Alienware Steam Machines Can't Be Upgraded

[VaporWare]

Setting aside the problem of Alienware for a moment, this isn't actually insane. The Steam Machine project isn't targeting people who make and maintain their own computers...we already have Steam. It's targeting people who just want a functional brick of hardware they don't have to mess with beyond plugging it in. They aren't expecting everyone who already uses Steam to migrate to a Steam Machine, the Console Peasant market is just getting the opportunity to join the Glorious PC Master Race without having to disrupt their existing 'buy it off the shelf, plug it in and forget about it' hardware habits.

In that respect, a sealed unit makes more sense than a lot of the higher end moddable boxes we've seen. Nothing is stopping a power user from going that route, but it's just one corner of a much broader market.

Now, whether Alienware in particular can produce a sealed unit console stand-in worth its cheap plastic chassis remains to be seen.

 

[grimallq]

Setting aside the problem of Alienware for a moment, this isn't actually insane. The Steam Machine project isn't targeting people who make and maintain their own computers...we already have Steam. It's targeting people who just want a functional brick of hardware they don't have to mess with beyond plugging it in. They aren't expecting everyone who already uses Steam to migrate to a Steam Machine, the Console Peasant market is just getting the opportunity to join the Glorious PC Master Race without having to disrupt their existing 'buy it off the shelf, plug it in and forget about it' hardware habits.

In that respect, a sealed unit makes more sense than a lot of the higher end moddable boxes we've seen. Nothing is stopping a power user from going that route, but it's just one corner of a much broader market.

Now, whether Alienware in particular can produce a sealed unit console stand-in worth its cheap plastic chassis remains to be seen.

I see your point, but in the same vein non-PC-savvy people can treat all the other Steam Machine models as sealed units. How many people buy pre-built/brand name desktop PC's and never bother with upgrades?

But the option still exists for those willing, and that's the whole point of Valve's open platform ideology. For instance, after a year or two, you could upgrade your 500$ iBuyPower box for a portion of it's price, and still have a decent machine. Alienware take that option out completely ,force it's customers to replace the whole machine, and charge you through the nose for it.

 

[-Dragmire-]

This would work if it were competently built and not expensive, but it's Alienware so....

 

[VaporWare]

I see your point, but in the same vein non-PC-savvy people can treat all the other Steam Machine models as sealed units. How many people buy pre-built/brand name desktop PC's and never bother with upgrades?

But the option still exists for those willing, and that's the whole point of Valve's open platform ideology. For instance, after a year or two, you could upgrade your 500$ iBuyPower box for a portion of it's price, and still have a decent machine. Alienware takes that option out completely and forces it's customers to replace the whole machine, and charge you through the nose for it.

Those are excellent questions, but again the real target here isn't people who are already in the PC sphere, it's people who aren't...people who only have one of the big consoles at home, and maybe a PC they only really use for work purposes. Anyone already on board that comes along for the ride is arguably gravy.

You're correct of course about Valves open platform ideology and I know a lot of people are really interested in the more completely modular designs, myself included. And you're absolutely right about treating any PC as a sealed unit. The barrier to cross there is largely superstitious...people have Notions about PCs versus Consoles (correct or not, but pertinently /moreso/ the less tech savvy they are), and that informs their purchasing choices.

The sealed unit idea is only going to work for anyone if a sealed unit can meet the requirement of being both cheaper and trivial to set up in addition to basically functional. I suspect the idea is if they can put out a new version each year, they can catch anyone newly entering the market /as well as/ anyone looking to upgrade without cracking or shipping off their case, without impeding anyone who doesn't need or want an upgrade.

That said, there's good cause to doubt that they can keep up with that notion...historically, the constant-barrage-of-new-hardware strategy has failed spectacularly (see: Panasonic)...not just because people want customizable hardware, but because putting out a new model every year is actually pretty expensive and the market still isn't /that/ huge.

I suppose what I'm really saying here is 'Could they make it work? Sure, the idea is not completely guano. Will they make it work? Probably not, but maybe not for the reasons we tend to assume about the market.'

 

[Shadow-Phoenix]

HA this is great, along with the dilution of Steam machines from other hardware, techno-logic companies never cease to entertain me.

 

[Quellist]

Sure i'll buy a new Steambox every year....if they cost £50 or less, otherwise Alienware can take a flying fuck...honestly im having trouble not laughing, i would soo like to have been listening in to the meeting where this rabidly insane idea somehow won purchase with the board...

 

[Elberik]

There is no "need" for the Steam machine. The Steam machine is just another PC or a Linux-exclusive console.

