Posted on: Monday, March 11th, 2013
Posted in: News
Comments: 20
Steam powered Piston ahead! -UPDATED-
Xi3′s new prototype named Piston is out for pre-order, but the cost may just be too high a price.
UPDATE: As mentioned this is an Unofficial product, with Xi3 using its association and usage of Valve’s Big Picture mode on the Piston platform. In a direct quote from GamesIndustry.Biz “He [Xi3 CEO Jason A. Sullivan] said that while a meeting with Gabe Newell meant he couldn’t reveal too much about the companies’ relationship, he wanted to make it clear that the Piston wasn’t the “official” Steam box, but would allow access to the platform like any other computer.”
After a brief hiatus for the Angry Joe Show news center spent praising the grossly incandescent sun, we bring you the curious case of the Xi3 Piston, first prototype to launch using Valve’s Big Picture mode, and the price-tag might just make it too niche. The pre-order comes in at a whooping $1000, which places the Piston in an odd spot for the console market.
On the one hand the Piston’s starter price means its too expensive for console gamers, and due to its pricetag and power would make it too weak to persuade PC gamers to spend money on it rather then further upgrading their rig. One key thing to note in this is that the pricetag for the Piston is not representative of the cost for the official Steam Box and that the Piston is acting as a third party platform for Big Picture mode.
In an interview with The Verge, Valve’s main man Gabe Newell revealed the pricing model for the Steambox:
Newell also tipped Valve’s hand on target pricing for Steam Boxes built by partners, saying that the company sees three tiers of hardware specifications: “Good, Better,” and “Best.” He says the goal for a “Good” platform is a free device, but that one would probably start around $99 and eventually come down. Newell says a midrange device should cost around $300, and that the top-tier is only limited by how much someone is willing to spend.
With that pricing model in mind it seems Xi3 is taking this as an unofficial Big Picture mode console. As for Valve’s Offical Steam Box if we take Newell’s statements of the hardware getting cheaper later to heart it would make it the most inexpensive PC ever, even beating out the attempted $100 Laptop put forth for the One Laptop per Child Association. With such a low entry price, and the ability to scale with any new hardware to continue getting the latest games at the highest quality, Steam Box could give the console market a much needed shake-up even if competitors don’t think its a threat.
If you are curious as to what all comes with the Piston then follow the link here and see whats on offer!
Sources:
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20 thoughts on “Steam powered Piston ahead! -UPDATED-”
I would rather have Half-Life 3, or Portal 3
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[...] vimos en The Verge, AngryJoeShow y [...]
Yes! I can buy a system from a company that can’t figure out how to make a third game in a series! Brilliant!
This actually isn’t the Steam box. It just isn’t. It’s a fantastically over-priced, under-powered shite box, but it’s not a Steam box. Valve has stated so themselves. You should take this article down, or change its wording.
1k for a console? Unless it’s better than my PC, which I seriously doubt, then I fail to see the point here. The whole reason for buying a console is to get an affordable/cheaper entertainment. If you were paying just as much for one as you would for a heavy gaming rig, then what’s the point?
That thing looks like a bomb in more than one way! XD
I dont really understand the plan here, who would actually be interested in this and why?
I’ve never been a supporter of steam. For one when I bought Half-life 2 its the first time I’ve ever had to have internet to play a game. and then if you want to download the game and you have a bad connection it could take all day slowing everything else down you want to do so no I wouldn’t get it. I’ve only ever bought like 5 full games from steam without retail, and a lot of the time because of the large downloads I regret it.
There is just so little on offer here its not worth it. the only people I can see buying this are console fans who have more money than they can spend and don’t want to spend time doing too much setting up with a PC.
This thing is gonna flop worse than the Dreamcast did, and I cant believe Valve are dumb enough to believe they can get anything from it.
This isn’t Valve’s doing, I thought I had made it clear in the article that this is all on Xi3′s end and that the Piston is designed to use Valve’s Big Picture mode. I can change the article name to better illustrate this is the first platform to use big picture, and not Valve’s own console.
While the console may not be for you, which I agree its not for me as well even having over 400 games on my library, they will find some niche market to sell to, though what that niche is nowhere is certain.
I don’t remember if initially you needed an internet connection to run Steam, but the fact is now you do not need to have an internet connection to actually run anything on steam. Steam itself has an offline mode, and short of the games it sells using other game browsers or its own DRM that may require it, you can play anything you buy from the service offline. Even games sold through retail that require steam have steam on the disc itself, so you can even install steam without an internet connection.
This thing is bloody useless!
I saw TotalBiscuit’s Content Patch earlier today and he told us benchmarks for this thing – it’s a piece of shit.
For that price you can build an average gaming rig or buy a powerful laptop or just save the money and buy next-gen console. It will be better in terms of price-/-power.
If this is a start to the Steambox project, it’s a pretty useless start.
And it is a shame, really.
Yeah, like Junior and Cornbred said, it’s not the Steambox, Valve just invested in it.
It annoys me that everyone thinks this thing is the Steambox. Valve is smarter than that to sell something to appeal to console gamers for $1000.
@Master Vlad
Absolutely agree with you, Valve is certainly a LOT smarter than that, also it doesn’t take much reading into to find out it isn’t the official “Steambox”.
You should probably correct something here.
I am unsure if you’re aware (your wording indicates maybe you are in the article) but this is not the steam box. You indicate many times “unofficial” but never directly state that this is not affiliated with steam or valve and your title indicates it is affiliated. There’s some potentially misleading information here.
This is not a valve platform. Valve is still purportedly working on their own system.
http://www.polygon.com/2013/3/12/4093418/valve-currently-has-no-involvement-with-the-piston-xi3
Piston is not a Steam Box prototype. It never was and never will be. Valve only invested money in company Xi3 when they fail on Kickstarter http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/262476727/xi3-help-us-usher-in-the-post-pc-era?ref=live
Valve never took part in the design process. And they never said that it has something to steambox. Valve even denied evry speculations shortly after the piston premiere at E3.
First prototypes of steam box may appear not before a few months.
Damn that link is very short on detials (no info on graphics to say the least??)….for a very lot of money
Wait, wait, wait. Does that tiny little box have the same power as my computer rig?
Wait, wait, wait. Quoting:
“If you are curious as to what all comes with your Piston, should you pre-order it, then [blah, blah]”
Is it just me, or is this the quickest way to end up a pauper?
If you’re gonna be spending money on something, especially if it’s in the thousands, then you better first verify that you are getting your moneys worth and only if you are satisfied should you drop the money. And if the seller does not talk about the details, then obviously something bad is afoot and you should steer clear of it.
Otherways, you’re gonna lose it all.
I like the premise of 3 tiers for it either way.
So I really can’t get mad at this or anything honestly.