The Steam Deck was released in February 2022 and was a big success, selling out quickly as many wanted a portable PC so they could game on the go. In its current state, there are two models of the Steam Deck. The 512 GB OLED model was $549, and the 1 TB Steam Deck was $649. Well, that all has unfortunately changed as Valve announced on May 27 that the prices for both Steam Deck models would increase, and it’s not pretty. The 512 GB OLED model is now $789, and the 1 TB model is now $949. Both models have gone up by $200. This price increase doesn’t come as a shock to many, as it was inevitable given the RAM shortage and rising costs of various goods.
As mentioned before, the price increase isn’t that surprising, since many tech products have gone up in price, such as the Nintendo Switch 2 and PlayStation 5 Pro. These price hikes were only a matter of time, and the fact that Vavle has avoided the price increase for as long as they have is commendable in a way. But it doesn’t excuse the fact of how much the product now costs, given that it’s been out for a couple of years now. The situation overall sucks for the consumer because not only has the price of goods gone up a lot, but it will most likely not come down, so if you want one, best get to saving because these prices are here to stay.
Valve had this to say about the price increase. “Steam Deck itself hasn’t changed; these new prices reflect the current state of component costs and other global logistical challenges across the industry as a whole.”
Overall, this situation sucks, but it’s not surprising, as with the rise of AI, many tech companies weren’t ready for the high demand, and RAM was the first to be affected. With the RAM shortage and no fix in sight, tech products will have to raise prices sooner or later to remain competitive. Even with these price increases, the Steam Deck was already hard to come by, as a RAM shortage halted production for a while, so this price increase is just making it harder to obtain the product. And now, due to this price increase, many are worried about how much Valve’s new product, the Steam Machine, a PC console, will cost, as it was supposed to be reasonably priced. Still, it would not be a surprise if it cost over $1,000, thereby defeating its purpose as an affordable PC alternative.