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"It looks like Valve really does want to start producing PC hardware, in some form or another. The company posted an opening for an industrial designer on its website recently, re-igniting rumors of a \u2018Steam Box\u2018 gaming console.\r\n\r\nThe most interesting part of the job description, highlighted by TNW's own Emil Protalinski, is as follows:\r\n\u201CValve is traditionally a software company. Open platforms like the PC and Mac are important to us, as they enable us and our partners to have a robust and direct relationship with customers. We\u2019re frustrated by the lack of innovation in the computer hardware space though, so we\u2019re jumping in. Even basic input, the keyboard and mouse, haven\u2019t really changed in any meaningful way over the years. There\u2019s a real void in the marketplace, and opportunities to create compelling user experiences are being overlooked.\u201D\r\nValve is moving in a very interesting direction right now. The firm is known for video game development, such as the Half Life, Portal and Team Fortress franchises, as well as creating the popular PC platform and marketplace\u00A0Steam.\r\n\r\nHowever, Valve showed signs of greater aspirations earlier this year, when it announced that it would be publishing apps on Steam from September. Mark Richardson was quoted in Forbes as saying the new expansion would involve not just gaming-related software, but \u201Ccreativity and productivity\u201D apps too.\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nThe move was unexpected, and now no-one quite knows what Valve has planned next. The company is well known for being very tight-lipped about its projects - especially the future of the Half Life series - and using very creative or unforeseen marketing campaigns.\r\n\r\nThe PC hardware space really needs companies like Valve though. At the moment if you ask any general consumer what the most desirable laptop or desktop is, you\u2019ll be given a different answer every time. HP, Sony and Toshiba are frequent suggestions, but when it comes to hardware for more general use, no firm stands head or shoulders above the rest.\r\n\r\nPart of the problem is that everyone is trying to emulate Apple\u2019s success, not by innovating themselves but by simply copying the look and feel of the Mac hardware. The result is massed of knock-off MacBook Air clones, each of them as uninspired and forgettable as the last.\r\n\r\nValve, however, feels like a very different company. Everything they touch screams of quality, and they already have a devoted following (most PC gamers love \u2018em) that\u2019s reminiscent of Apple\u2019s own infectious brand loyalty. As an example Steam already has it\u2019s own distinct look and feel, far removed from Apple\u2019s obsession with white and chrome interfaces.\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nIf you\u2019ve ever seen a laptop or desktop PC designed specifically for gaming, you could be forgiven for mistaking it as a Transformer. Products by Alienware in particular are renowned for being pretty heavy on the neon lights and sharp edged grills. Valve, if they choose to produce hardware especially for this market, could probably do something much cleaner and easier on the eye and attract a much area of PC gamers.\r\n\r\nHowever, Valve could be creating a video game console, a new control interface (note the quote\u2019s example of \u201Cbasic input\u201D), or something else entirely. As the mystery surrounding Valve\u2019s direction deepens, the excitement around it only increases. The firm clearly wants to innovate, and that can only be good for PC hardware - both for general consumers and gamers."^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://thenextweb.com/media/2012/09/04/pc-hardware-desperate-valve-innovate/>