The ROG Xbox Ally is the handheld PC I’ve been waiting for

Over eight years ago, video game juggernaut Nintendo changed the game with its hybrid Switch console, which bridged the traditional divide between gaming handhelds and full-blown home consoles. The Switch’s clever dockability resonated with many a gamer, and it also had the ripple effect of spurring the creation of an all-new product class of PC gaming handhelds.

The likes of Valve’s Steam Deck, Lenovo’s Legion Go, and Asus’ ROG Ally prove that x86 architecture with discrete graphics can be viably fitted into a handheld device, and that full-fat PCs can step up to the role of offering a console-like experience when the time calls for it.

Notably absent from the handheld party until now has been Microsoft, with the company offering no first-party portable hardware to showcase its Xbox and Windows 11 gaming ecosystems. This all changed back in June, when it was revealed that Microsoft and Asus were teaming up to bring a duo of Xbox-branded ROG Ally devices to market.

While pricing remains uncertain, we now have official confirmation that both the entry-level ROG Xbox Ally and the higher-tier ROG Xbox Ally X will reach store shelves on October 16 of this year. Both Microsoft and Asus have been showcasing the two up-and-coming handhelds at the currently-ongoing Gamescom 2025 convention in Cologne, Germany, and I’ve had the opportunity to get hands-on time with both units.

Here are my thoughts after spending several minutes using the ROG Xbox Ally series in person.

• Dimensions

  290.8 x 121.5 x 50.7mm

  Brand

  Asus

  Weight

  23oz (670g)

  Chipset

  AMD Ryzen Z2 A Processor

  RAM

  16GB LPDDR5X-6400

  Storage

  512GB M.2 2280 SSD

  
  

• 

  Dimensions

  290.8 x 121.5 x 50.7mm

  Brand

  Asus

  Weight

  25oz (715g)

  Chipset

  AMD Ryzen AI Z2 Extreme Processor

  RAM

  24GB LPDDR5X-8000

  Storage

  1TB M.2 2280 SSD for easier upgrade

  
  

Asus nailed the ergonomics

Both ROG Xbox Ally models are remarkably comfortable in the hand

Right off the bat, I can safely say that I’m a fan of the ROG Xbox Ally from an external design perspective. I’ve always found ROG handhelds to be both well-built and aesthetically pleasing, and this entirely carries over to the new hardware on offer.

Evolving on the shell design of Asus’ existing ROG Ally and ROG Ally X models, the ROG Xbox Ally series is designed with prominent Xbox controller-inspired handles that make for a genuinely comfortable in-hand feel. Weight distribution also appears to be well calibrated — the higher-end ROG Xbox Ally X’s 1.58 lbs (715g) weight is a bit more than the 1.48 lbs (670g) base model, but neither feel particularly dense.

After spending several minutes with the ROG Xbox Ally in my hands, I picked up older ROG handhelds to directly compare the in-hand feel. In my opinion, these new devices make the older ROG Ally X feel sharp and unnaturally angular by comparison.

To drive home the Xbox part of the product offering, the devices also include a prominent Xbox logo button, colored face buttons that match those found on Microsoft’s official controllers, and a signature green color accent lit on by default for the LED light rings flanking each analog stick.

The software is slicker than I expected

Microsoft’s attempt to console-ify Windows 11 is more than skin-deep

While I didn’t get a chance to benchmark gaming performance, the ROG Xbox Ally and Ally X’s upgraded internal specifications are sure to pack a graphical punch. They appear to be a modest spec bump over the existing ROG Ally X, which already performs relatively well by handheld gaming PC standards.

The updated internals and the ergonomically refined, Xbox-clad exterior are both massive wins for the ROG Xbox Ally series, but the real show-stopper is undoubtedly on the software side of things. Microsoft has been hard at work on improving Windows 11 for the paradigm that is handheld PCs, and it’s using the ROG Xbox Ally as a springboard to launch its massively overhauled OS experience.

The build of Windows 11 flashed on the ROG Xbox Ally is unique in that it features an important superpower. The device is capable of booting into a console-like interface environment that is touch and gamepad friendly, which immediately solves the issue of Windows being unintuitive on small, mouse and keyboardless displays.

Importantly, this new console-esque software mode runs more than skin deep. Behind the scenes, Microsoft has put in work to disable background tasks that impact gaming performance, while also disabling the desktop and taskbar shell components for a leaner OS with less computational overhead to worry about while gaming.

The software running on the demo units I tested isn’t finalized, and so it’s still subject to further change and refinement. There was no way for me to verify whether this stripped-down Windows 11 experience improves gaming performance and standby time to levels approximating the Steam Deck or the Switch 2, but I will say that the process of switching to and from desktop and gaming mode is more seamless than I had anticipated.

Within the gaming launcher’s sidebar, a setting is available for switching over to desktop mode. The process is near instantaneous, to the point where I was shocked at how quickly the familiar Windows 11 desktop appeared on-screen. To re-enter into game mode, you can do so without rebooting the device, though a prompt strongly encourages you to press the restart option to ensure system optimization and game compatibility.

The road forward

Handheld gaming PCs have legs

For as long as I’ve been a gamer, one thing has remained entirely consistent: my preference for handheld consoles over their home console and desktop PC counterparts. My earliest gaming memories were facilitated by Nintendo’s 2003-era Game Boy Advance SP, and I’ve always privileged portability and a flexible gaming experience over access to a bigger screen or more horsepower. Now, with today’s dockable gaming rigs being a part of the equation, I can essentially have my cake and eat it too.

While the ROG Xbox Ally series isn’t a substitute for my dream mobile gaming device — a first-party Surface Xbox — it certainly does look, feel, and behave much like how I’d envision such a device to do so. Even in my brief hands-on time with the two upcoming Asus handhelds, I can tell that serious effort has gone into the consolization of Windows 11, which bodes well for the platform’s future.

As for the physical hardware, it brings a dash of Xbox flair into the mix, along with subtle design tweaks that make for a refined (and highly comfortable) gaming experience. Most importantly, it achieves this feat without the need to be tethered to a wall outlet. While I can’t yet speak to the oh-so important metrics of performance, efficiency, and battery life, the combination of mature Asus hardware and reinvigorated Windows software has me incredibly excited about what’s to come in the handheld PC space.

If the ROG Xbox Ally series is priced at least somewhat competitively, I think Microsoft and Asus might have a real winner on their hands.