A $1,059 VR headset today is just madness. Devindra Hardawar for Engadget RATING: 6.5/10 Pros Solid standalone-VR performance Very comfortable without glasses Stable PC streaming Cons Exorbitantly expensive Awful speakers Limited new VR content Tight fit with glasses

Much like the Steam Machine, Valve's Steam Frame VR headset feels like a device that should have shipped five years ago. As a standalone wireless headset, it's directly competing with Meta's Quest lineup, even though that company has seriously scaled back its VR ambitions. The ability to play many Steam VR games right within the Steam Frame would have been cool several years ago, but in 2026 there aren't many developers left building ambitious new virtual reality experiences. Oh yeah, the Steam Frame also starts at a whopping $1,059 with just 256GB of storage, a far cry from the heyday of the $200 Quest 2, or even the current $600 Quest 3. Just who the hell is this VR headset really for?

The cynic in me thinks the Steam Frame is a sign of just how out of touch Valve is with the broader VR industry. Perhaps the company planned to release something closer to the Quest 3's launch in 2023, back when VR seemed like an escape from the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. In today's chaotic economy, I can't imagine anyone being excited to shell out over $1,000 for the Steam Frame just to jump into the same VR games they've been playing for a decade. And while there are a handful of new VR releases today, it's far from a thriving category of games.

After testing the Steam Frame for the past week, I can't deny it does some things well. It delivers an expansive and sharp VR experience without the need for any cables. It's also nice to play 2D games on a gigantic virtual screen, and you can also stream over more demanding VR and 2D titles from your gaming PC. But it's not something I can recommend at its current price, not when the Quest 3S and Quest 3 can deliver similar VR experiences for $350 and $600, respectively.