finally

Months after they were first revealed, Microsoft and Asus are letting the paying public have a chance to test out their new Xbox ROG Ally and Xbox ROG Ally X handhelds here at Gamescom. The two firms are also marking the show by finally announcing an “on shelf” retail release date: October 16th.

To be clear, these aren’t proper handheld Xboxes that will play any Xbox title, despite the “this is an Xbox” branding, but they’re still capable handheld gaming machines that can play PC games natively, or stream Xbox titles from an Xbox console or Microsoft’s cloud streaming service. Compared to the old Ally devices, the new Xbox models have been spruced up with new AMD processors and a streamlined Windows operating system. That should translate into better performance and a huge step forward in usability, and could make these the best Steam Deck competitors so far.

We went hands-on with both devices at Gamescom, with a software-focused outing at the Microsoft booth and a more hardware-focused extended play session in the Asus area, with Microsoft and Asus representatives providing some interesting extra details that we hadn’t yet heard.

Xbox Ally (in white) and Xbox Ally X (in black). | Image credit: Reece Bithrey/Eurogamer

Let’s start with the basics: the white Xbox Ally and black Xbox Ally X look identical in size and shape, which reportedly simplifies the production process, but the vanilla Xbox Ally is lighter by ~45g, as a consequence of lacking the upgraded Z2 Extreme processor and Impact triggers of the top-end machine. Both models are well-balanced and don’t feel too thick, despite their chonkier frames versus the original Ally devices. The impact of the Ally X’s impulse triggers is hard to judge, especially as relatively few games support them on PC, but might result in more fine-grained force feedback in some Xbox titles. Inside, the higher-end Ally X sports a larger 80Wh battery, has a more capable Micro SD card slot and a fancier higher-bandwidth USB 4 port alongside another USB 3.2 Gen 2 USB-C port.

Similarly, performance on the X with the Z2 Extreme chip is a bit of a mystery, with Asus reps unwilling to comment and relatively sparse reports online suggesting a small overall improvement – perhaps around 15 percent. However, that online reporting also suggests that larger gains are possible at lower power settings, hinting towards a boost to efficiency and potentially battery life – despite the matched 80Wh unit in the Xbox Ally X and regular Ally X. Meanwhile, the Z2 A chip in the regular Xbox Ally ought to perform very similarly to that of the Steam Deck, as it’s based on the same architecture and even has the same speed 6400MT/s RAM as the Steam Deck OLED.

The screens here feel well-chosen, with LCD used instead of OLED, but otherwise everything you’d want: a seven-inch 1920×1080 display rated up to 120Hz with VRR. We’ll take a colourimeter to them later to find out more about their colour reproduction and other performance figures, but the display here feels superior to that of the Switch 2 and a shade behind that of the Steam Deck OLED.

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The software experience is the biggest change here, with a design that includes both an upgraded Xbox app, used as a unified games launcher and general home screen, and the Armoury Crate software that Asus developed for the original Ally devices. The main idea is moving as much as possible onto the gamepad controls and into the Game Bar overlay. Ideally, you don’t need to connect a mouse and keyboard or even use the touchscreen to enter your PIN at login, go through Windows updates, make settings changes and launch games. Long-pressing on the Xbox button brings up a quick switcher, letting you move between different full-screen apps like games and Discord, and there are also iOS-style navigation gestures on the touch screen. Games from most major game storefronts will be automatically pulled into the Xbox launcher, so you shouldn’t need to venture into full-fat Windows to boot up most titles.

Perhaps even more importantly, the Xbox Ally devices boot up into a customised version of Windows built around the Xbox launcher, so services like the desktop window manager that normally run at startup are disabled. You’re able to pop into a full Windows instance, which prompts those missing services to start, and after this you can choose to move immediately back into the Xbox gaming mode – with the proviso that those background tasks will sap some performance – or reboot the device to get back to a fresh slate and full performance.

Microsoft engineers told me that nothing has been removed from Windows here, so in theory you’d be able to use the Xbox Ally or Xbox Ally X as your only computer, perhaps hooked up to a dock with a monitor, keyboard and mouse. There also wouldn’t be anything to prevent you from installing an alternate OS if you chose, though at present it would be a bit silly to buy the first Xbox-branded Windows gaming PC and then take that unique software off.

Model
ROG Xbox Ally X
ROG Xbox Ally

Chipset
AMD Ryzen AI Z2 Extreme (8 Zen 5/5c cores, 16 RDNA 3.5 GPU cores, 50 XDNA2 AI TOPS)
AMD Ryzen Z2 A (4 Zen 2 cores, 8 RDNA 2 GPU cores)

Memory
24GB LPDDR5X-8000
16GB LPDDR5X-6400

Storage
1TB 2280 NVMe SSD
512GB 2280 NVMe SSD

Screen
7-inch 1080p 120Hz VRR display

I/O
1x USB 4 Type-C, 1x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C, UHS-2 Micro SD card reader w/ UHS-1 DDR200 mode, 3.5mm
2x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C, UHS-2 Micro SD card reader, 3.5mm

Dimensions
291x122x51mm

Design
715g, L/R Xbox Impulse triggers
670g, L/R Hall Effect triggers

Battery
80Wh
60Wh

Price
£££££
£££

The demo units available at Gamescom did have some software glitches at this stage, with the Xbox Ally I tested constantly entering the pause menu in Forza Horizon 5 and behaving erratically when using the touch gestures from inside the game. These aren’t likely to be running the most recent software, due to the nature of these demos, but it does suggest that the software side may need a bit more time in the oven. Similarly, features like adding custom games to the launcher are also expected to come post-launch.

That could explain why we’re only just hearing about the October 16th release date right now, rather than prices and a firm timeline for when pre-orders begin… though the general state of the world (gestures broadly) might also impact proceedings. Regardless, there’s not too much longer to wait, and Asus reps were keen to assure us that pre-orders and pricing information would follow “soon”. (In fact, some retailers have already started listing the device in their virtual shelves, which we’ve begun cataloguing in our Xbox Ally buying guide).

Disclosure: Asus provided flights and accommodation to Cologne for Gamescom.

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