Now it’s getting even more interesting! Zotac has announced a proper Steam Machine with SteamOS.
It doesn't have the most inspiring name with “ZOTAC Steam Machine SN970”, you would think they could come up with something vastly more interesting than that.
QuoteWe are equipping the ZOTAC Steam Machine with Intel's 6th generation CPU and a discrete GTX level graphics card with NVIDIA's latest Maxwell GPU to provide gamers the means for an incredible visual experience.
I am pleased they are going with Nvidia, as I can only imagine the backlash of having an AMD GPU with Catalyst powering it.
QuoteEach unit comes with a Steam controller to give users better control in action and storage also comes included in the form of a 64GB M.2 SSD and a 2.5” 1TB HDD. Equipped with 802.11ac wireless, you can enjoy a blazing fast connection to the network for a smooth gaming experience.
Looks like it will be an SSD for SteamOS, and the 1TB HDD for the games. That's a pretty good idea to make sure SteamOS itself is as smooth as possible.
QuoteValve's much anticipated SteamOS now brings you the full Steam platform experience along with many innovations. Pre-loaded with the ZOTAC Steam Machine, the unit will boot up the OS when it is powered on for the first time, saving precious gaming time. Some of the innovations brought by the SteamOS are in-home streaming, multimedia playback, and library sharing capabilities; making the unit living room-friendly for the entire family.
Looks like a sweet little box, and some pretty powerful components should make it a winner! This could be the one we will take a look at, as it's certainly ticking all the right boxes for me.
See the official page on Zotac’s website.
Update, Official specifications:
- Price: $999 (holy cow!)
- 6th Gen Intel Processor, i3 5010U
- NVIDIA GeForce® GTX 970M 3GB GDDR5
- 8GB DDR3 SODIMM
- 64GB M.2 SSD
- 1 x HDMI in
- 2D/3D NVIDIA Surround
- Dual Gigabit Ethernet
- 4 x USB 3.0, 2 x USB 2.0
- 1 x 2.5” 1TB HDD
- 802.11ac WiFi, Bluetooth 4.0
- Mic-In, Stereo Out
- SD/SDHC/SDXC Card Reader
With a rather high price, I seriously don't expect many people to be buying one. I get that there's supposed to be a range of devices, but if they honestly want to gain any traction, they should be going for as low as possible while being powerful.
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I plan on buying a steam machine once they are released. This has shot to the top of my list.
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I wonder about the price?
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This looks exactly like my next birthday present! ;-)
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Reminds me a bit too much of that Gigabyte small factor gaming PC they released last year (Brick?). It throttled like there is no tomorrow because when you put a powerful GPU and CPU in such small confined space they start to overheat. I'd be curious if Zotac manage to avoid that problem somehow.
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That thing looks nice!
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I'm surprised a box of this size is actually kind of sexy. A bit simple, but not ugly. This is ignoring the Alpha, of course.
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If it's a GTX970 (or a 1000-series if that even is the name), I'm expecting a pretty hefty price tag =P
I just want to see the internal view of how they organise all the components in the small form factor! =)
I use a normal ATX case for my SteamBox ...
EDIT: wow, I was right about both GTX970 and the pricing =P But I guess these manufacturers don't have licence fees from Steam to be able to subsidize their hardware ...
I just want to see the internal view of how they organise all the components in the small form factor! =)
I use a normal ATX case for my SteamBox ...
EDIT: wow, I was right about both GTX970 and the pricing =P But I guess these manufacturers don't have licence fees from Steam to be able to subsidize their hardware ...
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I see myself owning a factory-built Steam Machine like this after next xmas. Oh yes I do.
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Since my birthday is past already, I'll look into getting myself a Steam Machine as Christmas present this year :D.
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Judging by the name, this is likely going to be packing a GTX 970. That's a good choice. Lawsuit aside, the 970 is a damn good GPU. I'll be curious what the price tag will look like.
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