Our Verdict
Due to software program, battery, and design enhancements, the ASUS ROG Ally X is now a correct competitor to the Steam Deck OLED and is well one of the best Home windows 11-based handheld on the market. The one actual points are the value, which a contact too excessive, and the often tedious expertise of Home windows 11 on a touchscreen.
- Finest-in-class efficiency
- A lot improved battery life
- Vibrant LCD display
- Refined ASUS UI
- Home windows nonetheless a bit clunky
- Costly
- No carry case included
Following the launch of the Steam Deck, the trade sat round and waited for the Xbox to its Ps, the Pepsi to its Coca-Cola, or the Papa John’s to its Domino’s. Then, the unique ASUS ROG Ally arrived. Sadly, because of a disappointing battery life and software program points, it felt extra just like the generic retailer model tender drink to the Steam Deck’s Coca-Cola. That might all be about to vary, although. With the discharge of the ASUS ROG Ally X, the competitors may lastly have sufficient fizz to get fascinating.
Okay, so sufficient with the analogies. The Ally X is right here, and it’s a powerful leap ahead. Its battery life is far improved, the gaming interface is best, and the efficiency is out of this world. Nonetheless, whereas it is perhaps the most important issue, efficiency isn’t all the time every part. So how precisely does this new little bit of package from ASUS stack up alongside the remainder of the Steam Deck alternate options and moveable gaming consoles? Let’s get into it.
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Value and availability
The ASUS ROG Ally X is offered now for $799.99 / £799, both immediately from the ASUS ROG web site or Finest Purchase within the US and Currys within the UK. It ships with a beefy 65W charger, and in contrast to the Steam Deck OLED, which is offered in numerous storage configurations, each Ally X comes with a whopping 1TB of storage. Like Valve’s moveable PC, it’s additionally solely accessible in Black.
Specs
Options and software program
The ASUS ROG Ally X runs on Home windows 11. You may assume this simplifies the expertise, however that isn’t all the time the case. Positive, it’s simpler than Linux if you wish to browse the web or watch some clips on YouTube, however let’s be trustworthy, that’s what your cellphone is for. Should you’re getting an Ally X, you’re getting it for gaming, and that’s the place Home windows is usually a little bit of a nuisance.
Except you’re extremely dextrous, utilizing a Home windows touchscreen machine may be irritating as a result of small sizing of on-screen icons. I’m something however dextrous, and I even have membership thumbs – look it up – so getting across the display is usually a actual headache.
There’s the choice to plug in a mouse and keyboard, but when I needed to try this, I’d have simply purchased a gaming PC. There’s additionally, as is usually the case with Home windows, the odd second the place the software program simply doesn’t wish to play ball, randomly closing the keyboard or mentioning the taskbar whilst you’re attempting to play. It’s not the top of the world, but it surely may very well be smoother.
Fortuitously, when you’ve bought every part able to go Home windows-wise, you should use the most recent model of the Armoury Crate SE overlay to simplify issues. You possibly can open Armoury Crate SE by urgent the decrease button to the appropriate of the show, and right here you’ll discover all of your video games. I imply all of your video games; it brings collectively every part out of your library throughout platforms like Xbox Recreation Move, Steam, Epic, and extra, and places them multi functional place.
Armory Crate SE is the place to go to play with all your settings, from selecting LED analog stick lighting patterns to remapping your controls. Due to a comparatively current replace from ASUS, this overlay is extremely user-friendly. At no level did I battle to discover a setting I used to be in search of, and I like the way it lays out all of my video games in entrance of me, even when it provides to the disgrace of getting so many unplayed Steam titles.
The Ally X additionally makes it extremely handy to vary any settings with the Command Middle. Just like the Armory Crate, you possibly can open the Command Middle by clicking a button subsequent to the show, however this time it’s on the left-hand facet. From right here, you possibly can alter the working mode, management mode, and FPS limiting or convey up a real-time monitor with totally different choices for displaying data on the display. As a reviewer who has to maintain his eyes on all issues battery life and fps, I can solely thank ASUS for this.
Design
By way of ergonomics, I don’t have a foul phrase to say in regards to the Ally X. It’s thinner than the licensed wide-boy Steam Deck, the buttons, d-pad, and analog sticks all really feel extra tactile and responsive than the unique, and the rounder grips with a brand new texture really feel significantly better in your palms. There’s nonetheless no equal to the Steam Deck’s trackpads, however I’ll be trustworthy, I don’t use these trackpads, so this extra compact structure is precisely what I’m in search of.
