Neil Hughes
Valve is now accepting preorders for the upcoming Steam Link hardware accessory, a $50 set-top box that will stream 1080p gameplay from a nearby computer, including a Mac running Yosemite or later.
Steam Link will cost $49.99 for the base hardware, compatible with a Steam Controller, Xbox One or 360 wired controller, Xbox 360 Wireless Controller for Windows, Logitech WirelessGamepad F710, or keyboard and mouse. A $99.98 bundle with the Steam Controller is also available.
In addition to Microsoft Windows and Valve's own SteamOS, Steam Link is also compatible with OS X 10.10 or newer. The platform-agnostic streaming device should work with any Mac compatible with OS X 10.10 Yosemite or OS X 10.11 El Capitan, both of which run Valve's Steam.
Valve strongly recommends that users rely on a wired network to stream from a computer to a Steam Link.
The Mac has historically been something of a second-class citizen in the traditional PC gaming world, but the situation has improved in recent years as Apple's hardware has gained market share. It was especially bolstered in 2010, when Steam arrived on Mac and allowed for cross-platform gameplay against Windows PC users.
Having virtually conquered the PC gaming space, Valve has set its sights on the living room, with not only the new Steam Link streaming device, but also its forthcoming Steam Machines platform. Rather than relying on a dedicated PC to do the heavy lifting, Steam Machines are their own all-in-one PCs designed by manufacturers like Alienware, Asus, Zotac and others, running Valve's Linux-based Steam OS.
Both Steam OS and Macs connected to Steam Link will present users with a couch- and controller-friendly interface known as Big Picture.
The Steam Link outputs 1080p at 60 frames per second, and features 100Mbit Ethernet as well as wireless 802.11ac networking. It also features three USB 2.0 ports, Bluetooth 4.0, and HDMI out.
Apple, of course, will also be entering the home console business, albeit catered more toward casual gamers, with its forthcoming Apple TV refresh. Set to debut this month, the new Apple set-top box starts at $149 and includes a dedicated App Store where developers will be able to make their own third-party titles available for download.
Christine McKee
AppleInsider Staff
Chip Loder
Malcolm Owen
William Gallagher
19 Comments
Why would there be anything more than an itsy-bitsy niche market for this?
Are you sure? Ars Technica appears to be under the impression only PCs are supported right now
Are you sure? Ars Technica appears to be under the impression only PCs are supported right now
From the Steam page:
"A host computer running SteamOS, or Steam Big Picture Mode on Windows Vista or newer, Mac OS X 10.10 (Yosemite) or newer, Linux Ubuntu 12.04 or newer. "
Why would there be anything more than an itsy-bitsy niche market for this?
Granted it would be a much smaller market than general TV only streaming, but the PC gaming market is fairly healthy.
PC gaming hardware market worth more than $21.5 billion globally, new report says
The report predicts that the PC gaming market will grow to to more than $23 billion by 2017, driven by the availability of increasingly powerful hardware that allows PCs to do things that consoles cannot. JPR President Jon Peddie noted that 4K gaming is already a reality for "highest-end" systems and said that even mass-market machines can now push 2560x1440 resolution, well beyond the 1080p resolution (1920x1080) offered by the latest consoles.
http://www.pcgamer.com/pc-gaming-hardware-market-worth-more-than-21-5-billion-globally-new-report-says/
I like the idea of this - hide an ugly but powerful PC somewhere out of the way and then play games anywhere in the house.