If you're a PC gamer: you already have a custom rig that you've poured hundreds or thousands of dollars into.

If you are a console gamer: you already have a console that is NOT Linux-exclusive.

The only people I see buying Steam Machines are Valve fanboys.

 

[DJ_Bunce]

Well my reaction to this was pretty much a chortle, followed by the words "cheeky" and "f******"... Oh Alienware, you are you silly.

 

[Zagzag]

The more and more I hear about these STEAM machines, the more and more useless they sound. So not only are they more expensive then a PC of similar power, they also can't be upgraded?

I agree with what TotalHalibut said on his content patch a while ago. Valve should just wait a few years until the hardware is more powerful and cheaper and THEN release a Steam machine that is at least as powerful as the consoles but cheaper.

You do know what a Steam machine is, right? ANYBODY can make one, this just happens to be an Alienware branded one that's likely not worth the money. (Valve didn't tell Alienware to make it, they chose to, so blaming Valve for it is completely nonsensical.

If you are a console gamer: you already have a console that is NOT Linux-exclusive.

You're completely free to install any other operating system or software you like on a Steam machine, this is not true of current gen consoles, so at least you get that amount of freedom, though I admit core PC gamers don't really need one. It does seem like a viable alternative for console gamers though.

 

[Dire Trout]

Good thing I wasn't getting this. Has anyone heard whether or not the iBuyPower box can be upgraded? It looks like the only one of the two dozen or so Steam Machines that does what they ought to do--that is, let people who don't know shit about PCs play PC games easily, at a decent price, without having to get a degree in electronics--and if there's a simplified way to swap parts in and out, that'd be even better.

 

[Spud of Doom]

I'm really confused by this. Surely it would still be possible to somehow crack the thing open and replace the internals of it?

 

[silasbufu]

I'm speechless. So much wow

 

[AndrewC]

Why would a sane person even buy something from Alienware anyway?

 

[truckspond]

As someone who actually likes Alienware... What the what, Alienware?!

Uhm. Good luck selling those.

(But seriously, what's stopping me from unscrewing the box and moving pieces around?)

They'll probably take pages from the Macbook pro playbook and have no space for additional components with the existing ones soldered into the motherboard

 

[Brian Tams]

Alienware missed the point of the Steam Machine in the worst way possible. Way to go, guys.

*sigh* I wish Valve would at least have SOME standards by which the third party manufacturers had to follow with their Steam Machines, to prevent this kind of bullshit from happenening.

 

[laggyteabag]

I always thought of the Steambox as being a pre-built PC which runs the Steam OS and is priced to compete with the PS4 and the XbOne, this however is little more than a console which runs the Steam OS.

 

[SonOfVoorhees]

Are they using the Apple hand book for making people want to buy a new iPhone every year? lol. Thing i dont get is how they will do it. What will get people to buy one each year. Im not a PC nerd but if they are using Steam, then they can play all the games that all the other steam boxes can play. So what special thing will they use to encourage people to buy the upgrade? Not like they will have Alienware only exclusives or games only a Steambox 2 can play that a Steambox 1 cant. Because all the others would be able to access and play that game without an upgrade.

I dont get it at all, it hurts my brain.

 

[sXeth]

Ya think at some point Valve is gonna regret handing out their branding to a bunch of (apparently) morons?

Right now, if I blank out my actual knowledge to become the "entry consumer", a Steam Machine is a (possibly) slightly more game optimized system, but probably costs more, uses this wacky new interface I'm completely unfamiliar with, and has a drastically reduced library of games because of that. Unless I'm staunchly trying to avoid Microsoft (not really something an entry user is likely to have a firm opinion on), what on earth is the incentive to buy one of these things?

Its hard to tell if Valve has misstepped here (it does seem they've failed to regulate what their branding is at all), or they actually just got incredibly borked by all these hardware guys going "Eh, well just slap the OS and name on one of our random configs and have at it".

 

[BrownGaijin]

"Lifecycle-wise, consoles update every fix, six, seven years, we will be updating our Steam Machines every year."

Let's talk about cars. I myself I understand that car companies come out with a new model every year that has some sort of improvement, and that there's lease programs which make it easier to let go, so some people might not care much about how long the care might last. As for myself, I like a car that has a has a long life cycle and won't break down on me after only a year, because I don't have the money to continually fork over cash to the dealership - no matter how well the cup holder keeps my soda cold.

Getting to the point, if Alienware is planning on releasing a console that has a lifespan of a year, they better have one heck of a lease program.