E3 2015: SMACH Zero Announced – First Steam OS Handheld Console
mSMACH, a third party company not associated with Valve Corporation, was on hand at E3 to announce the technical specifications and new name for the “Steamboy Project”, SMACH Zero. The hardware capabilities aim to strike “a balance between performance and cost,” allowing users to start playing more than 1,000 Steam games on day one. The games range from indie hits like FEZ and FTL: Faster Than Light, to more resource intensive games like Portal 2 and Borderlands 2: The Pre-sequel.
The technical specs for the handheld console, the first to run Steam OS, are as follows:
- AMD embedded G-Seires SoC “Steppe Eagle”
- Jaguar-based CPU
- GCN-based Radeon Graphics
- 4 GB RAM Memory
- 32GB internal memory and SD card slot
- USB OTG
- 5-inch 720p touch screen
- Configurable tactile gamepads
- HDMI video output
- Wi-Fi & Bluetooth conectivity
- (PRO model only) 4G mobile network connectivity
The handheld console is designed to reflect the latest iteration of Valve’s official Steam Controller, which features two touch pads, a control stick, 7 buttons on the face, and 6 in the rear. SMACH Zero is expected to launch sometime in 2016, with more information about price and availability to be announced at Gamescom this coming August.
