Meet the first mobile Steam Machine.

You may remember back at CES 2014 when Valve announced its initial Steam Machines partners. These were 12 third party hardware developers charged with creating very unique desktop based PC’s which would run on Valve’s Steam OS. Well now a new developer has entered the lineup with the first handheld based console.

Currently codenamed ‘SteamBoy Project’ and developed by SteamBoy Machine Team, the new handheld console is due to be released in 2015 and strongly resembles the current Steam Controller prototype. The console consist of two signature round trackpads, a 5 inch 16:9 touchscreen and 4 action buttons similar to those found on the Xbox 360 controller.

The SteamBoy Machine Team told The Escapist that whilst the exact hardware specifications are yet to be decided, the device is likely to include a quad core processor, 4GB RAM and 32GB of external memory. They have stated that the new handheld device will not be as powerful as the desktop machines, but they draw parallels between this and how the Playstation 4 compares to the PS Vita for example. They go on to claim that it should be capable of playing most of the Steam OS games.

The SteamBoy will be capable of streaming games, like its desktop cousins, and will be compatible with WIFI and 3G networks.

For the YouTube sneak-peek check: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UM63RuEhgHU

 

Source: http://www.escapistmagazine.com

Amazon’s uninspired game controller leaks

 

Rumours of Amazon’s possibly up and coming set top games console have been ramped up in light of recent internet leaks.

Images leaked on the interweb showing what can only be described as a rather uninspired and dull looking games controller have led some to believe that the release of an accompanying games console is imminent.

The gamepad which is clad in dull looking black plastic features two analog sticks, a traditional directional pad, 4 games buttons and a further 4 Android-esque function buttons. There are also some media playback buttons on the lower edge and the controller features 6 led lights. What is certain is that this is no where near as revolutionary and cool looking as Valves SteamMachines controller. As pointed out by many online commentators, the design is suspiciously similar to the wireless ‘OnLine’ gamepad.

No much is know about the accompanying console, or in fact wether there actually is one! If there is however it will likely link in with the current trend in online streaming and utilise Amazons catalogue of online material. Wether it will be a powerhouse console to take on the likes of the Xbox One and PS4, I doubt it. Considering Amazons current commitment to Android I would hazard a guess that this will be what the console will be running on.

We will have to wait and see what happens.

Source: Engadget

Alienware joins the Steam Machines line up

Arriving very late to CES 2014, Alienware have showcased their final Steam Machines design. True to Alienware’s super cool design philosophy, the Steam Machine is sure to be popular amongst consumers.

Based vey much on Alienware’s popular X51 micro gaming PC, the final design is smaller than both the PS4 and Xbox One and likely to pack a real punch. Although the machine showcased at CES had no internals, the Alienware Steam Machine is likely to sport a powerful Intel CPU and an independent Nvidia graphics card. Many of the other Steam Machines showcased at CES feature Intel processors with integrated graphics so this could give Alienware a real edge.

The Alienware Steam Machine is a brilliant example of what a living room gaming PC’s should look like. Providing Alienware can deliver with the hardware and Valve with the software, The Alienware Steam Machine could really threaten console gaming and take a large chunk out of the gaming market. Valves user base of 65 million people coupled with Alienware’s cutting edge design presents a real winning formulae. The Alienware Steam Machine is the one to watch.

Valve’s 12 Steam Machines partners.

As a massive fan of PC gaming I am always interested to learn more about Steam’s up and coming Steam Machines. We already know that Valve have developed their own test hardware which 300 beta users have already received. We were also aware of 2 third party Steam machines in development by iBuyPower and Digital Storm. However Engadget are reporting that there are now 12 known third party supporters of Steam Machines. These are: Alienware, Falcon Northwest, iBuyPower, CyberPowerPC, Origin PC, Gigabyte, Materiel.net, Webhallen, Alternate, Next, Zotac and Scan Computers.

We can expect to see examples of all the above over the next few days.

Source: Engadget

Steam gamepad revealed

In its third media release this week Steam have now announced the Steam Controller, a touch screen dual trackpad game pad for its yet to be announced SteamBox. The SteamBox is the much anticipated PC like games console which Steam hopes will revolutionise PC gaming, making it affordable and more accessible. Steams website states “The most prominent elements of the Steam controller are its two circular trackpads. Driven by the player’s thumbs, each one has a high-resolution trackpad as its base”. Steam hopes developers will exploit the controller in intuitive and exciting ways.

Steam announced its new Linux based gaming operating system SteamOS on Monday. On Wednesday it was the announcement of ‘Steam Machines’ which got people excited. These will be a collection of differently priced systems of varying specifications for testing. Next year we should see this hardware and software come together in the form of the final SteamBox or Steam Machine.