ASUS ROG Ally vs Steam Deck -- Deep Dive Comparison

The ASUS ROG Ally seems to be the first real competitor to the Valve Steam Deck, so let's have a talk about the two, and some of the reasons you may prefer one over the other.

Timestamps:
00:00 introduction
01:37 size
03:25 screen
07:35 audio
08:41 controls
13:37 I/O and ports
15:28 software
18:14 stability
20:38 battery
23:15 performance
25:54 dockability
28:58 cooling
33:08 catalog
34:41 price
36:33 availability
37:16 repairability
35:50 longevity
39:40 trustworthiness
41:00 summary and conclusion

Theme song written by Jim Gray of Our Ghosts:

This video is for entertainment and educational purposes only.

#ROGally #SteamDeck #ASUS #Valve

[RetroGameCorps]

Note that in the price section, I said there was a $500 difference between the $650 Steam Deck and the $700 ROG Ally. Just in case you needed me to clarify, I meant to say $50 and not $500. This channel is really going downhill!

[Handheld_TECH]

In Europe: Steam Deck 512GB Comparison:

Price difference US: +50$ ✅
Price difference EU: +120€🤯 (130$)

Of course the price-performance ratio is still good but €799 is €799.


SD 512GB 679€ vs ROG Ally 799€

[SPISheste]

What I love about my Deck is, I feel like I’m back in the early Android days again and just tinkering with customization!

[centhron]

As a Norwegian I'm so happy that the Asus ROG Ally actually releases here! I've wanted a Steam Deck for so long, but they don't sell then here... I've already pre-ordered a Ally!

[exia]

I feel like Valve put a lot more thought into their product than Asus did... Valve went above and beyond to design something that was user repairable, and had extensive control options, and came in at an incredible price. Asus just kind of saw what other companies were doing, like AyaNeo, and just threw something out at a slightly more aggressive price point which is not necessarily a bad thing. But as anyone who has used asus motherboards in the past can probably agree with, they seem to fall on their face when it comes to software. Not to mention their current reputation with their motherboards has me questioning the years of loyalty i've shown the company when it comes time for PC upgrades.

[irandis]

Dominican starting on Gaming here.
I am crazy to start playing Elder Ring.
— Recently purchased my Steam Deck. 🙌🏾

[jondoh]

Summary:
Size - Negligible difference
Screen - ROG wins
Audio - Neglibible difference
Controls - Steam Deck wins
I/O and Ports - ROG wins
Software -
Stability - Steam Deck wins (for now)
Battery - Steam Deck wins
Performance - ROG wins
Dockability - ROG wins
Cooling - Both are cool
Catalog - ROG wins
Price - It depends
Availability -
Repairability - Steam Deck wins
Trustworthiness - Steam Deck wins
Summary - Steam Deck for Retro games, comfort, battery, reliability, trustworthiness. ROG for better display, performance, catalog, versatility
ROG has some advantages for being windows based and better specs at a marginally higher price. Steam Deck is more usable though bc of battery life being less of a hassle.

[Rakumei]

Docking the steam deck is not bad at all if youre using FSR scaling in the deck settings. You can upscale 720p render to 1080p or even 1440p with no perceivable performance impact and play with the sharpness slider a bit and it looks amazing.

[SomeDudeDan]

The Ally is perfect for emulating newer games, I’m still using both devices, but I pick up the Ally more frequently now. Mainly, because the awesome PS3 and Switch emulator performance. I do hope that Valve is going to release a newer, more powerful Steam Deck later.

[ImperiusRex]

To my knowledge, you've been the only reviewer that brought up repairs and trustworthiness. That's why I hold your channel above the others. For the average consumer who isn't able to purchase every handheld unit, it's important for those with a platform to be as honest with us as possible. Most of the other reviewers aren't taking any of those things into account before hyping up the Ally over the Deck, which is very misleading to the viewer. To many of us, reliability and support is more important than the absolute highest FPS. ASUS's incredibly shady practices has completely turned me off to the Ally. Can't imagine gambling on a $700 dollar device from a company who treats the consumer with such low regards. At least with the Deck I have the peace of mind of consistent updates, support and the option of replacing/repairing parts. Thanks for the review.

[Badalight]

"Great on deck" is not the best measurement for how many games will play on Steam Deck vs. the ROG Ally. That's because a huge portion of the game that are listed as "playable" rather than "great on deck" only have that distinction because of small text size - which would also be an issue on the ROG Ally. Sure there are some games that will have other problems, but it certainly isn't half like this video implies.

[jajabinx]

As a steam deck user, I think I'm gonna sit this one out. I don't really play aaa games on it (which I have my pc for). Having said that, it will very interesting in the next couple of years. For me, battery life improvements will attract me the most.

[FuzeFyreGreenFerret]

having no trackpacks on the Ally is a deal breaker for me. Im sorry, but the trackpads are SUPER useful on older games that only use mouse support.

[masamasa]

A couple of things I think some fail to realize. First the steam deck launched a year ago and only within the last few months did it become freely available to the public. Second optimization is almost as important as the hardware itself. A device with great specs and poor support will never reach it's full potential. The ease of use the steam deck has created within PC gaming makes it really approachable to a lot of people for the very first time. The steam deck has really given people that switch like experience except with PC games. So where as the Asus ROG is a PC with controlles attached to it the steam deck is a game system that happens to be a PC. The steam deck doesn't really need to be the most powerful device out there so long as steam keeps optimizing it and updating it, I think we will be using the current steam deck for years to come, maybe we will see a pro version at some point. But the fact is the steam deck is still new and valve hasn't even come close to making enough to move on from the current version. The steam deck has steam and so long as steam keeps optimizing games to run well on the deck and so long as they keep improving the software the steam deck is really the winner here. With the steam deck you can tinker if you want or you can very easily jump right into a game without knowing basically anything about Linux. The Asus ROG is a PC, it's going to take tinkering and some knowledge to get things going. Unfortunately this is going to make that device not as approachable for many people who aren't looking for a PC but a game system.

[MrTheheirarchy]

One note on the great on deck, is that those are certified by valve as meeting their internal metrics. I have played quite a few games that are technically unsupported and they worked excellently on deck.

Super happy with my deck, based on reviews I’m happy I bought the low end steam deck and upgraded storage. Suits all my needs so far from AAA to emulation.

[christianmejia]

This was a great comparison!! You covered everything I would consider. Thanks!! Hope others find it insightful as well.

[Burgandy]

If money isn't a issue i would get the Ally. The docking features is supreme

[jacobnobles]

When the intro hits, my one year old starts dancing.

[Metroidam]

Crazy how Steam Deck is well over a year into its launch and is still making tough competition for its competitors.

[_The_Captain]

I bought a steam deck to play games like dead cells, terraria, do some basic emulation, and replay older titles like fallout 3, metro or Wolfenstein which look and play great on the deck, and can run for hours on end without having to constantly plug in which defeats the purpose of portable gaming to me. So the ergonomics, support, reliability and power of the SD keeps me content for now. Would a better screen or more power be nice? Sure but everything comes at a cost especially in battery life. However, a slightly smaller bodied, Oled screen, larger battery Steam deck 2 would have me absolutely throwing my money at valve!