For years now, PC gamers who wanted to take their desktop library on the road faced the same problem: Windows. While Valve’s Steam Deck offered a seamless, Linux-based console-like experience, Windows handhelds even powerful ones were always bogged down by confusing desktop modes, finicky touchscreen setups, and irritating background notifications.
Enter the ASUS ROG Xbox Ally X. It’s not just a refresh of last year’s formidable Ally as the marketing says “This is an Xbox”, but if this is an Xbox, then My Mitsubishi is actually a Ferrari.
It’s not by the way, but if they can dream then so can I. I’m not saying it’s not an Xbox, it’s close and getting closer as they refine the systems. But there is still enough Windows in there to make gaming less seemless than turning on the console and jumping straight in.
The handheld has come along in leaps and bounds though. They threw out what was becoming a “standard look” in the genre and instead redesigned it into something that resembles an Xbox controller. Combining that with an “Xbox Full Screen Experience” they may have just created the most comfortable handheld on the market. That is if you don’t look at the competitions screen size.
Finally, Windows Gets Out of the Way
The real headline with the ROG Xbox Ally X is the introduction of the Xbox Full Screen Experience (FSE). ASUS has partnered with Microsoft to launch the Ally X (and the standard Ally) as the first devices to boot directly into the Xbox App, skipping the bloated Windows 11 desktop environment altogether. This is Microsoft’s direct response to SteamOS, and for the first time, a Windows handheld almost feels as intuitive as a dedicated console.
The change starts from the moment you switch it on. Setting up your Wi-Fi and signing into your Microsoft account can be done entirely with the controller no more awkward finger-tapping on a setup screen designed for a keyboard and mouse. Once you’re in, the FSE is all about games. Game Pass is front and centre, but launching Steam, Epic Games Store, or Battle.net is baked right into the library as well, allowing you to install and play without ever seeing a single desktop icon. This is being rolled out to other devices if you have selected beta testing, but the true experience is right here on the device that actually has the Xbox button.
It’s not all perfect though and the experience still has “PC” hangups that fog your rose coloured glasses. Annoying Windows popups happen quiet reguarly in the begining as you approve the pc versions of Game Pass games to run. The initial bootup requires more than a few updates in various areas of the device but some might think that is part of the fun.
I even found when trying to boot the new Call of Duty Black Ops 7 that it wouldn’t recognise my Game Pass ultimate and was instead asking me to purchase the game. This was fixed through a Reddit forum that told me I had too many PCs linked to my account and I had to remove some to bring it under 10 devices and allow the game to boot. How very “pc”.
Thankfully, once the teething is out of the way, the overall experience becomes far more enjoyable. The device flawlessly flows from Xbox Game Pass to Steam Library and the performance is buttery smooth on power-hungry AAA games and combined with the grips the device genuinely feels like the way PC gaming on a handheld should have always felt. You start to thinking maybe this IS an Xbox?
That is until you try to run a game on Xbox you have digitally purchased that doesn’t live within the PC Game Pass ecosystem. Some have options to stream via the cloud or via your console, but my testing with Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora and Borderlands 4 in this way were less than impressive. The device truely shines as a “PC Game Pass” extension, and so “This is an Xbox PC Game Pass Device” might not roll off the tongue as much, but is more accurate in some of my experiences.
Double the Goodness: Specs and Comfort
The perfomance is down to the impressive hardware that the Ally X packs into it’s reletively small form factor. The formidable AMD Z2 Extreme processor is the real hero here but ASUS didn’t just bump up the speed they gave it a serious memory and storage upgrade, configuring the device with a whopping 24GB of RAM and a generous 1TB SSD. This extra memory is vital for modern games and helps future-proof the device as much as possible as these premium priced handhelds seem to be updating on a semi regular basis.
ASUS Armory Crate Special Edition (ACSE) software serves as the performance heart of the Xbox Ally X, giving you granular control over the powerful hardware. Accessible instantly via a dedicated button, the Command Center overlay allows you to switch seamlessly between crucial Operating Modes, such as Silent (for maximum battery life during light tasks), Performance (a great balance for general gaming), and Turbo (unleashing the full power of the Z2 Extreme when plugged in). For the true power user, the Manual Mode allows for fine-tuning the system. This powerful control hub also handles driver updates, control mapping, and quick access to features like AMD’s upscaling and frame-generation technologies, it acts as essentially a bridge between the Ally X’s console-like feel and its underlying PC flexibility.
While the 7-inch, 1080p, 120Hz FreeSync Premium display remains the same (which to be clear, is a great screen) and its resolution is a perfect match for the Z2 Extreme’s power. The problem I have with it is that if you look around the room at the MSI Claw or the Lenovo Legion Go 2, or even the Steam Deck OLED, they all have much more vibrant, larger displays and I can’t help but feel like that meme where the guy is walking with his girlfriend and looking back and the attractive woman in red. I’m happy with the screen as long as I don’t compare it to others.
The Ally X is slightly heavier than its predecessor, clocking in at 1.58lbs, but it’s undoubably more comfortable as a result. ASUS has redesigned the grips, which now jut out further, mimicking the feel of a full-sized Xbox controller. It might feel like a major inovation but let’s remember that Playstation did the same thing with the Portal by basically cutting a dualsense controller in half and popping an 8inch screen inbetween it. This style of design works brilliantly and I hope to see more handhelds adopt a similar feel as is all but elimiates the hand fatigue.
The team have taken it one step further by adding brilliant Hall Effect triggers, which boast the Impulse Trigger haptic feedback found in first-party Xbox controllers. So yeah again.. closer and closer to being an “Xbox”.
Battling the Power Drain
Handhelds are power-hungry beasts, but ASUS has clearly listened to feedback on the original Allys. The Ally X is a resilient little machine. While it might still only last around 9 hours during general office use, the true test, running a demanding game like Cyberpunk of Call of Duty saw the battery hold out for what I would consider to be an impressive 2 and a half hours. That kind of performance really makes this a great device for gamers on a long trip or just generally on-the-go.
The price is almost frightening in Australia, while you hear the US shocked at the “thousand dollar price tag” here in Aus we are looking at $1,599. Having said that the Ally X is a premium device that can run your Game Pass, Steam Library etc so you would expect to pay more. When compared to other high-spec handhelds on the market, especially those using the Z2 Extreme chip, it is actually competitively priced and offers more refined software experience and better overall performance in most cases.
Ultimately, the ASUS ROG Xbox Ally X is an impressive device, but is it “An Xbox” as they claim. It certainly fixes the Windows problem, gives you excellent gaming performance that outperforms a good chunck of the competition, and offers a comfortable, premium chassis. All it needs now are a few minor software tweaks to the FSE to smooth out the remaining kinks.
That brings us to, is this something I could get behind to recommend to potential buyers? And for that I think back to my first night of using the device (this was after the updates and teething issues) and I booted up “The Outer Worlds 2” which was working flawlessly. I sat back on a bean bag and just played for hours, at no point did I think “this screen is too small” or “why isn’t this in 4k” I just played, the way a player plays and had the time of my life. Since then I’ve had multiple great sessions with different games like Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Call of Duty Black Ops 7 and Warzone, Cyberpunk 2077, EA Sports FC 26 even the steam version of Playstation “exclusive” The Last of Us Part 2 Remastered and every experience has been a possitive one. So yeah, it’s worth it. Afteral “This IS an Xbox”.
