's not running one of the industry's leading independent video game websites, he's probably playing an FPS like Call of Duty,…
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This was a great read. I’m shocked at how much the baseline SSD configuration affects the final price. Do you think most buyers will even consider the 512GB version, or is 1TB going to be the “real” starting point?