Asus ROG Xbox Ally X review: I love this Windows handheld for a few reasons, but price isn’t one of them

Introduction

It took a helping hand from Asus, but 2025 saw Microsoft officially throw its hat into the PC-based gaming handheld area. The ROG Xbox Ally X arrives as the beefier part of the firm’s two-pronged assault on what has essentially become Steam Deck territory, alongside a cheaper, less potent baby brother.

While I was impressed by the ROG Xbox Ally‘s comfortable form factor and full-screen Xbox experience that finally felt comfortable on a handheld, it wasn’t particularly powerful – only targeting 720p gameplay in most titles – and made a few concessions to justify the Ally X’s price premium.

Can the addition of Impulse trigger haptics, more potent hardware, and a contrasting colour scheme make a better impression? And can they possibly justify the $999/£799 asking price, which eclipses the Steam Deck OLED by a big margin? You could also pick up multiple Nintendo Switch 2s for that kind of cash. That Ryzen Z2 Extreme chipset has some heavy lifting to do…

Design & build: black magic

The ROG Xbox Ally X is the Xbox Series X to the Ally’s all-white Xbox Series S, being decked out entirely in black rather than white. Both handhelds share the same basic shape, with chunky controller grips at either side mimicking the look and feel of an Xbox console controller – just stretched to make room for a 7in touchscreen. They’re as comfortable to grab hold of here as they were on the ROG Xbox Ally, and continue to put most rivals to shame.

There’s a lot of Asus ROG Ally X DNA here, but subtly updated at Microsoft’s behest. The micro-etched lettering over the front face plate now reads ROG XBOX, and there’s now a dedicated Xbox button next to the usual brace of menu shortcut keys. It works just as the console controller’s version does, letting you jump straight into the new-look Xbox app at any point during gameplay.

With a bigger battery and more advanced haptics, this is unsurprisingly an even heavier handheld than the ROG Xbox Ally. At 715g it’s not so hefty I found it uncomfortable to hold for a multi-hour play session, but a Steam Deck OLED won’t put quite as much strain on your wrists. The controller grips also make this a thicker device than, say, a Nintendo Switch 2; you’ll need to make more room for it in a backpack, especially once tucked away in a protective case.

The general control layout is unchanged from the Asus-badged Ally, with offset analogue sticks, an eight-way directional pad, four responsive face buttons, two bumper buttons and a pair of triggers. A pair of extra buttons then lurk at the rear, ready to be assigned to whatever input you like. The illuminated thumbstick surrounds can be set to any colour, not just Microsoft-approved Xbox green. You really feel like you’re playing on an Xbox pad, not a third-party knock off.

Connectivity will also seem familiar to anyone that’s used an Asus Ally, with two USB-C ports up top next to a 3.5mm headphone port, microSD card slot, and a fingerprint-sensing power button that usually (but not always) got me straight past the Windows lock screen. Some missed readings aside, it was almost always quicker than reaching for the touchscreen or entering my PIN with the controller buttons.

Steam Deck owners might bemoan the lack of touchpads, but strategy games aside there aren’t many game genres I tried where I felt they were truly missed. Having an Xbox UI that’s better designed for controller input really has made a big difference.

I also have to mention the Impulse trigger haptics, which are far more immersive than the regular vibration you get on other handhelds, ROG Xbox Ally included. In Forza Horizon 5 you genuinely can feel your car begin to understeer or wheelspin, while Hogwarts Legacy‘s spells each have their own individual feel. It’s a subtle addition, but once that brings the Ally X much closer to the feeling of playing on an actual Xbox.

Screen & sound: a familiar face

The ROG Xbox Ally and Ally X share display specs, meaning you get a 7in LCD panel with a 16:9 aspect ratio no matter which model you go for. When the OG Ally was new this was a pretty competitive setup, with a Full HD resolution and 120Hz refresh rate bringing higher fidelity and smoother motion than you’d get from a Steam Deck, but in 2026 it’s a little old hat.

Rivals have since switched to more impactful OLED screens with faster response times and HDR support, or gone much bigger – 8in is now the norm. The black display bezels seen here aren’t the slimmest, even if the all-black chassis helps disguise them a little, and to my eye a 16:10 aspect panel would’ve filled the gap rather nicely. Microsoft’s tight grip over the budget likely meant Asus had to stick with what it had.

