Valve’s Steam Frame VR Headset Finally Arrives for $1,059

Following a memory-related delay, Valve’s Steam Frame is finally ready to launch. 

The company will begin taking orders for the VR headset later this week. A 256GB version will be $1,059, and a 1TB model will cost $1,299. Both come with 16GB of Unified LPDDR5X RAM. 

To thwart resellers and bots, interested buyers will need to join a waitlist/reservation system; Valve is accepting sign-ups now through Thursday, Sept. 17, at 10 a.m. PT. They will then be randomized “to determine reservation and waitlist order.”

“Based on the results of that randomization, you’ll receive an email on September 17th letting you know you’re either in the reservation queue or on the waitlist,” the company says. “If you’re in the reservation queue, the model you signed up for has been reserved in your name. As units become available to ship, you’ll receive an email with the option to purchase. The first batch of these emails will begin going out on September 18th.

“You’ll then have 72 hours to complete the purchase before we cancel your reservation and move on to the next person in the queue,” the company added. 

I’ve Been Living With Valve’s Steam Frame on My Face for Weeks

Although the Steam Frame isn’t cheap, Valve is touting an array of enhancements and capabilities, including its design for both VR titles and non-VR games. “Designed for streaming, it can handle your entire Steam library. And it supports standalone play too, with over 100 games (and growing) already Steam Frame Standalone Verified,” it wrote in a blog post. 

The headset also features a 4-nanometer Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor and two 2,160-by-2,160 LCDs, each with a 72-144Hz refresh rate. In addition, the product relies on “inside-out tracking,” ditching external sensors, unlike the older Valve Index headset.  

Recommended by Our Editors

The Best VR Headsets for 2026
RAM Crunch Claims Another Victim: Price Hike Coming to Meta Quest VR Headsets
Valve Steam Frame Tutorial Videos Leak Showing Accessories, Controllers, More

The product will be available on the Steam store for buyers in the US, Canada, Europe, and Australia. Customers in Japan, Taiwan, and Hong Kong will be able to purchase through Valve’s partner, Komodo.

The company has also created an FAQ about the reservation system, which is open only to Steam accounts that have made at least one purchase prior to April 27, 2026. “Limit one signup per household. We will use payment method, shipping address, and other information to eliminate multiple entries,” it says. If you decide to buy after Sept. 17, your order will be placed at the end of the waitlist. 

Ahead of the launch, a few tech publications reviewed the headset. IGN notes, “The Steam Frame is probably one of the first VR headsets that can do everything right out of the box, from standalone gaming to streaming 2D games from your PC.” However, both IGN and CNET flagged the short battery life as a weakness.

About Our Expert

Michael Kan
Principal Reporter
Experience

I’ve been a journalist for over 15 years. I got my start as a schools and cities reporter in Kansas City and joined PCMag in 2017, where I cover satellite internet services, cybersecurity, PC hardware, and more. I’m currently based in San Francisco, but previously spent over five years in China, covering the country’s technology sector.

Since 2020, I’ve covered the launch and explosive growth of SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet service, writing 600+ stories on availability and feature launches, but also the regulatory battles over the expansion of satellite constellations, fights with rival providers like AST SpaceMobile and Amazon, and the effort to expand into satellite-based mobile service. I’ve combed through FCC filings for the latest news and driven to remote corners of California to test Starlink’s cellular service.

I also cover cyber threats, from ransomware gangs to the emergence of AI-based malware. In 2024 and 2025, the FTC forced Avast to pay consumers $16.5 million for secretly harvesting and selling their personal information to third-party clients, as revealed in my joint investigation with Motherboard.

I also cover the PC graphics card market. Pandemic-era shortages led me to camp out in front of a Best Buy to get an RTX 3000. I’m now following how the AI-driven memory shortage is impacting the entire consumer electronics market. I’m always eager to learn more, so please jump in the comments with feedback and send me tips.

Areas of Expertise
Latest By Michael Kan

• Starlink Is Still Imposing Data Caps on Users Outside the US, Europe
• Time to Patch: Nintendo Switch Can Be Hacked Using QR Codes
• FBI: US Customs Worker Stole Intel CPUs From Work PCs for Newegg Trade-Ins
• FCC Cuts Swedish Smart Mower Maker a Break With First Exemption to Robot Ban
• Samsung Trolls Apple by Hiring ‘Tim Cook’ to Endorse Galaxy Z Fold 8
• More from Michael Kan