Nonetheless, the most important design distinction between the Ally X and the unique isn’t obvious till you flip the factor over. The extra buttons on the again are smaller and nearer to the center of the console, reasonably than that includes as a part of the grips. Whereas this may make them a little bit more durable to achieve for these with small palms, I a lot favor the brand new structure. Admittedly, I don’t use these further buttons a lot, however their new placement means they’re out of the way in which after I don’t want them and simply in attain after I do.
Whereas the construct is far improved, I can’t precisely say that it’s light-weight. At 678g, this factor is nearly 200g heavier than the Nintendo Change or round 40g heavier than the Steam Deck OLED. Nevertheless, I wouldn’t say it’s too hefty for lengthy play periods, and if something, the weightiness makes the factor really feel a little bit extra sturdy than the alternate options. I’m nonetheless not going to throw it down the steps to place this to the check, however I really feel prefer it might simply deal with the occasional drop.
Show and audio
Whereas followers of the unique Ally have been hoping for an OLED show with the follow-up, ASUS has caught with an LCD display. In actual fact, there’s no actual change outdoors of a slight dim that makes the show simpler on the eyes; it’s just about the identical 7-inch HD-ready 120Hz refresh fee display of the unique. So sure, the Steam Deck OLED has an OLED panel, however the Ally X is able to 120Hz, 30Hz greater than the Steam Deck, and might run video games in superb 1080p.
The Ally X’s peak brightness is 500 nits, 100 lower than that of the Steam Deck OLED, however in actuality, it’s barely noticeable. Whether or not you’re enjoying in the dark with all of the lights off or having fun with a little bit of One other Crab’s Treasure – a private Xbox Recreation Move favourite – within the backyard and below the blaring solar, there’s no subject discerning what’s happening on-screen.
Not solely is the show crisp, but it surely’s sturdy too, because of ASUS choosing Corning Gorilla Glass DXC coating that each reduces glare and provides 40% extra scratch resistance than the unique. Scratch resistance is an enormous deal on a touchscreen machine like this, and as somebody who’s particularly clumsy and accident-prone, I admire it. Sadly, it’s nonetheless all too straightforward to depart fingerprint smudges on the display, however that’s not an issue distinctive to the Ally X, so I can’t lambast it for that each one an excessive amount of.
Very similar to the show, there’s little change to the incredible audio system of the unique Ally, besides they’re a little bit louder. I are likely to play with headphones in, however the in-built audio system do a strong job, particularly with sound results. Issues can get a little bit muddy if there’s numerous audio happening on the similar time, primarily within the increased frequencies, but it surely’s by no means sufficient to turn out to be grating. I’d nonetheless go for headphones, however in case you favor to play with cans off, the audio system are greater than succesful.
Efficiency
I’m not going to mince my phrases right here: the ASUS ROG Ally X is a efficiency beast. Whether or not you’re trying to play your indie favorites or the most recent AAA titles, this factor packs greater than sufficient horsepower to supply a handheld PC gaming expertise that goes past something I’ve skilled to date.
One factor that hasn’t modified with the ROG Ally follow-up is the AMD Z1 Excessive processor. I’m not an enormous PC gaming man outdoors of portables just like the Ally X, however even I do know that this SoC is one of the best you’re going to search out in a handheld. It provided higher efficiency than the Steam Deck OLED within the authentic Ally, and now, with higher battery life and cooling, it’s barely even a contest. By way of pure efficiency energy, the Ally X is one of the best handheld on the market, making the Nintendo Change look nearly primitive compared whereas additionally exhibiting up Valve’s blockbuster console.
Whereas battery life is the headlining enchancment of the Ally X in comparison with its predecessor, the 8GB RAM enhance is the actual showstopper in relation to gaming efficiency. Not solely does this factor have extra RAM, but it surely’s additionally faster, round 1,000MHz faster, combining with the top-tier AMD processor to supply efficiency that handheld followers might solely dream of only a few years in the past.
All these numbers and specs are nice, however I do know what you’re asking – how effectively does it truly run video games? Very effectively, is the reply. Throughout my testing, I poured loads of hours into Hello-Fi Rush and One other Crab’s Treasure, every of which performs properly at round 60fps at 1080p decision in efficiency mode with none noticeable dips. Contemplating the Steam Deck tops out at 800p, that is all of the extra spectacular.
Nevertheless, neither of those examples are AAA video games, and whereas the Ally X nonetheless cuts the mustard with video games like Elden Ring and Cyberpunk 2077, you’re nearer to 30fps on 1080p. Should you decrease the decision to 720p, you will get nearer to the 50fps mark, however whether or not or not you wish to try this is dependent upon whether or not you worth frames-per-second or decision extra.
