Valve opens pre-orders for Steam Frame, its VR headset, which includes a free native version of Half-Life: Alyx

Users who want to get a Steam Frame headset must join the reservation list before September 17, at which time Valve will close it and hold a drawing for the order in which they will be placed. That same day, each user will be notified if they have access to a reservation or if they are placed on the waiting list.

The Steam Frame purchase will be available on September 18 for a 72-hour period to complete the order. This is a similar system to the one the company used with the Steam Machine, which it launched in June.

The video game company launches the viewer in two versions, depending on the capacity: Steam Frame with 256 GB stays at US$. 1,059, while the 1 TB version reaches US$1,299as stated on the product website.

Valve offers a number of accessories that can be purchased separately, such as the power supply for €39 (any USB-C charger 45W or higher will work), the ergonomic accessory kit for $59 (two hand straps, a top strap for the head, and a larger light blocker), and the replacement accessory kit for $49 (a face pad, a head pad, and a standard light blocker).

Later there will be third-party accessories such as prescription lenses from Zenni Optical and an RGB camera from Arcturus. This latest device will allow you to display the environment in full color through the Steam Frame screens and capture high-quality 3D videos (spatial video) with the two sensors that record at 5K resolution at 60 FPS with 10-bit HDR. It will cost $149.

Steam Frame also includes a copy of Half-Life: Alyx, the native version of which will be able to run directly in the headset thanks to ‘foveated rendering’ technology and eye tracking, along with other improvements for Vulkan and SteamVR controllers. Anyway, this version will be released soon.

What’s more, the headset has an initial catalog that reaches 130 verified titles in standalone mode and is compatible with Gamepad mode, which allows you to play standard 2D titles on the virtual screen.

The Steam Frame was unveiled in November last year, when Valve highlighted its completely wireless design powered by SteamOS 3, a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip, 16GB of LPDDR5X RAM, and a 21.6Wh battery. It has 2,160 x 2,160 LCD screens (per eye) with a refresh rate of 72 to 144 Hz (the latter in the experimental phase), tracking based on the integrated cameras, double speakers per ear (dual microphone array) and, in connectivity, WiFi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4.