Asus announces Steam Machine

Asus has released its Steam Machine to the world. The console with Steam OS is based on the compact desktop machine GR8, which Asus announced last year. The Steam Machine will be released in November 2015.

Asus markets the variant of the GR8 with Steam OS under the name GR8S. The console will be released in November and will then be equipped with the new generation Core i5 and Core i7 processors, as well as the then-current GeForce 9 series graphics cards. The Steam Machine also gets 4 to 16GB DDR3 and as far as storage capacity is concerned, there is a choice of HDDs of 500GB or 1TB and SSDs with capacities from 128GB to 512GB.

The GR8S gets a wireless network card with support for WiFi-ac and Intel network card with gigabit-lan. In addition, Asus reports the presence of a ROG SupremeFX 5.1 HD audio card. The video output is via HDMI and Displayport. The housing is compact with a volume of 2.5 liters and the manufacturer also promises that the console PC does its job quietly and that storage and memory can be easily exchanged.

The GR8S will go on sale in November, as will the Steam Controller. The starting price will be $ 699, converted to 644 euros and with VAT that comes down to 779 euros, although it is not yet known which euro prices Asus will actually use. The Windows variant of the GR8 is now in the Pricewatch, with prices from 1050 to 1080 euros.