Valve's Steam Frame Launches at £1,089 Amid VR Cost Debate — SkimNews
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- Valve launched the Steam Frame VR headset at £1,089 for the 1TB model and £889 for 256GB, a premium-priced device that can stream from a PC or run games on-device
- The headset uses pancake lenses and a rear-mounted battery to stay balanced and light, though the article notes its screens fall short of the OLED displays in PlayStation VR2 and Apple/Samsung headsets
- Jeremy Selan, a Valve developer, told the BBC the company "set out to come out with a device that would have been much more affordable," but global RAM prices more than doubled between October 2025 and early 2026
- Christopher Dring, a gaming writer, called VR "ultimately a high-end niche," pointing out Meta had been subsidising Quest hardware and that it is "difficult to imagine they will going forward"
- David Heaney of UploadVR pushed back on the "too expensive" framing, noting Meta's Quest 3S has sold for £250 — cheaper than a Switch 2 (£420), Xbox Series S (£430), or PS5 (£470)
- The Steam Frame's standout feature is "foveated streaming," which renders only the area the wearer is looking at in full quality and pairs household Wi-Fi with a dedicated dongle for wireless PC VR
Why it matters: The £1,089 price tag lands as RAM prices have more than doubled in a few months, squeezing hardware makers across the industry and forcing Valve to admit its pricing was a compromise rather than a choice. With Meta's Quest subsidies looking unlikely to continue, VR's cheapest path may narrow just as Valve pitches the Steam Frame to enthusiasts willing to pay top tier.
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