That’s not to say you’re getting a sub-par experience, mind. The LCD has respectable contrast levels and its colours still appear vibrant when you ramp the brightness up. A peak 500 nits is good enough for daytime gaming, unless your game of choice is very dark indeed, and viewing angles are decent enough given you’re really only sitting in one position to play the thing. An anti-reflective coating like the one seen on the cheaper 1TB Steam Deck OLED still would’ve been nice to diffuse strong light sources.

The variable refresh rate made a big difference to my perception of smooth gameplay in titles that couldn’t always hit 60fps, and I can’t fault the Ally for clarity. 1080p is a noticeable step up from the Deck’s 1280×800, which isn’t nearly as sharp or defined in games running at the native resolution. I’d still rank this screen alongside the larger Lenovo Legion Go S, even if I’m disappointed not to get an OLED panel or HDR support given the high asking price.

I thought the ROG Xbox Ally X did a great job on the audio front, with enough punch at 80% volume that I only needed headphones when there was someone else in the room – handy, because Microsoft still hasn’t made it any smoother to pair Bluetooth headphones without heading to the Windows desktop. The Atmos virtual upmixing helps create a reasonably wide soundstage and the tonality is well balanced. There’s not much in the way of bass, but Cyberpunk 2077‘s explosions and gunshots didn’t sound properly tinny either.

Software: much more like it

With Asus handling hardware, that largely left Microsoft to concentrate on what’s been an Achilles’ heel for every PC-based gaming handheld that isn’t the Steam Deck: Windows. The OS was designed for mouse and keyboard controls, and much bigger screens than this. It also runs all sorts of superfluous, battery-sapping background tasks that aren’t needed when you just want to play games.

I’m not saying the firm has addressed all of these issues – but it’s gotten very close.

The full-screen Xbox interface is now the first thing you see after passing the Windows lock screen. It’s got a layout that actually works on a small display, with touch- and controller-friendly navigation, and it doesn’t pretend other storefronts don’t exist: Steam, Epic, GOG and BattleNet are all integrated, with newly added games appearing automatically. Handheld compatibility labels in Microsoft’s own store also let you know whether to expect decent performance before you buy. In-game, the refreshed Game Bar shows up when you press the Xbox button. The friends list is clearer now and useful features like game/chat audio balance are easier to reach.

Finish playing a game in your Steam library and you’ll be taken right back to the Xbox interface, rather than the desktop. That’s because a lot of Windows 11 isn’t actually loaded into memory until you need it now, preserving system resources; you’re even asked to reboot rather than return to the Xbox interface for better performance. Windows Security alerts don’t take over the screen as much anymore, and even the initial Windows setup process is easier to get through on a controller. The other big win is compatibility with anti-cheat software, something the Linux-based Steam Deck has yet to fully nail.

Asus hasn’t stripped out its own Armory Crate SE software, but it’s not as prominent as it was on the original Ally. I only really used it to update drivers, customise the rear buttons, or tweak the RGB lighting. Pretty much every other setting can be changed through the Game Bar’s quick settings panel: power modes, resolution and refresh rate, display brightness and volume are all here. There’s also an onscreen performance overlay, but I hate the way it interferes with windows while on the desktop. There are a few other examples where Microsoft could still do more to streamline the handheld experience, and until it does, it’ll sit in second place to the Steam Deck for overall usability.

Performance: mostly meets the 1080p promise

AMD’s choice of name implies the Ryzen AI Z2 Extreme chipset inside the Xbox ROG Ally X is a simple step up from the Z2 A that powers the Xbox ROG Ally, but the two are based on different architecture and have integrated graphics from different generations. The Z2 Extreme’s 8 cores and 16 threads can hit a higher boost speed, and are permitted to run at a 35W TDP while on mains power – a big step up over the Z2 A’s 20W.

The AI part then means support for Microsoft’s upcoming automatic upscaling tech, which will work with any game you like – not just ones with baked-in compatibility, like Nvidia’s DLSS. What performance gains that brings remains to be seen, though. The update is due to arrive at some point in 2026.

A healthy 24GB of RAM also ensures the GPU isn’t starved of memory for modern titles with high quality textures, and the 1TB of on-board storage is more generous than the Xbox ROG Ally’s 512GB, which quickly fills up once you’ve installed a few AAA releases.

