Steam Frame finally arrives for pre-order, and yes it is as expensive as we thought
Stream your entire Steam collection right into your eyes
by Chris Hall · T3
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Quick summary
Valve's latest headset, the Steam Frame, has entered preorder with a price that will cause some to pause for thought.
Steam Frame is designed to play all your Steam games, both VR and non-VR.
The Steam Frame is Valve's latest VR headset, offering a wireless experience primarily focused on gaming. It's pitched as a lightweight VR headset for your Steam library, able to play games either standalone or running on your PC, Steam Deck, Steam Machine or laptop.
When the Steam Frame prices leaked in early August 2026, we remarked on what looked like a high price of $1100-1500. Now we have the official prices and it starts at £889 ($1059) for the 256GB kit, swelling to £1089 ($1299) for the 1TB version.
That makes it an expensive headset, almost double the price of rival Meta headsets, although cheaper than Samsung or Apple's offering. But, consider that most people will also use it with a PC and it's part of a larger, more expensive, package.
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The Steam Frame runs on the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 with 16GB RAM and rechargeable batteries. There's a resolution of 2160 x 2160 per eye, with a refresh rate up to 144Hz. It runs SteamOS.
There's Wi-Fi 7 to keep you connected, as well as a Wi-Fi 6e adapter, with the Steam Frame Controllers offering motion and gamepad controls. The weight is distributed between the front and rear of the headset, designed for better balance so it doesn't feel so front-heavy. It weighs 440g.
Steam Frame: Official Overview and Quick Start Guide - YouTube
The Stream Frame comes with Half-Life: Alyx, but it's designed for both VR and non-VR games, with the suggestion that you can just use this as an immersive display to play regular games. It's designed basically to play everything in your Steam library, with a wide selection that will run directly on the headset.
There's currently a waitlist arrangement for Steam Frame, so you can register your interest in a particular model. You'll be emailed to tell you whether you have a model reserved or if you're still on the waitlist, so it's likely that it will be a slightly slow roll-out.
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One of the key features that's been highlighted for the Steam Frame is foveated streaming. This means that the resolution of the content that you're looking at is great, while peripheral areas drop in quality to reduce the bandwidth needed.
The aim is to reduce lag and stutter when streaming for a smoother experience, without losing that sense of immersion. Because the lower quality content isn't where you'll be focused, you shouldn't notice that it's rendered in lower quality.
There are high hopes for Steam Frame and early reviews suggest that this it offers a great gaming experience.