You have to remember, the price isn’t only due to the hardware.
We often still think of “hardware” as if it’s some tool we actually own like a wrench or a hammer that we can freely use how we like, and the price of it should depend on the cost.
But in the modern world the electronic hardware we buy is subsidised through gated ecosystems, and by profiting from slurping data and selling ads.
The reality is that Meta hardware is priced aggressively low to encourage adoption - on the basis of all the money they expect to make later from your data. Same with smart TVs and everything else with a similar business model.
Valve’s hardware will seem expensive, but that’s just the price you have to pay in the modern world for some small amount of control and privacy.
You have to remember, the price isn’t only due to the hardware.
We often still think of “hardware” as if it’s some tool we actually own like a wrench or a hammer that we can freely use how we like, and the price of it should depend on the cost.
But in the modern world the electronic hardware we buy is subsidised through gated ecosystems, and by profiting from slurping data and selling ads.
The reality is that Meta hardware is priced aggressively low to encourage adoption - on the basis of all the money they expect to make later from your data. Same with smart TVs and everything else with a similar business model.
Valve’s hardware will seem expensive, but that’s just the price you have to pay in the modern world for some small amount of control and privacy.
Personally, I’ll pay it gladly.