"That depends" on if the specs will be able to perform for the games you want, if you want mITX, if you like the price once it's revealed, etc.
Laptops generally perform terribly unless using SSDs/NVMEs and having a good enough CPU&GPU, but heat dissipation/heat removal is generally awful compared to an mITX build. I would wait for full information on specs & price, but supposedly it'd beat a majority of machines being used as-is. So if it's worth it, will be up to you when you get all the info, price, and even see some benchmarks vs settings for games you intend to play.

Here's my thought on it.

Depending on the price of the Machines, they're probably the best option for people like yourself. Unless there are console exclusives that you absolutely want to play, considering a console isn't really that much of a good idea anymore.

With consoles, you have to buy all your games often at full price (especially with Nintendo consoles, since they have their own niche compared to Sony/Microsoft). You pay a subscription fee just to play online multiplayer. You can't really customize your console all that much. If it breaks, it's not so easy to repair, and you can't upgrade much other than the storage (and even that isn't always easy to do).

Meanwhile, a Steam Machine will give you solid hardware to play most current games (and loads of older games), a majority of your library will be waiting for you to just install and play without any other fees. Steam sales and bundle sites (Humble, Fanatical, etc) let you pick up loads more games for very little money. You will be able to use your Machine for so much more than just gaming, allowing it to double as a PC if you need something more powerful than your laptop for one reason or another. If something breaks, Valve partners with iFixIt for self-repair guides. If you want to upgrade the RAM, you can do that. The list goes on.

Objectively speaking, a Steam Machine is going to be a better value than any console unless you don't have many games in your Steam library but even then, I don't really see any real reason why anyone should opt for a console instead of getting one of the Machines unless Valve screws up and prices them unfairly.

All that said, if you have the knowledge on how to do so, it wouldn't hurt to consider buying parts and building your own PC. It's a great experience and lets you really make that PC your own. There's also the fact that Linux (including SteamOS) sometimes will require you to change Proton settings here and there, and some games just won't work if they have kernel-level anti-cheat and the developers aren't playing nice. Games like Destiny 2 are intentionally crippled on Linux by their developers, to the point where they threaten to ban anyone trying to play on Linux, all because of a lousy excuse of "more people cheat on Linux".

So yeah, the TL;DR is this: unless the Machines are unfairly priced, they are objectively a better deal than buying a console. You get all the strengths of PC gaming and Steam, but with the convenience and smooth experience of a console.

PS: This video is for the Steam Deck vs. the Switch 2, but a lot of the same principles apply and I recommend giving it a watch because he highlights a lot of what I'm saying here but does a better job of articulating what I'm trying to say.

Main downside to getting the deck or steam machine is multiplayer games, some do not run on Steams OS due to anti-cheat software.

If you are a casual gamer, probably the steam machine is a good bet for you. We don't yet know the price, so it has to hang in there until we do.

I have an xbox series S. As an "ecosystem", I prefer steam to xbox. No doubt. xbox is kind of meh. Very popular games like EAFC (just an example) have a few dozen reviews. There are no particularly good forums for anything. No real "platform" engagement. At least I don't feel any. One think the console had for me (had 2 in a row) was the price of the console and gamepass. But that was in a time gamepass was a good deal. Right now it's ridiculously expensive and, IMO, the overall quality of games have declined. They can claim they increased the number of games, but the quality... But I paid 275 for an xbox series s with one controller 2 years ago. What would that get me on PC? Not even a GPU. But right now xbox is just not worth it for me.
I also consider games on steam to be cheaper and there are many more to chose from.

I won't talk about the PS5. I have no real knowledge about it.

As for the steam machine itself. it will run quite a few games. If you aren't looking for something specific and settle for whatever you can play, then I see no real reason not to get a steam machine. There will be some multiplay games that won't work, others don't have full compatibility, but it looks like you can play almost all games. And it should handle just like a console too. With the bonus that you can also use you laptop for games that can run there (steam cloud backs up your saves too, so it syncs devices).

There is also another option that is for you to get a desktop PC, install a linux distro and install steam. The real advantage here is that it's easier to repair and upgrade. But does require a little bit of knowledge (if you have a good local PC store, they can also help). SteamOS might also come out for "general" use, but for now we don't know.

But it comes down to price. I think the steam machine will be priced somewhere between the xbox series s/PS5 and the PS5 Pro/xbox series X. But only time will tell.

And as a last note, right now I think not even valve knows how much the steam machine will cost. It's a rough market these days.

引用自 ash ♡：

would it be worth the investment?

If you're looking to "invest" in something, just get a desktop.

You can get a pretty powerful machine for a decent price these days.

For what it's worth, the Steam Machine was made for people like you -- people new to gaming. So, it would probably be a good choice if you're not happy with gaming on your current laptop. The major advantage is that it's a PC, can do everything that a PC can do, and doesn't have any hidden fees.