Desktop performance gains over the Asus Ally X’s Z1 Extreme aren’t huge, with synthetic tests showing a roughly 5-10% gain across single- and multi-core tests. They’re a big step up over the Xbox ROG Ally, though. I noticed the difference in general responsiveness, with apps and games opening a fair bit faster.

It’s frame rates in games that’ll matter to most potential owners, of course. Microsoft says the Xbox ROG Ally X is targeting 1080p gameplay, and while on mains power it largely delivered. The 35W turbo mode sees roughly 10-20% gains over the Asus-badged Ally X, so while more demanding newer titles require some sensible graphics settings (or upscaling trickery) to get you there, I could pass the 60fps mark in most of the games I tested at the handheld’s native resolution.

Forza Horizon 5 defaulted to High and ran at 75fps. Hogwarts Legacy? A locked 60fps, albeit at low details. Gears Tactics might’ve fallen just shy at 51.1fps, but that was with every graphics setting cranked; turned down to a mix of medium and high details it sailed through smoothly. It’s not like 51fps was unplayable either, with the variable refresh rate screen picking up the slack.

Shadow of the Tomb Raider wasn’t quite the same story, with even modest details only getting me 49fps; I preferred to play with nicer visuals and accept the 43fps maximum. Dropping down to 720p of course makes a big difference, but if you’re going to do that – or stick to older, less demanding titles and indie fare – the cheaper ROG Xbox Ally might make more sense. Depending on the game, a Steam Deck OLED can also get very close, or even outperform it.

Cyberpunk 2077 remains my torture test for handhelds, especially once ray tracing is thrown into the mix. At 1080p and with the High graphics preset, the ROG Xbox Ally X managed 32.6fps; the RT Medium preset saw that dip to just 11.5fps. AMD’s FSR upscaling and frame generation massively improve things, though. On otherwise identical settings, it managed 42.2fps and 19.7fps respectively. With a bit of tweaking, it was perfectly playable without having to drop to 720p.

It means ray tracing should largely be skipped if you want consistent frame rates, but also that few modern titles will be entirely out of reach at decent levels of visual fidelity. I also appreciated how cool and quiet the device stayed even while running at full pelt.

Battery life: serious stamina

With a sizeable 80Whr cell and some impressive power scaling from the processor, the ROG Xbox Ally X can be very efficient when it wants to be. While you can still sap it dry in less than two hours when playing a graphically demanding titles on the highest performance profile, dialling things back and sticking to simpler 2D or indie releases will see your time spent away from the mains skyrocket.

You can pick between 25W, 17W, 13W and 7W power profiles, or create a custom one in Armory Crate. Even with screen brightness at 50%, flight mode enabled and the thumb stick LEDs switched off, Cyberpunk 2077 would leave me out of juice in just over an hour and a half when set to 25W. However, I found the 13W and 17W profiles to be real silicon sweet spots, climbing north of three hours without any major performance penalties. This is a welcome improvement from the previous generation Ryzen Z1 Extreme.

On average, I was getting an hour extra playtime over the Asus-branded Ally X. At the lower power profiles, Cloverpit and Hollow Knight could be cranked to the max and still churn out high frame rates, while the handheld kept going for north of six hours. That’s up there with the Steam Deck OLED in my experience.

I also like that the 65W power brick Asus includes is nice and compact, so doesn’t swallow a whole lot more room in my backpack when travelling. Recharging takes around an hour and a half.

Asus ROG Xbox Ally X verdict

The combined might of Microsoft and Asus has helped shape the Xbox ROG Ally X into a convincing gaming handheld. The Xbox-styled controller grips are wonderfully comfortable, the full-screen interface is far better suited to the small screen, and the Impulse triggers are the connecting tissue to the Xbox home consoles. Windows finally isn’t as much of a lead weight as it used to be, and you’re getting a great mix of performance and battery life.

If you want top-tier power for 1080p play, though, you’ve gotta pay for it. With a Steam Deck OLED costing considerably less, you’ve got to be something of a Microsoft die-hard to buy one of these at full retail price. You’ll be well served by Valve even if your game library isn’t exclusively filled with older titles, indie gems and retro throwbacks, on account of its more restrained screen resolution.

Equally if you can accept 720p playback and want Windows rather than Linux, the regular ROG Xbox Ally might make sense – though I know I’d personally miss the Ally X’s haptics, and I prefer its black colour scheme. It’s a strong first step into handheld territory for Microsoft, but one that prices out a lot of gamers.

Asus ROG Xbox Ally X technical specifications