JSAUX's prebuilt Steam Machine faceplates arrive cheaper than DIY alternatives

Accessory maker JSAUX has launched prebuilt E-Ink and Pixel Matrix front panels for Steam Machine, offering owners a practical alternative to DIY display modifications. Both faceplates went on sale after gaining attention in the case mod community and integrate with SteamOS through Decky Loader plugin support.

The E-Ink faceplate delivers a crisp black-and-white display with multiple switchable modes including performance monitoring, play time tracking, clock, weather, calendar, and photo frame views. The Pixel Matrix trades detail density for colour and retro appeal, offering similar mode selection with a chunky LED matrix aesthetic. Both panels are controllable through SteamOS's quick settings menu, with software installation planned to be available directly through Steam from early October.

Pricing undercuts the DIY route. The E-Ink panel costs $100 and the Pixel Matrix $90, compared to $104.50 in component costs for building Valve's open-source Inkterface design from scratch, before accounting for 3D-printing or purchasing external housing. The prebuilt approach eliminates the need for soldering equipment and technical assembly.

Trade-offs exist between the two options. The E-Ink model excels at photo frame functionality, handling detailed images the Pixel Matrix's chunky LEDs cannot reproduce effectively. However, its fastest refresh speed is once per minute, limiting usefulness for live performance monitoring. The Pixel Matrix provides faster, less distracting updates for performance metrics but with lower visual fidelity.

Minor alignment issues affect both faceplates. The outer edges don't line up perfectly with the USB port, power button, and light strip on the Steam Machine's bottom lip. The E-Ink panel's right-sided USB-C port forces the connecting cable to stretch across this section. The performance counter displays TV or monitor refresh rate in frames-per-second rather than Hz, which doesn't reflect actual in-game performance.

JSAUX's prebuilt screens offer more display mode options than Valve's Inkterface design, which provides only a single performance monitoring screen when built to specification. The ready-made solution eliminates months of assembly and technical troubleshooting for users without soldering experience.