After being temporarily out of stock, the Steam Deck OLED is now available for purchase again. However, it comes at a significantly higher price, marking yet another low point in the ongoing surge in gaming costs.
For months, it had been impossible for interested buyers to purchase a Steam Deck OLED. The updated version of the mobile gaming console with an improved screen was simply unavailable. Demand for storage was too high for developer Valve to continue producing its handheld in the usual quantities.
Gamers were understandably thrilled when the popular hardware made its return—at least until they saw the price tag. Because the renewed availability of the Steam Deck OLED is literally costing potential buyers dearly: both variants are more than 200 euros more expensive.
Price increase of up to 42 percent
Specifically, the model with 512 gigabytes of storage now costs 779 euros instead of 549 euros. That’s an increase of 230 euros, or a whopping 42 percent. For the larger option with 1,000 gigabytes of storage, Valve is charging 35 percent more: the price has gone up by 240 euros from 679 euros to 919 euros. These adjustments are also reflected in refurbished devices sold by the manufacturer.
The reason for the massive price increase is likely once again the scarcity of memory. Both RAM and storage have become a rare and expensive commodity due to the ongoing hype surrounding AI models. This is a challenge Valve has been highlighting for months—including in the context of its own devices, which have been temporarily unavailable.
Steam Machine Unaffordable for Gamers?
However, Valve’s move is noteworthy not only in terms of current devices. Even more interesting are the implied consequences for the pricing of the highly anticipated Steam Machine—a sort of mini-PC in a console design with which the PC leader aims to appeal to fans of Microsoft’s Xbox or Sony’s PlayStation.
Based on the latest adjustments for the handheld console, the Steam Machine is likely to be priced in the four-digit range. This represents a high barrier to entry for console gamers, whose previous hardware was always well below the 1,000-euro mark at launch. Especially since it is currently unclear when the Steam Machine will hit the market. Valve has already had to scrap the original first-quarter 2026 release date due to the memory crisis, while component prices continue to rise.
Valve Must Follow Sony and Nintendo
A small consolation for Valve and all Steam Deck fans might be that they are far from alone in facing these challenges. In recent weeks and months, Sony, for example, first raised prices for the PlayStation 5, before the cost of PS Plus also skyrocketed shortly thereafter. A little later, Nintendo followed this trend—which is frustrating from the end-user’s perspective—and which has reached a new low with Valve’s involvement.
