Good, the Steam Machine won't be 600$ most likely, either.
Also you don't necessarily need a dedicated GPU, unless you go with Intel.
> You can already get equivalent specs for cheap.
This is the context. A Steam Deck is bizarrely great value compared to anything you can buy, even without a screen, controller and battery.
Again if you know otherwise, please share.
I've tried to hit the $600 mark and in the past few years it's gotten harder and harder. The GPU invariably ruins things. And normal APUs are too asthmatic to really game on.