Valve today (12 November 2025) announced their new Steam Machine (x86 CPU, 6x more powerful than Steam Deck) and Steam Frame (self-contained and PCVR streaming VR headset with ARM CPU & “FEX” translation of x86 to ARM) to be released in early 2026. No prices yet.
I’m trying to speculate what effects this will have on the wider Linux ecosystem. Both devices will be running Steam OS and be open so you can run any OS.
First, I’ve read many people state that the Steam Deck considerably increased the number of devices running Linux, so it seems to me that these two new devices will accelerate that trend.
Second, it seems to me that the Steam Frame will significantly increase VR use and development for Linux.
Third, I wonder what the implications of Frame’s x86 to arm translation layer (based on FEX, an open source project that I only learned about today) as well as Android compatibility (they state it can sideload Android APKs) will be. Could this somehow help either Linux on Apple silicon or Linux phone efforts? I’m very unfamiliar with what’s going on with either of these efforts, so I may be way out on a limb here.
What do you think about all this?
Edit: this article may prompt some additional thoughts with its discussion of the openness of the Frame - https://www.uploadvr.com/valve-steam-frame-catalog-whole-compatible/
To be fair, I think they’re slightly different markets.
The AVP is a “Productivity” device and seems more focused on “Mixed Reality” use with it’s super high quality passthrough and what not, vs the Frame which is more focused on gaming, has black and white passthrough and (I’m assuming) no Real World mapping so you can’t have floating windows that stay where you put them in your physical space for example.
That being said I think more sales than the AVP is a guarantee, on the price alone.
If anything, the real question is if that “VR Productivity” market that Apple is targeting really exists. (didn’t the HoloLens fail?)
That’s true about them being different markets and also the comparison to HoloLens!
Where have you heard that Frame won’t have Real World mapping?
That was just an assumption, I should probably make that clearer on my comment.
Got it, thanks for the clarification. I would be surprised if any VR headset with inside-out tracking wouldn’t have real world mapping today, but we’ll see!