There’s a little bit of technical jargon there, however put merely, the Ally X can run any fashionable sport, you simply may need to tweak the settings a little bit to get the expertise you need. You additionally must be a realist and settle for that it’s not going to be fairly as prime quality as an precise gaming PC, however for the rising area of interest of handheld PCs, there’s nothing round on the minute that comes shut, even when the Lenovo Legion Go shares among the similar {hardware}.
As I’ve came upon with different moveable consoles, depraved efficiency doesn’t imply a lot if the factor itself will get too scorching to make use of over a protracted gaming session. Fortuitously, that’s one thing else you don’t have to fret about with the Ally X, because of its Zero Gravity cooling system. Like different handheld PCs, I’ve observed that it will get hottest if it’s mendacity on its again, however because of some nifty little cardboard stands that come within the field, you possibly can maintain it standing whereas it’s on cost or downloading a sport. Within the palms, it’s good and funky, and never practically as loud because the Steam Deck, which is all you possibly can actually ask for.
Battery
Contemplating the battery lifetime of the unique ROG Ally was one in all its most lambasted options, ASUS will need to have absolutely recognized {that a} follow-up needed to provide a substantial enchancment to attract people away from the Steam Deck OLED. Excellent news: it does. The 80Wh battery goes for for much longer than that of the unique’s 40Wh, which isn’t an enormous shock contemplating it’s double the scale. This implies you possibly can play your favourite video games for longer, which is all the time a win in my guide.
Precisely how lengthy you possibly can play is dependent upon your efficiency settings. There are three pre-determined setting choices; 25W turbo, 17W efficiency, and 13W silent. As you’d think about, the battery drains quickest on 25W turbo mode, providing simply round two hours at 25W, three hours at 17W, and 4 hours on 13W. That’s a tough guideline, but it surely all is dependent upon what sport you’re enjoying and whether or not you’ve turned the thumbstick LEDs off for further juice.
One other spotlight is that, in contrast to different moveable PCs, the Ally X barely loses any cost in standby mode. There’s nothing extra annoying than selecting up your Steam Deck after leaving it on standby in a single day to search out that its battery is nearly flat. You simply don’t get that with the Ally X.
By way of charging speeds, all of it is dependent upon whether or not you’re utilizing the Ally X or not whereas juicing. On standby mode, you possibly can totally cost this factor in round an hour and a half to 2 hours, supplied you’re utilizing the charging unit from the field. Should you’re enjoying, it takes nearly twice as lengthy. Nonetheless, it’s an enchancment on the unique, and it appears charging instances may be even faster in case you’re utilizing a extra highly effective charger.
Must you purchase the ASUS ROG Ally X?
Should you’re in search of a top-end moveable PC gaming console and funds isn’t an issue, the ASUS ROG Ally X is a incredible possibility. Truthfully, it’s the one factor I’ve tried out because the arrival of the Steam Deck OLED that correctly rivals Valve’s market chief. Whereas I’m personally an enormous fan of the nostalgia-inducing Ayaneo Flip DS, if I had to decide on only one Home windows-based console for a desert island journey – particular, I do know – I’d go for Ally X each time.
The massive caveat is Home windows. Even with all of the work ASUS has put into bettering the expertise, which it actually has performed with the most recent model of Armory Crate, navigation continues to be clunkier than the Steam Deck various. There’s additionally the value level, which is $150 costlier than the 1TB Steam Deck OLED. Whether or not you are feeling like stretching your funds is as much as you, however whilst an enormous fan of the Ally X, I discover it onerous to justify spending that rather more, particularly if you don’t get a complimentary carry case.
Alternate options
If we haven’t bought you on the ASUS ROG Ally X, try our options for alternate options beneath.
Steam Deck OLED
There are not any prizes for guessing this various. With each the Steam Deck OLED and ROG Ally X’s standing as strong bits of package, the massive differentiator right here is whether or not you like a Home windows or Linux working system. Should you’ve learn this overview in its entirety, you’ll know that I favor the Steam Deck’s Linux strategy, however you may really feel in another way. If you wish to know extra, try our Steam Deck OLED overview.
Lenovo Legion Go
Whereas I can’t say that the Lenovo Legion Go is as spectacular as both the Ally X or Steam Deck OLED, its removable controllers assist it stand aside from the PC-based moveable console pack. Should you’re hesitant to spend nearly $800 on a brand new console, the Legion Go can also be round $200 cheaper than the Ally X. For extra particulars, see our Lenovo Legion Go overview.
