Who Needs a Steam Machine? I Converted My PC for Free and It Was Simple - CNET

Our gifting experts are obsessively searching for holiday gifts that are unique, thoughtful and suitable for any budget. Our expert, award-winning staff selects the products we cover and rigorously researches and tests our top picks. If you buy through our links, we may earn a commission. Valve's Steam Machine is pricier than expected (thanks, RAMageddon), but there's a way to get most of the experience on your own PC. Here's how. The Steam Machine is more expensive than originally predicted. The Steam Machine has landed, offering PC gamers a console-like experience for the living room and giving them access to their Steam library and many other PC games beyond that. RAMageddon couldn’t leave a good thing alone, though, so the Steam Machine is pricier than we expected, with a starting price of $1,049. It’s enough that it made me wonder how hard it’d be to build a Steam Machine of my own. With some compatible hardware handy, I set out to see if I could install SteamOS on a desktop I already have for my very own “free” Steam Machine-like experience. There were a few bumps along the road and at least one perilous pitfall. Here’s how to do it. Valve has instructions on installing Steam