Valve made a big return to PC hardware this week. The company, most famous for its PC gaming platform, Steam, announced a new home console called Steam Machine alongside a new version of the Steam Controller, and a new virtual reality headset dubbed the Steam Frame.
The Steam Machine is a revival of Valve’s original Steam Machine, a failed attempt to bring PC gaming to the living room almost exactly 10 years ago. Now, it’s back, built on the success of the Steam Deck handheld. Valve claims the new Steam Machine is six times more powerful than the Steam Deck, and it’s kind of like a compact PC. We don’t have exact measurements yet, but some early hands-on impressions have called it similar in size to the Nintendo GameCube. The Steam Machine uses a custom Zen 4 CPU from AMD, and will reportedly be sold in several memory and storage configurations, which are user-upgradable. The new Steam Controller is meant to be paired with the Steam Machine, and it has two haptic-feedback trackpads and the typical assortment of thumbsticks, buttons, triggers, and bumpers.
Lastly, there’s the Steam Frame. This long-awaited VR headset is the follow-up to the Valve Index, which is over six years old. Valve calls the Steam Frame a “streaming-first” VR headset, meant to be connected to a PC for lag-free, wireless gaming. To overcome the problem of latency, the Steam Frame will come with a dedicated wireless module to connect to your PC to ensure all the visual data is transferred as smoothly as possible.
The Steam Frame can also be used as a stand-alone headset, running on a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip, meaning you’d be playing x86 games on ARM in SteamOS. It’s a tricky endeavor, but based on the success of the Steam Deck in juggling the emulation layers required, I trust Valve to do it in a way Microsoft has always struggled with. As for the headset itself, it only weighs 440 grams, which is significantly lighter than both the Meta Quest 3S and the recently announced Samsung Galaxy XR. It has two pancake lenses with two LCD screens at 2160 x 2160 pixels per eye.
There’s a lot more to learn about these devices, and none of the new hardware has a firm release date or price yet, as is customary with Valve. All we know is that these devices will begin shipping in early 2026. —Luke Larsen
A Pouch for Your iPhone
Courtesy of Apple
You’ve probably already seen or heard about the iPhone Pocket. Inspired by a “piece of cloth,” it’s a tiny shoulder bag designed to carry around your iPhone, and it stems from a collaboration between Apple and Japanese design brand Issey Miyake. The two companies have enjoyed a long history—Steve Jobs famously wore Issey Miyake’s black turtlenecks on stage during every major launch event.
The cloth is a singular 3D-knitted construction made in Japan and will be able to fit any iPhone model. This isn’t the first time Apple has suggested you put one of its products in a piece of cloth. In 2004, Apple debuted the iPod Socks, a simple and fun way to keep your iPod screen protected when traveling. They cost $29 at the time (about $50 today).
Unfortunately, you’ll be paying a heck of a lot more for the iPhone Pocket. The pouch comes in a short-strap version for $150 and a long-strap design for $230. Both are available in a range of colors, but since this is a special-edition release, you’re only able to purchase them at select Apple Store locations and Apple.com in France, China, Italy, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, the UK, and the US. (It’s already sold out online.)
Digital ID Comes to Apple Wallet
You already have your boarding pass on your iPhone, why not your passport, too? That’s the idea behind Apple’s new Digital ID, a new way to add information from your US passport into Apple Wallet. Acceptance is rolling out in beta at TSA checkpoints in more than 250 airports around the US for domestic travel, though Apple says that will expand in the future.
You’ll be able to present this form of identification even if you don’t have a Real ID-compliant driver’s license or state ID. (You can already add your driver’s license to Apple Wallet, but this is only available in select states.) It’s important to remember, though, that Apple’s Digital ID does not replace a passport, which is still required for international travel.
Samsung’s Movingstyle Screens Can Go Wherever You Do
Courtesy of Samsung
Samsung has announced a new line of “portable” monitors that are meant to travel with you around your house or office. The Movingstyle (LSM7F) and Movingstyle M7 Smart Monitor (M70F) are standard 27- or 32-inch displays, with one big twist: They come with a rollable floor stand with hidden wheels. Rather than have separate large screens in each room, the idea behind these Movingstyle monitors is to have a screen on the go—similar to LG’s StanbyMe range. It’s not hard to imagine scenarios where this could be convenient. Maybe you’re following a recipe in the kitchen or want to finish a show you’re watching on your television in the bedroom. Samsung claims the wheels are quiet and stable on both hardwood floors and carpet.
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