So, how much do Steam Machines cost in the UK?
The lowest price is £448.99.
Steam Machines, those things that once seemed so mysterious and revolutionary, are finally here. Well, "select Steam Machines" are. Of the 15 Steam Machines listed earlier in the year, three are available, but one of them I can't find for sale in the UK.
The three Steam Machines come from Alienware, a familiar name in PC gaming, as well as Syber and Zotac. It's Zotac's Nen Steam Machine I can't find in the UK. Amazon US lists $900 as a guideline (importing will cost a further $200).
Zotac's Steam Machine sprung into being after Valve's Greg Coomer posted a picture of a tiny computer he'd built using Zotac bits and bobs. Zotac phoned Valve and a partnership began.
Syber offers the most expensive and powerful Steam Machine currently. The top-spec build will set you back £1205, but drops sharply to £695 and then £499 for lower-spec builds.
Syber's £695 build is actually very similar in spec to the top-end Alienware Steam Machine, which costs £698.99. Alienware has four tiers to choose from, the lowest being £448.99, which is still £100-£150 more than most PS4 or Xbox One bundles. Digital Foundry delved into the Alienware Steam Machine specs last autumn.
Each Steam Machine comes with a Steam Controller that looks a bit like an owl. With two haptic feedback pads you slide your thumbs around, and programmable inputs, the Steam Controller is supposed to offer mouse-and-keyboard levels of control but on a pad. We've had a play around with one and we made a video about it. Separately Steam Controllers cost £39.99.
The Steam Machines run on the Linux-based operating system Steam OS.
Valve's other piece of Steam Hardware released this autumn is the Steam Link, which is a box that wirelessly receives game streams from your desktop gaming PC. Obviously both devices have to be on the same network, but when they are, signal strength should be the only restriction. You should be able to plug the Link box into any TV around your house and game on it as you would your desktop PC. Steam Link costs £39.99.
