Valve is again within the VR marketplace for the primary time for the reason that 2019 Valve Index, this time with the Steam Body, a standalone VR headset that goals to compete on the higher-end of the market, based mostly on its specs.
Since this can be a standalone headset, it could actually’t depend on the facility of a PC or console. As such, it’s packing some beastly specs beneath the plastic. A Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 (4nm ARM 8-core CPU) powers the headset, paired with 16GB of LPDDR5X RAM for prime efficiency. An Adreno 750 GPU delivers roughly 25–30% greater VR efficiency than Meta Quest 3, significantly for eye-tracked foveated rendering eventualities.
Twin LCD panels at 2160 × 2160 pixels per eye (two occasions the decision of the Valve Index), with a configurable refresh charge from 72Hz to 120Hz (and experimental 144Hz mode). So-called “pancake” choices permit improved clairty, and a area of view of as much as 110-degrees.
Storage is determined by how a lot cash you wish to spend: there’s going to be a 256gb model and a 1TB model. There’s additionally a microSD slot, the concept being you possibly can shortly swap playing cards to and from the newly announced Steam Machine or the Steam Deck.
It’s operating a model of SteamOS on the within, however it has an added ingredient to the Proton compatibility referred to as Fex. This lets you play desktop VR video games – like Home windows x86 VR titles – on a Linux headset. Fairly neat, proper? Oh, and you may side-load mobile-based VR titles straight onto the headset. Jesus christ, Valve, settle down.
All of this packed into a really gentle 440g, which apparently makes it the lightest standalone headset so far. And you’ll fiddle with the precise plastic of it too: face interfaces, headstraps, and extra could be swapped or 3D-printed, with Valve planning to launch official CAD/electrical specs to encourage third-party equipment.
It additionally comes with a devoted dongle for streaming video games straight out of your PC or Steam Machine. On prime of that, non-VR video games ought to run seamlessly within the headset, so you possibly can take pleasure in 2D gaming on an enormous digital display.
As for the controllers, the format is fairly customary. Nonetheless, they’ve some methods up their plastic sleeves. Two-stage grips on the handles, for instance, open up some attention-grabbing management choices. Every one has IMU (inertia measurement unit) to assist observe positioning, together with 18 infrared LEDs to assist the 4 sensors on the headset observe your arms.
Just like the Steam Machine, no pricing has been revealed. As for a launch date, early 2026 is what Valve is saying proper now.
Early hands-on appears to point the Steam Body is a powerful piece of package. PC Gamer, for example, really praises the wireless streaming which was demoed utilizing Half-Life Alyx – it ran flawlessly utilizing the 6Ghz dongle.
Up to now, VR adoption has been sluggish and I’m undecided the Steam Body can change that. However that doesn’t cease me from being very excited to play with one.
