Stolen $1,300 Steam Machine Is A Reminder To Buy A Video Doorbell

by Paul Lilly — Monday, July 20, 2026, 10:26 AM EDT

Valve Steam Machine on a ping pong table.

We are not quite at the peak of porch pirate season—that will come once the holidays are in full force, especially around Black Friday and Cyber Monday—but given the rising cost of electronics these days, the threat is no longer a seasonal concern. Fortunately for a buyer who was able to snag an elusive Steam Machine console, Valve had their back when it was stolen seemingly minutes after delivery.

In a post on Reddit, user 'mdumtshali' asked for advice after their Steam Machine was plundered by an opportunistic porch pirate. According to the user, who lives in the U.K., a delivery driver for Royal Mail dropped off the package in a brown cardboard box and left it outside their door.

"I actually have a video of him trying to cover the box with a plastic bag that was lying around—but ultimately, it was gone when I got home. Contacted Steam support who said to ask my neighbours, but with the area I live in, this was likely stolen. I'm not really sure what to do, I've messaged support back to say it's not with my neighbors, but should I be contacting Royal Mail?," the user asked.

The Steam Machine buyer said they paid around £1000 (around $1,350 in U.S. currency), which means it was likely the 512GB model with or without a Steam Controller bundled, depending on if the quoted figure takes into account any applicable shipping costs and tax. Either way, a loss of that magnitude is a gut punch, especially on an item that is hard to come by in the first place.

Valve made the question posed on Reddit a moot one—in an update to the post, the user said Valve is sending out a replacement.

"They're sending out another one, planning to work from home/divert to pickup point when I know when it's getting here. Honestly, kudos to Steam Support. Thought I was going to be out £1000, which I really can't afford. Thanks for all the suggestions!," the user wrote.

Indeed, Valve deserves kudos for taking care of the customer. The Steam Machine is a high-demand item that is commanding big premiums on eBay and has a wait list for new orders.

All that said, it's not clear how big of a role (if any) the user's video camera played in getting a replacement Steam Machine with little hassle. In a follow-up post, they posted a picture of the delivery driver leaving the package on the doorstep after unsuccessfully trying to conceal the delivery in a safe space (apparently, it wouldn't fit), but it never hurts to have added ammo for these kinds of situations.

Amazon's own Ring doorbells are often on sale, just not right at the moment.

Tags: Gaming, Valve, Steam Machine

Paul Lilly

Paul is a seasoned geek who cut this teeth on the Commodore 64. When he's not geeking out to tech, he's out riding his Harley and collecting stray cats.