October 3 brought Valve’s wider SteamOS 3.8.28 rollout to Steam Deck and Steam Machine users, extending the same SteamOS 3 foundation that powers the new ARM-based Steam Frame headset.
Steam Frame, Valve’s first VR headset in seven years, starts at $1,059 for 256GB and uses a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, 16GB RAM, and 2,160-by-2,160-per-eye LCD panels with up to 144Hz refresh.
Early reviews praised the roughly 440-gram design, comfort and display specs, but questioned value because battery life runs a little over 90 minutes under heavy load and Meta’s Quest 3 costs $599.
Valve says the headset is built as a streaming-first wireless PC VR device, using Proton and FEX emulation to run conventional PC games on ARM while also supporting standalone play.
The paired hardware and software push marks Valve’s clearest VR re-entry yet, but its premium pricing leaves Meta’s cheaper Quest line setting the mass-market benchmark heading into 2027.