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SteamBox got a name : Piston

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So much ports :o

I can see it having appeal, but not for me really. I just do so much with my hardware, I can't risk it all with a (600-900 USD device?!)...
Still, looking forward to it, I love all these developments.
 
Satangel said:
So much ports :o

I can see it having appeal, but not for me really. I just do so much with my hardware, I can't risk it all with a (600-900 USD device?!)...
Still, looking forward to it, I love all these developments.
Click to expand...

I seriously doubt they'll sell it at $600-$900.

Considering that it'll have a 0% used games market and every game will give profit to Valve, selling at a loss isn't a gamble, it's almost guaranteed they'll make money back.

Plus even if piracy becomes a thing, there's still so much incentive to buy on Steam that they'll still get cash.
 
The SteamBox looks horrid. Overpriced PC running Linux (meaning it'll only support like 30 games). Why would anyone get this when they could just build a competent gaming PC?
 
Guild McCommunist said:
I don't think they'd be foolish enough to charge $800-$1000. I think $600 would be top of the line because, if it it can play every Steam game, it's a steal at $600.

But knowing Valve I wouldn't be surprised if they sell it on a loss. Considering all game sales would go through Steam, it'd be quite easy to fill the profit gap.
Click to expand...
Ah, play every Steam game, eh? With what, magic OS that takes PC/Mac/Linux/Android/iOS games? I've said it before, that that's what this will need, but I chuckle at the thought now. Still, if it can deliver a solid PC experience for a fraction of the price needed to run pretty PC games today, I'm actually sold.
 
Veho said:
With Windows? All Mac/Linux games on Steam have PC versions too. And I didn't know Steam sold Android/iOS games.
Click to expand...
(PC)They do? (mobile)They don't? Hah, shows how little I know about Steam.

Well in that case... price. It's the only thing left. Oh yeah, and internet connectivity. How crucial would internet connectivity be for this thing. Because if I can't play offline... that's like half of the case for me.
 
Unlike Onlive and such that just stream the game to you, Steam uses the internet for updates and downloads/installs so you don't need a constant connection.

Once a game is installed, you can put Steam into offline mode to play if you want (and yes, the game itself will still have internet access if it's got multiplayer).
 
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This looks really interesting, especially now that I have a decently starting Steam collection. My computer now (which is the one I use for work anyway) has issues with Psychonauts sometimes, so this little beauty could be my answer. ^_^

But I can just see some of my more "Southern" relatives having issues. "Hey, lets play on my Piston box." "You pissed in what?"
 
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Rydian said:
Once a game is installed, you can put Steam into offline mode to play if you want (and yes, the game itself will still have internet access if it's got multiplayer).
Click to expand...
That is only true for some Steam games, games that rely on an active Steamworks connection for multiplayer services will more often than not refuse to work in offline mode.
 
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Also from what I understand this is just "a" Steam box supported by Valve. The actual reveal of Valve's own device is supposedly coming during GDC or possibly even E3 according to Ben Krasnow at Valve.
 
Devin said:
Mmmm. Dem ports.

xi3-piston-09.jpg
Click to expand...

The Piston is a port machine - and I'm okay with that.
 
Link
I didn't know it would be so expensive. I like how it looks, but I wish it had a disc drive. If I was a starting PC gamer with money, I might have picked it up. On second thought, I may be able to built
my own.

You still can use it as a regular PC, right?

 
I've got to admit it they've got me: I AM looking at that cube and wondering how that can be a whole computer. That's really nice of them to predict that. However...it would have been better if they ANSWERED those doubts.

Where do I put in the DVD-player? Oh...wait. No room. Okay....so where's the memory? Or the hard drive? I know these have to be in there according to specs...but WHERE?

I understand what they're doing with their modular design and I like the idea a lot...but this simply isn't working for me. You can't just build a real life companion cube and expect me to fall in love with it immediately. Christ...and can I pretty please find me some info on heating? How the hell do they even manage to make the cube use 5 to 15 times less power-consuming than average? (I know you'll need less power if components are closer together, but this sounds like it's stretching things. Or a flat out wrong comparison).

And perhaps most important of all: how will this thing behave on windows?

I understand they want to foremost push their own operating system like everyone else, but unless they can pull it off so it can actually play the entire steam library (which I seriously doubt), it's not going to replace many household pc's.
 

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