Who Is Raster, and What Are We Building?

Raster builds compact gaming PCs around a console-like SteamOS experience, using standard desktop parts and a practical, repairable approach.

Raster exists for people who want PC gaming to feel simpler, cleaner, and more at home in a living room.

We build compact gaming PCs designed around SteamOS, standard desktop components, and a setup experience that feels closer to turning on a console than maintaining a traditional Windows tower.

What we do

At the product level, Raster assembles and tests compact systems like Raster Zero with SteamOS pre-installed and configured before they ever reach you.

At the philosophy level, we focus on practical hardware choices: parts that are proven, replaceable, upgradeable, and easier to live with long term. We are not trying to make locked-down hardware or disposable gadgets.

Why we think this matters

A lot of people like the openness and performance of PC gaming, but not the friction that often comes with it. On the other side, consoles are easy to use, but they are closed ecosystems with fewer upgrade paths and less flexibility.

Raster is our attempt to sit in the middle: bring some of the approachability of a console together with the freedom of desktop PC hardware.

What we are trying to accomplish

Our goal is not just to sell a computer. We want to be an alternative to the Steam Machine and other SteamOS-based gaming PCs.

That means building systems that are quiet, compact, and ready to use, while also sharing what we learn about performance, compatibility, tradeoffs, and setup along the way.

This blog is part of that effort. We will use it to explain our products, document decisions, talk honestly about what works and what still needs improvement, and show what Raster is building toward over time.

If you have been following the Steam Machine, that is the lane we care about most: compact hardware, desktop-grade parts, and a more console-feeling PC experience without losing the benefits of an open platform.

We are just getting started, and this is where we will share the journey.