The Steam Box - and other Console Like PC's

[=VG= SemlerPDX]

Outlanders wrote:
Gabe is showing his Steam machines.
http://kotaku.com/from-alienware-to-zotac-all-the-steam-machines-with-sp-1495960379
http://media.steampowered.com/store/steammachines/SteamMachinesBroc_WEB.PDF

TortiaBoy:
not to much of a fan of Steam machines, the idea is good, but it's going to encourage further standardization of PC gaming, soon, what will be the point of having a GTX Titian or 690, when something playing on a 550 looks and performs exactly the same?
...
and there really isn't anything wrong with Alienware...but I may be biased...

Outlanders:
Exactly, there's no reason to buy expensive shit from nvidia every year. Everything looks the same anyway. It depends more on how well the game is made, rather than the amount of expensive metal that you have.

Murderface:
so true

poffadder:
The Steam machines are going to be great for the PC gaming industry. Standardization is a bit indefeasible because PCs are open architecture and there are millions of different hardware/software configurations.

"what will be the point of having a GTX Titian or 690, when something playing on a 550 looks and performs exactly the same?"
- That really depends on the game, there are games out there now that exhibit these qualities. Software will always advance faster than hardware, there will always be software and games that push PCs to their limits.

The PC is going extinct, a PC gaming revolution could breath new life into the industry:
http://www.technologyreview.com/news/426222/the-personal-computer-is-dead/

[=VG= SemlerPDX]

I like the idea of them making PC gaming more accessible, and I do think of it like an industry awaiting it's next biggest marketing boom. When it came to consoles, even they had planned upgradability - PS2 + Hard Drive or PS2 + Network Controller (slotted that thing into the big fat bay to give it internet before it was a standard in the "thin" PS2)

And like hotrods, there will always be those who build fast custom builds and a market for that.

But to really hit the masses, they'd have to cater to people like consoles do on a need by need basis. So, maybe a new wave of fast motherboard with more drop-in technology may come around, where even the most inept could pull a plastic slot out of their "console PC" and hotswap out a GFX card, or CPU/heatsink/fan combo like they do with server PC hard drives? Would open up sales of those ez-sinked CPU/Fan combos already set if they can agree on a chipset. Poff said there's only so many pins and pathways before they'd be too small... gotta level out soon.

[ridDle]

Due to the insane cost of having a high end PC, I will sadly move more and more over to console gaming. With the next gen now and future gens. The difference between PC games and console will be smaller and smaller.

[=VG= Terremer]

I think the idea of the steam box is pretty awesome, Valve is really just trying to move more into the open source sector and it's really cool that they're supporting linux and opengl and such.

As far as PCs, as everyone said, the graphics just aren't advancing enough anymore to really need to upgrade in the first place. You can build supercomputers to get huge fps on every game, but I mean half the games that most people play reguarly either don't have really amazing graphics where you need all the power, or games like arma that still manage to run like shit even on a top system due to the all mods and assets in the game.

Also no microsoft on the steam box is the best part. I was watching this big speedrun marathon yesterday and some guy was trying to start a game, and windows popped up in the middle of it to try to restart for updates. I was laughing pretty hard.

[=VG= Murderface0151]

Something like this Semler?



http://www.pcgamer.com/2014/01/08/razer-reveals-project-christine-modular-gaming-pc/

[=VG= SemlerPDX]

Amazing find Murder - yes. very much like that. Although again, like a console, Razer will want to keep it proprietary, like when you upgrade one part, you buy the upgrade from them, not anyone, or MSI, or Corsair... Again, that is just what I was thinking but I would love it if they made it all a universal standard - like USB, or whatever.

I even love how most micro-USB connections going into different brands of phones and tablets are mostly the same version.

I've got so many charger cords now, and at the airports I was just bouncing around, most the people stuck and filling them like cattle from the "Arctic Vortex" were using all the power outlets, but each outlet also had USB - so I just powered mine straight from cables to USB in the wall.
(which each plug into small transformers I carry like this when using power outlets:


So if they can get one of them console PC's to be kindof form factor like that, but with universal swap out parts - that will explode the free market and really put variable powered PC's throughout the home, each room of each house like Laptops already abound in a family home. Seriously, any house with teens - the average is that they have a laptop at least for school and socializing. All industries make their standard, and PC Gaming will make that one when it's as fool proof for the masses as laptops are now to the "inept teenage girl". Or the teenage boy who could fry something expensive with a new heatsink fail.

Razer is making a huge push - anyone else seeing this? They've bought a bunch of other companies devices and I now see them branded "Razer"

[=VG= Murderface0151]

that's a fantastic idea having usb port from the wall. you guys are 100 years ahead of New Zealand. Wall insulation is not even standardized here lol.

yeah Razer will corner their customers and rape them with prices i think. if they've put so much time into development it's obviously a money farming tool.