Featured Image Credit: Valve
Topics: Steam Deck, Valve, Tech
Valve continues to face issues with stock as OLED Steam Deck sells out due to issues with sourcing components.
The expense of buying or building computers or handheld gaming consoles has been skyrocketing over the past year, as a combination of tariffs and the AI boom have jammed component prices to the ceiling. Unfortunately, Valve has taken a serious hit and has finally confirmed that shortages and manufacturing delays are being caused by the ongoing RAM crisis.
RAM prices have been climbing rapidly over the past 12 months, with the price of RAM nearly doubling in quarter 1 of 2026 when compared to the first quarter of 2025, according to a report from TechRadar.
The shortages have been caused by the abrupt and massive influx of the development of AI data centers.
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The centers require unprecedented amounts of RAM to function, draining access to the components as manufacturers dump it into the hands of data center owners.
Now, Valve has announced that stock issues with the OLED Steam Deck are being caused directly by the RAM shortages, making it very difficult to keep up with demand.
The announcement has been made via a note underneath the Steam Deck options on the Steam Store, which are currently all out of stock.
The note reads, “Steam Deck OLED may be out-of-stock intermittently in some regions due to memory and storage shortages. Steam Deck LCD 256GB is no longer in production, and once sold out will no longer be available.”
This news is frustrating enough for those who are interested in purchasing a Steam Deck, but it could spell disaster for Valve’s upcoming Steam Machine.
It's likely the rumors of which could see substantial delays or price jumps to try to balance the cost of RAM against the building of the new console.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem that the RAM prices are going to cool or plateau any time soon.
It's not good news for the specs of the next generation of consoles, either.
The frantic rush to build AI data centers is only becoming more intense, and current forecasts indicate that the price of RAM will continue to inflate as 2026 continues. Seems like that leaked Steam Machine price might've been conservative in the end.
For those who are looking to buy a Steam Deck, secondhand options may be the only option for the foreseeable future.