Steam Machine and Steam Frame release windows confirmed for this summer by Valve

Valve has just confirmed that the Steam Frame and Steam Machine release windows will both be "this summer," finally narrowing down the release date for the two highly anticipated additions to the Steam hardware lineup. Originally slated for an "early 2026" release, both devices have just three weeks to arrive before technically falling outside of that window. However, for those still hyped for the new Valve gaming PC and VR headset, there isn't long left to wait.

The Steam Frame and Steam Machine follow the launch of the Steam Controller, which is Valve's take on a gamepad that can be used to play games meant for keyboard and mouse, as well as normal gamepad inputs. It's already proved to be hugely popular, with it selling out within minutes of launch. Expectations are high that both the Steam Machine and Steam Frame will be just as popular.

Valve confirmed this time frame on its Steam Community site. In a post regarding an update to its Steam Verified program, it said that, "Today we are expanding the Verified program to include Steam Machine and Steam Frame, both of which are shipping this summer." No further details about the launches are mentioned, with the rest of the post dedicated to detailing the new Verified program expansion.

The Verified program is Valve's way of flagging whether a game on Steam will work on the Steam Deck. The company checks every game to see whether it runs smoothly on the handheld hardware and whether the game's interface works well with the Steam Deck's small screen and gamepad/touchpad controls. If all is well, it gets a Verified tick. If it works but there are some issues - such as text appearing too small - it will get a Playable rating, while a fail will be noted with an Unplayable mark.

By expanding the program, Valve will now be able to flag to customers whether a game will work well on the Deck, the Machine, or the Frame.

Regarding the Steam Machine Verified program, Valve notes that "The requirements for Steam Machine Verified are nearly identical to Steam Deck Verified" such that "If your game already runs well on Deck, it will also run well on Machine with no extra work required from you."

As for the Steam Frame, it's both a PC VR headset and a standalone headset running SteamOS. As such, its Steam Frame Verified requirements are focused on the standalone experience, as the PC-connected experience will effectively be just like any other VR headset.

"Like Steam Deck Verified, the Steam Frame Standalone Verified program focuses on the experience customers will have with the device out-of-the-box in standalone mode. The criteria are similar as well: the default graphics configuration needs to perform well, text and UI elements need to be clear and legible on the built-in display, and the default controller configuration needs to work well with the Steam Frame Controllers. The same test criteria apply to both VR titles and non-VR titles." Valve explains.

Back to the release dates, and although on the surface Valve being close to hitting its original release window for its new hardware isn't surprising, the backdrop to these releases has made it far from a certainty. Just weeks after the original Steam Machine announcement at the tail end of last year, PC RAM prices started to rise rapidly, such that by January of this year, DDR5 had quadrupled in price. Meanwhile, other types of RAM, the NAND flash used in SSDs, and the VRAM used in graphics cards have also faced shortages and rising prices.

In the face of these price-inflated times, many had wondered if Valve might delay its Steam Machine release, in order to avoid having to charge very high prices for it.

The good news, then, appears to be that Valve isn't choosing to hold off the Steam Machine launch. However, the bad news may well be that the Steam Machine price is going to be very high. Valve has just shown that it's willing to up its hardware prices when needed, with it raising the Steam Deck price by $300 just last week. This move largely dashed any remaining hope that the Steam Machine will be priced as competitively as the Steam Deck originally was, or that Valve would price it like a console, where the hardware cost is subsidised in the hope that the manufacturer will make back their money through game licenses.

Whatever Valve's Steam Machine pricing plans are, we'll know them for sure within the next three months.