Asus ROG Ally Review | R.I.P. Steam Deck?

Reviewing the Asus ROG Ally handheld gaming console, a 2023 Steam Deck and Aya Neo 2 rival, after a week of testing. Includes an unboxing, so you see what's in the box.

The Asus ROG Ally with Ryzen Z1 Extreme can smash through most AAA titles with smooth gameplay, even at Full HD resolution. However, some of the more demanding games like Returnal are still no-go and many titles need the graphics scaling down to stay playable.

Check out my review of the Steam Deck, Aya Neo 2 and other Asus ROG Ally rivals, but this is undoubtedly one of the best handheld consoles right now. That 120Hz Full HD display is smoother and sharper than the Deck's, while playing games on different services is easier. Performance is seriously impressive (including benchmark tests), helped by Asus' excellent cooling system.

And the ROG Ally also has many useful customisation tools which can help you setup your favourite games to run perfectly. However, it's not all great news. Like other gaming handheld consoles such as the Aya Neo 2, that battery life is pants. And like the Steam Deck, portability isn't fantastic in general!

So that's my unboxing and review of the Asus ROG Ally after a week of gaming. Are you tempted? Full UK price and release details coming when we have them!

Asus ROG Ally Review Chapters:
0:00 - Banging on and unboxing
0:55 - Design
3:30 - Ports
4:04 - Asus ROG Gaming Charger Dock
4:35 - Armory Crate
8:35 - Command Centre
9:34 - Display
11:21 - Audio & haptics
12:09 - Performance benchmarking
14:01 - Returnal
14:45 - Uncharted 4 & Atomic Heart
15:34 - Forza 5 & Doom Eternal
16:10 - Cooling
17:26 - Final specs
17:54 - Battery life
18:22 - Verdict

[TechSpurt]

Asus has confirmed the ROG Ally Extreme model will cost £699 / $699, so more expensive than the Steam Deck but cheaper than rivals from Ayaneo and OneXPlayer. Still enjoying using it for Game Pass etc, although I spend more time recharging it than gaming on the thing 😅 What do you guys reckon?

[SPIDEYRING]

Pre-ordered mine at Best Buy as soon as the Live Event started. The carrying case will be $39.99. It would be nice if it was included with the Z1 Extreme.

[canad-ian]

I've suggested to my oldest as he's looking for a gaming PC to replace the aging one we gave him years ago. This would suit his needs for that and school/work because it does everything.

[likepeas]

Would love to see how it runs Diablo 4 in the upcoming beta test this weekend.

[budthecyborg]

It cannot be understated how important the 120hz display is.
We have around 40 years of PC gaming history and basically 3/4 of the total library will run at 120hz on this machine.

[itsbrutalyo]

You happen to be the only tech youtuber I religiously follow. Thanks for the great and fun content as always uncle Spurt!

[Veritas]

The Z1 non-extreme uses the 740M, not 780M

[Remyl.l]

Rather then worrying about the steam deck, I'm more sorry for the ayaneo and onex as asus Rog ally just force through the market with it's power and price.

[maccaplays]

It looks badass i rate the coloured light thumbsticks

[WouldUKindly]

The screen is the only real issue I have with the Steam Deck. The black levels are awful and colours look pretty washed out. If games don’t run at 800p then the black bars at the top and bottom make that issue stand out even more. I was hoping this screen would be a big step above which is a shame.

If the battery life was better I would be tempted to upgrade but I’ll probably just keep my fingers crossed for an eventual Steam Deck OLED

[pinkakagreen]

I'm waiting for it to hit the stores. I have never trusted any pre-sales. Delays and excuses always lead me to requesting a refund. And I'm not giving my steam deck up either. I'm getting both.

[fairplayer]

at 12:28, wanted to point out another major difference between then Z1 and Z1 Extreme: The Extreme GPU has 12 CU's of power, but the non-Extreme only has 4.

EDIT: like 15 seconds after this he says it himself. derp

[cbasford]

Pre-ordered mine directly from Asus UK 🇬🇧

[michelm]

I know this is not an exact comparison but if I am away from my home PC and I am sitting at a desk, is the ASUS ROG ALLY or the currently same priced ASUS F15 TUF Gaming Laptop the better option? I want something to game on the road, but not while away from a power supply and wifi, such as a hotel. Thanks!

[liamfeatherstone]

Had me at the stuck button thing. Not the only person to say this. There been a few reviews where people say the buttons get stuck
Thinking of getting ayaneo 2 myself

[nathanfife]

I haven't heard anybody talk about a gyro, does it have one? Is it touch sensitive like the steam deck? I basically can't even play any games without that feature

[ArndBrugman]

"I'll buy the next version" - hahaha, we can do this forever and never have anything...

[gauravthavaretvhk]

15:39 hi, can you play playstation games on Asus ROG Ally?

[serhii_himself]

If it gets an official SteamOs support I will consider it a "maybe" buy. Windows is a huge step back IMO

[PeteTalksTech]

I've subscribed because you said one of the best words in the English language, "cack' haha! And also awesome vid! 🙌