> Laptops have lots of components that the Steam Machine doesn't have. The screen, keyboard, touchpad, cameras, microphones, speakers, battery, et cetera are all fairly small costs, but they add up. Plus using a Linux-based OS instead of Windows automatically knocks around $50 off the price because the price doesn't include the cost of an OEM Windows license.

Yet's all the mini PCs I've come across are more expensive than their laptop equivalent

Because it's also about the demand, and how much you can mass produce them to reduce the cost