What do guys think of the issues he brings up?

are steam machines DOA? 

Install Steam OS in your rig. Done. No need for overpriced machines labelled as steam machines.

In my very honest opinion and as the world's biggest Valve and Steam fan; no, absolutely not.

I don't think so. Frankly, I'm not sure who this is for. I thought I did at first but I doesn't make sense.
There's no way this is for casual gamers playing whatever. There's no way this for core gamers, which would be a lot more comfortable with a console judging by this video honestly. It certainly isn't for hardcore gamers because they were saying dead on arrival since day 1. What's more the advertising isn't strong enough to garner interest.

Now you see, I don't watch tv much but I just hoped someone would have the common sense for at least one ad there since I haven't seen one literally anywhere else. That bad huh?

Ouch hes not pulling punches.... but yeah... concept seems really weird, almost flawed.
I believe hes right in the DoA pronouncement for it.

Honestly if you want easy of use, couch gameing, for relaxed style gameing, getting a PS4 > steam machine my miles.

Want the flexiblity of a pc? and the better graphics options? go for a real desktop instead.

This middle of bothworlds, wiht no benefits, and at lower (perf/$ than a ps4), just isnt doing it any favors.

Also no exclusive games? if its only getting the same games you can already play on a Xbox One or PS4, why would you get this instead of one of the others? that ll have more games?

Everyones been saying it for ages, concept doesnt work, and its going to flop.

As a wiiU and mac owner (That has neither desire nor use for a massive tower in their limited living space) I'm probably the only person that could possibly benefit from a steam machine......if it ran windows that is...and even then I'm not really interested.
I should be the ideal target audience for this but......no. Sorry.

They are not right now. I'd wait and see if SteamOS gets supported more for both games and drivers.

I'm a big PC gaming fan, but this was an idea that could have only worked with :

(1)- A loss-leader type of major backer that could package something superior for an affordable price, $299 or $349ish.

(2)- Full Steam library availability, you'd have to have some unbelievably good dev work behind the scenes so that EVERY title could be recompiled and work acceptably (within 10% performance) of Windows PCs. It goes without saying that this is pretty much impossible, and why Windows is the de facto standard for PC gaming.

Seeing that as it is, the Alienware X51 is the closest thing we have to a legit product that delivers decent PC gaming in a prepackaged cheapish box that can be connected to your TV.

DIYers have had better options for ages really, but it remains a shame that no major company has truly figured out how to do this (living room PC for sale at Walmart/etc). The Alienware box is close, but I feel the cost is a little too high, and the results a little too weak to call it a homerun, to say nothing of the absent marketing for the thing.

But SteamBoxes? DOA. They would have been better off waiting for the pieces to work before releasing something that is just going to send the few people that buy them screaming onto Google on how to install Windows 10 on the damned things because they can only play a fraction of major titles (and at considerably worse performance to boot).

I am first and foremost a PC gamer but the concept of steam machines was a flea ravaged dog right from the start. Valve doesn't seem to understand what makes a console appealing and they sacrificed most of what makes PC gaming appealing in heading towards their confused nightmare. Top it off with screwing over your partners by being constantly late due to Valve way underestimating the difficulty in what they were trying to create and what you have is over priced pieces of junk that even the most hardcore Steam fans will find hard to swallow.