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Steam Machines. Buy or No?

Joshua Lein

Joshua Lein

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So I have been off PC gaming for a while now but mostly because I only have a 6 year old non gaming laptop that cant do anything. As such I have been looking to get a new PC. One problem is that I know nothing about the technical side of PCs. With the announcement that Pre-orders are now available for two of the new Steam Machines that work alot like consoles it got me thinking maybe I should buy one.

What I want to know is yall's opinion on the steam machines power for its price along with the viability of a linux operating system. Here is the website for the alienware Steam machine.

Alienware Steam Machine on Steam

I dont need to play games at the highest graphics settings. All I want is something that can reliably play pretty much everything that comes out for next couple of years. Apparently you cant change out the graphics card on these but you can change out everything else like you can with a normal PC. How important is that to the machine's lifespan? Is having a linux system going to mean that I can only play a few of the games that are coming out? Will games like Xcom 2 be playable with linux? Lastly if the steam machine is no good what are my other options. I figure you guys are more trustworthy to ask than some random dude at best buy.

All these are specific questions that I need answers to. Any information yall have is good.
 
Joshua Lein said:
So I have been off PC gaming for a while now but mostly because I only have a 6 year old non gaming laptop that cant do anything. As such I have been looking to get a new PC. One problem is that I know nothing about the technical side of PCs. With the announcement that Pre-orders are now available for two of the new Steam Machines that work alot like consoles it got me thinking maybe I should buy one.

What I want to know is yall's opinion on the steam machines power for its price along with the viability of a linux operating system. Here is the website for the alienware Steam machine.

Alienware Steam Machine on Steam

I dont need to play games at the highest graphics settings. All I want is something that can reliably play pretty much everything that comes out for next couple of years. Apparently you cant change out the graphics card on these but you can change out everything else like you can with a normal PC. How important is that to the machine's lifespan? Is having a linux system going to mean that I can only play a few of the games that are coming out? Will games like Xcom 2 be playable with linux? Lastly if the steam machine is no good what are my other options. I figure you guys are more trustworthy to ask than some random dude at best buy.

All these are specific questions that I need answers to. Any information yall have is good.
Click to expand...

If you're looking into mid level gaming machine you dont need to waste money on this unless you are only planning on playing games off Steam. I built my first machine for about $650 still plays BF3 and BF4 on mid-high and play PayDay 2 and GO on high.
 
I thought I read @Col. Gaspar is planning on getting one, unless I'm getting mixed up with something else. He might be our guinea pig on this one for an in-clan review. :D
 
Josh, I am in the same boat. Though, I am looking to build something that can handle DirectX 12 games. For roughly $500, it is not a bad machine. However, add in a little like Ghonzo pointed out, you can build something better with the ability to swap out parts should you want to improve in the future (or hire a geeky kid to do it).

That being said, if you treat the Steam Machine like a laptop purchase, it should get you 5-6 years of gaming life, but still work as a basic desktop after the fact. Granted, our society has a tendency to design around planned obsolescence in many aspects.
 
A-Rich said:
I thought I read @Col. Gaspar is planning on getting one, unless I'm getting mixed up with something else. He might be our guinea pig on this one for an in-clan review. :D
Click to expand...

I have a Nvidia Shield Console because it is Android TV. @Joshua Lein I wouldn't bother with a steam machine unless you like paying too much for low end components in a little form factor. I could build a pc that could handle everything you could throw at it at medium settings for much less. Considering the DX12 is coming out soon I would wait for it.

If you had a budget of $750 I could easily string together a mini-itx build that would run circles around any steam machine. You put the money into a i5 and GPU, you can get by with mid level components for everything else. I would not charge you labor and you pay for parts and shipping.
 
Based on the info I guess buying this would be overspending. If you are offering to build one for me for $750 @Col. Gaspar Im very tempted to take you up on that offer. I have a friend who lives near me and is really desperate for money right now who I might give the job to if he wants it.

My only other question is if the other steam machines may be a better idea. I figure an alien ware PC costs an extra few bucks just cause its alien ware.

Here is an article with more detailed secs on whats seems like an insane amount of Steam Machines.

Steam Machines: The Specs, Prices, and Release Dates - GameSpot
 
Joshua Lein said:
Based on the info I guess buying this would be overspending. If you are offering to build one for me for $750 @Col. Gaspar Im very tempted to take you up on that offer. I have a friend who lives near me and is really desperate for money right now who I might give the job to if he wants it.

My only other question is if the other steam machines may be a better idea. I figure an alien ware PC costs an extra few bucks just cause its alien ware.

Here is an article with more detailed secs on whats seems like an insane amount of Steam Machines.

Steam Machines: The Specs, Prices, and Release Dates - GameSpot
Click to expand...

Yea definitely not worth the price vs performance. Better off building your own for those price tags my friend.
 
My friend bought the alienware alpha and he was disappointed with the graphics to say the least, some games actually perform worse than consoles.
I would suggest waiting for the NVIDIA Shield that is coming out, it might be worth checking out.
 
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