With the Steam Machine, Valve is attempting to make the daunting world of PC gaming more approachable than ever. The little gaming box isn’t so much made for hardcore tech enthusiasts who push all of their specs to the max; it’s more alluring to console owners looking for a way into PC gaming without having to learn the nuances of cooling systems.

The Steam Machine is Valve's new piece of hardware entering the scene as a mini PC built for living room gaming. I love a lot about it, had some issues with it, but overall came away from my time with it feeling very positive.

We’ve been calling the Steam Machine a video game console because that’s what little boxes that play games and sit next to the TV in your living room have been called for decades. Valve is adamant that this is not an accurate term for its device.

Of course, there are benefits to buying a Steam Machine over consoles from Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo, not least of which is because it includes access to Steam’s absolutely gigantic library of games.

Valve has finally released information on the Steam Machine pricing and release timing. Here's how to get on the waitlist and why Linux users should rejoice.