Valve Steam Machine could be delayed further
The waiting time for the new Valve Steam Machine, the Steam Frame VR headset and the new Steam Controller could be even longer than expected. Valve hinted at further delays for the new hardware, originally planned for release in early 2026, in a detailed year-end review on Friday.
Valve commented on the three new hardware releases planned for this year as follows: “We hope to launch the devices in 2026, but as we recently announced, storage and memory limitations are posing challenges. We will release more information as soon as our plans are finalized!”
The Valve Steam Machine, the Steam Frame VR Headset and the Steam Controller were originally slated for release in early 2026, as the company announced last November. At the time, they stated that more precise information regarding the release date would be announced “after the turn of the year.” After January 2026 had passed, Valve released an update hinting at a delay for the new Steam hardware.
“When we announced these products in November, we planned to be able to provide specific pricing and launch dates by now. However, the industry-wide storage and data storage shortages, which you have probably heard about, have since worsened rapidly. The limited availability and rising prices of these critical components are forcing us to revise our exact delivery schedule and pricing”, Valve explained in February. “Our goal of delivering all three products in the first half of the year remains unchanged.”
Valve Steam Machine not until the end of 2026, Steam Frame and Steam Controller “coming soon”
This goal now appears to have changed, or at least become more flexible. Valve has not only committed to a release window in 2026, but also updated the release dates for the Valve Steam Machine, Steam Frame and Steam Controller in the Steam backend on Friday, stating that the devices will be “released soon”.
Valve is struggling with the same problem as other manufacturers of PCs and consoles: Massive price increases for key components like RAM and storage space. Prices have skyrocketed in the last year as technology companies buy up components to build massive data centers that run AI software. Whether the situation will improve soon is uncertain, but Valve has few options left.
- The production and shipping of the Valve Steam Machine are delayed until prices have stabilized.
- to charge a higher price for the hardware, which defeats the purpose of an “affordable” Steam Machine.
- Abandon hardware ambitions and continue making billions from selling games.
Only time will tell what Valve will do and whether they will actually release new hardware in 2026. But it looks like we’ll all have to wait and see – and in the meantime, keep using our aging Steam Decks.
