Has the Steam Machine price leaked? Early retailer listings raise eyebrows

The Steam Machine hasn’t even got a release window yet, but that hasn’t stopped retailers from jumping the gun, and possibly scaring the life out of would-be buyers in the process.

Following a familiar pattern seen with the Nintendo Switch 2 last year, a handful of stores have quietly listed Valve’s long-awaited hardware well ahead of launch. This time, the spotlight falls on Czech retailer Smarty.cz, which appears to have published placeholder listings for two versions of the Steam Machine, and buried some eye-watering numbers in its source code.

According to details first spotted by users digging through the site, Smarty lists two models: a 512GB version and a beefier 2TB variant. Both appear to share the same core specs, including an AMD processor and 16GB of RAM, suggesting storage is the primary differentiator rather than performance.

The prices themselves aren’t visible on the storefront, but the source code tells a different story. The 512GB model is listed internally at 19,826 CZK, which converts to roughly £710 / $955, while the 2TB version jumps to 22,305 CZK, around £796 / $1,072 at current exchange rates. That’s a steep ask for anything with “console” in the description.

Naturally, the reaction online was swift and dramatic.

Before anyone writes the Steam Machine off as another overpriced tech curiosity, though, context matters, and there’s plenty of it missing here.

Retailers frequently use placeholder pricing when setting up product pages, especially for hardware that hasn’t been officially announced in detail. Smarty, while an authorised Valve seller in Europe, is still a third-party retailer, and reportedly applies an average markup of around 17 per cent across its products. That alone could significantly inflate early internal estimates.

There’s also the issue of regional pricing. Czech prices rarely translate cleanly to the UK or US. For comparison, the PS5 Pro reportedly costs around 20,290 CZK locally, roughly £725 / $975, despite retailing for £699.99 in the UK and $749.99 in the US. In other words, scary conversions don’t always reflect real-world pricing elsewhere.

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Earlier industry estimates have suggested Valve’s new hardware could land closer to £500-£600, which would put it far more in line with expectations, particularly if Valve chooses to subsidise the device to some degree.

And that’s where perspective really comes in. The Steam Machine isn’t just another closed console competing with a PS5 or Xbox Series. It’s closer to a compact gaming PC, one that allows users to install their own apps, run alternative operating systems, and tap directly into Valve’s ecosystem.

Anyone who’s priced up PC components recently will know how hostile the market has become. GPUs, RAM and storage have all been squeezed by AI-driven demand, while global tariffs and manufacturing costs have pushed prices higher across the board. Building an equivalent PC today, especially via the pre-built market, would comfortably creep into the same price range as these leaked figures.

That doesn’t mean the Steam Machine won’t be expensive. It almost certainly will be. But “expensive” isn’t the same as “unreasonable”, especially if Valve delivers hardware that’s tightly optimised for Steam in the same way the Steam Deck has been.

For now, there’s still no official word from Valve on pricing, release date or final specs. What we have instead is a speculative retailer listing, a lot of half-formed outrage, and a reminder that leaked prices rarely tell the full story.

Until Valve speaks, this remains just that: a rumour. An uncomfortable one, perhaps, but not yet a reason to abandon Steam Machine dreams entirely.

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