Valve Imports 13 Tons of VR Headsets as Summer Launch Approaches
Import records reveal Valve has received nearly 13 tons of its upcoming Steam Frame VR headsets, while also stockpiling over 141 tons of Steam Machine game consoles ahead of a summer launch.
In early June, the German container ship Posen docked in Los Angeles after a two-week voyage from Shanghai, likely carrying the first mass production shipments of Valve's new Steam Frame VR headset.
Import records show that Valve's distribution partner Ceva offloaded nearly 32 metric tons of "Virtual Reality Devices" on Valve's behalf. After subtracting the weight of five 40-foot shipping containers (each roughly 3,700 kg), the actual product weight is about 13 tons.
The Steam Frame headset, including a pair of wand controllers, weighs 654 grams, so back-of-the-napkin math suggests fewer than 20,000 units in this shipment.
Separately, Valve's stockpile of Steam Machine game consoles has grown to 141 metric tons since April 23rd, arriving in containers weighing 12,600 kg each. At 2.6 kg per console (without controllers or cables), that could mean fewer than 50,000 units in the US.
Valve confirmed days ago that both the Steam Machine and Steam Frame will launch this summer, and has signaled that RAM price increases forced a rethink of pricing. Despite potentially high prices, the devices may sell out quickly.
Additionally, three shipments of Steam Deck handhelds arrived in May — two on May 18th and one on May 30th — with containers weighing 14,500 kg each, consistent with previous Steam Deck shipments before the Steam Machine was announced.
