CHALLENGE: BUILD YOUR IDEAL STEAM BOX

[Travis Touchdown]

RULES:

1. Use http://pcpartpicker.com
2. Don't include cases, coolers or power supplies- those three will obviously be handled by Valve themselves
3. Stay at a reasonable console price- $200-$500 range is what we're talkin' here.
4. Make sure your selected motherboard includes integrated sound.

The motherboard will obviously be custom, but I recommend sticking to M-ITX or M-ATX, since that's the kind of size they'll be going for in a console form factor. The actual Steam Box will all very likely be a system-on-chip- where everything is integrated into the motherboard- but I think this is still a good way to see what performance we'll be getting out of what specs for what price.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks


CPU: Intel Core i3-3220 3.3GHz Dual-Core Processor ($109.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: Biostar H61MLC Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($53.55 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Patriot Intel Extreme Master, Limited Ed 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($46.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Momentus XT 500GB 2.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.98 @ Outlet PC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 650 Ti 1GB Video Card ($149.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $420.50
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-01-07 01:31 EST-0500)

(shit, forgot about the optic drive- just add like $20 for that)
Yeah, that's obviously pushing it- I have in faith in Valve's ability to make a decently priced console with good performance.

It makes me wonder if it'll have expansion slots that simplifies the process of adding a GPU or CPU upgrade. I've always thought that'd be cool to have in a console.

[SchildConstruct]

The actual Steam Box will all very likely be a system-on-chip- where everything is integrated into the motherboard

No. It's in the term "on a chip": GPU, CPU, memory controller on one chip, not the mainboard (that's integrated hardware, not a system-on-a-chip like the Apple A6).

but I think this is still a good way to see what performance we'll be getting out of what specs for what price.

No, since you don't buy bulk, and since you don't subsidy units. The original XBox cost far less that the sum of its parts, and was thrown together from off-the-shelf hardware.

It makes me wonder if it'll have expansion slots that simplifies the process of adding a GPU or CPU upgrade. I've always thought that'd be cool to have in a console.

The benefit of a console to a developer is a known hardware configuration. Take a guess as to what'll be possible to upgrade.

[Travis Touchdown]

Sorry about the mistake, and valid points.

[Arttemis]

Steam is a PC games delivery system with community aspects. I'm sure nothing is going to be simplified on the PC gaming front the point of conforming to a rigid build structure of only Steam-certified boxes. I have a feeling the Linux OS will even be available on any home-built PC, and if not, a Windows box with Steam client installed will be just as functional (if not moreso due to it's robust productivity software). I feel this is a push by Valve to make PC gaming more mainstream and accessible in the sense that console gaming is, taking it out of the office and into the living room, and I doubt it will change the identity of the industry.