🆕 A brand new Steam Frame accessory has shown off a full-color passthrough module for the device
🎨 Arcturus Industries is launching an official Color Passthrough Module for the headset
👍 It’ll allow for up to 5K passthrough at 60fps by default, and is listed as ‘Steam Frame Compatible’, suggesting a proper hardware certification program from Valve
👀 We keep seeing accessories appear online, suggesting something is happening with the headset’s launch very soon
A brand new Steam Frame leak has shown off a clever full-color passthrough module ahead of the headset’s release.
As per X user Gogoxr and insider SadlyItsBradley, Arcturus Industries, the company behind the Steam Frame’s camera tracking system, is launching an official Color Passthrough Module for the headset.
The module is set to feature a pair of 32MP sensors, plus support for 10-bit HDR capture, real-time environment mapping, the ability to record Spatial Video and support Gaussian Splatting with tools.
An associated screenshot from the online store Komodo Station, an authorized distributor for Steam hardware in Japan, Hong Kong, South Korea and Taiwan, also reveals more details. It notes the device is set to support passthrough at up to 5K/60fps, although 72fps is available with a “special configuration” and 144fps can be supported with “updated software”.
The web listing also notes the Color Passthrough Module is ‘Steam Frame Compatible’, suggesting Valve has its own compatibility program for Frame accessories.
In a follow-up tweet, Bradley Lynch states the device is “likely to be available at launch” for the Steam Frame, although we still don’t really know when that is.
It’s worth noting that we have already seen other accessories for the headset appear online, including everything from grips to head straps and an array of carry cases, and the presence of even more suggests something must be happening soon.
Valve has a sale specifically on VR games running from September 14 to 21, leaving the 22 onwards free, which could point to the big announcement coming soon for the Steam Frame pre-order and release date announcement.
Likewise, there have been rumors that review units for the headset have been sent out to press and content creators, while Valve has continued to receive lots of Steam Frame shipments and certify lots of games for its new ‘Great on Frame’ category. We’ve also seen unboxing videos and setup videos that have leaked ahead of time.
All of this points to something happening soon, and it means this drawn-out wait for Valve’s next headset could soon be over.
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Reece Bithrey is a journalist with bylines for Trusted Reviews, Digital Foundry, PC Gamer, TechRadar and more. He also has his own blog, UNTITLED, and graduated from the University of Leeds with a degree in International History and Politics in 2023.