The Steam Controller is a reprieve for PC gamers—and a warning flare

I didn’t pay much attention to the revamped Steam Controller after its announcement last November. But maybe I should have.

I had hopes for it as an alternative to my Azeron Cyborg controller, which I adore but refuse to travel with. (Replacing broken parts or a whole broken controller would be painfully expensive with the U.S. tariffs still in effect.) At half the cost of the Azeron and built to withstand more abuse, the Steam Controller seemed perfect for tossing into my luggage along with a gaming laptop.

But with the Steam Machine’s delay and Valve’s generally quiet stance about its Steam gear lineup, the controller slipped to the back of my mind. I didn’t think much about it. I went on vacation.

And then the launch date and actual launch fired off while I had limited connectivity. (RIP.)

My colleague Mike Crider can rest assured I will not buy one from a scalper. But now I’ve started wondering: What’s next?

I’m not too worried about getting my hands on a Steam Controller. That will happen at some point. If it’s months from now, I can stomach the wait. But I wonder if availability will be difficult for more and more products like it—new, relatively affordable, and previously easy to get.

The Full Nerd crew ended up touching on this in our group chat, with Adam, Brad, Mike, and Will reflecting on what PC enthusiasts can still lavish attention and money on. Monitors were on the list, for example. And proving the point, any time Mike or Brad mention a new OLED panel deal, I feel my willpower dissolving just a bit further. (This morning, Mike spotted an LG ultrawide OLED, and I reminded myself several times that my current ultrawide is already great.)

But monitors aren’t something people buy often. I purchased my ultrawide during the pandemic, and even at four years old, it feels fresh and new to me. Most other people think this way, too. I don’t anticipate having to scrabble to find a replacement in five to six years, when I would more seriously consider a replacement. (And no, universe, I’m not asking for an apocalyptic event in tech to test this belief.)

Meanwhile, the Steam Controller feels like both a reprieve and a warning flare. Something fresh and shiny for enthusiasts, for sure. But also a possible omen of the future, where people scramble to order quickly, lest you end up waiting months for the next batch to appear.

I don’t love that vision for what could come to pass. I also don’t love the idea that I may have to watch hawkishly for every scrap of news or information of upcoming products I have interest in, lest I miss out on the narrow window of availability.

All that said though, perhaps the Steam Controller is simply a reminder I could just chill out. As I did while on vacation.

In this episode of The Full Nerd

In this episode of The Full Nerd, Adam Patrick Murray, Mike Crider, and Will Smith chat about testing Microsoft’s Auto SR on the Xbox Ally X, Xbox mode on Windows 11 PCs, and the Steam Controller launch. Will mysteriously disappears during the Steam Controller conversation, which makes me wonder what secrets he’s hiding.

(I can’t be the only one pondering this.)

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This week’s startling nerd news

My news feeds held some surprises upon my return—mostly oddities, like a standalone TrackPoint peripheral, but also a terrifying reminder that amoeba survived 400+ million years for a reason.

(If that makes them metal, I can’t tell. I’m too busy thinking about all the times I’ve rinsed wounds with tap water.)

• “A TrackPoint mouse without the point”: Harsh words, but that’s probably the most favorable description my colleague Mark Hachman gave the Ploopy Bean. (The others, I dare not quote here.)

• Could’ve used this: Given the number of times I got blank stares while I attempted to say “Habla inglés?”… Google Translate’s pronunciation aid could have helped me survive Spain a bit better. (Social shame is a powerful motivator, one that surpasses my wariness of AI-powered tools.)

• Not cool, Chrome: Google’s popular browser has been downloading a 4GB AI model, to enable on-device processing. The problem? No one knew until That Privacy Guy’s Alexander Hanff made it public.

• No thanks: Reddit soft-blocked Ars Technica’s Deputy Editor from using its mobile website. I’m with the commenters—I refuse to use the app, so limiting my usage to a desktop PC is a favor to me and my free time…not a punishment.

• RIP, Jeeves: Another pillar of the early internet days has officially died. I was always an Alta Vista gal myself, but I still bowed my head in respect when I heard the news.

• Still baking: My colleague Mike tried Microsoft’s answer to DLSS on an Asus ROG Xbox Ally X. His take? Not ready for prime time yet.

• That would end badly: Turtle Beach’s $160 touch-screen mouse would not work out to my benefit. Plus, I already upset teammates by committing accidental dumb plays, all without spending a dime.

• Still fun: Promo video or not, this human-sized PC is an entertaining concept. Mostly because I don’t need to be anywhere near temps approaching 38 degrees Celsius.

• Nope nope nope: Humanity’s most basic tech is fire. Apply it to water regularly, especially if using tap water to rinse out your nose. (Why? Just two words for you: “Unicellular terror.”) Boiled water for the win.

• Survivor: Who would have guessed Windows’ Win32 API would keep chugging its way through three decades? Not Microsoft, it seems.

This past week, I inched closer to converting kilos to pounds in my head. At least, I know what 3.7 kilos feels like now. (I hauled that much Haribo candy on my back while hopping around Europe.) Honestly, not mad about rucking 9 pounds as unintended exercise.

Catch you all next week!

Alaina

This newsletter is dedicated to the memory of Gordon Mah Ung, founder and host of The Full Nerd, and executive editor of hardware at PCWorld.