I wonder if they're selling at a loss? Valve can afford it, plus it'd be no different than Sony/Nintendo/etc subsidizing hardware since they make most of their profits from software sales.
Only difference is that, unlike traditional game companies, this Steam Deck thing isn't a walled garden. But of course, Steam has a near monopoly on PC gaming so it's unlikely that'll be a problem for them.
I would bet that they do sell at a loss. There's an interview with Gabe[1] in which he keeps repeating that the price point was painful. He is very vague about it but he also mentions some calculus like "they'd have to sell 8 games to be profitable". So I have no doubt they're doing it like the consoles do it.
If Valve isn't locking the hardware down, but is subsidizing it, then they might run into a situation where cryptominers (or some other group) start buying these things up in bulk, but never playing any games on them.
I could see owning one of these as a non-gaming desktop.
They actually did a pretty smart thing, where you can only order it if you have a steam account that has spent money on steam before this month. I would guess that they also limit the amount of Steam Decks you can order as a single person so it would be some effort to start buying these things up in bulk.
Ethereum, because there are not ASICs for it. See the news about recent crackdowns on mining in China, that's where all the GPUs were at, mining Ethereum.
While this is true they are taking their time. Here is an article from 2017 that suggests they will have finished the transition to proof of stake by 2018:
I'm just making up hypothetical my friend. I can't really predict what these might be useful for as an alternative to gaming, but the world is full of bright people who exploit any opportunity.
Nintendo sells its consoles at a profit. It's why their hardware is always "behind" the other guys who are, as you say, selling you $4 of power for $3 and hoping to make it up over time on ecosystem purchases.
To be honest, I don't think your assumption is that far off. The way that Gabe talks about this device, I feel like the purpose is simply to extend the PC gaming market, which is essential for Steam.
Only difference is that, unlike traditional game companies, this Steam Deck thing isn't a walled garden. But of course, Steam has a near monopoly on PC gaming so it's unlikely that'll be a problem for them.