There’s nonetheless time to save lots of massive on the primary official Xbox gaming handheld. The Asus ROG Xbox Ally, which launched in October with a $600 MSRP, is on sale for $489 at Amazon and Walmart, $490 at Finest Purchase, and $520 at Goal. It is nonetheless not totally clear when this deal ends, but it surely’s nonetheless obtainable as of December 17. The $489 value at Amazon is an all-time low for the not too long ago launched Home windows gaming handheld. Amazon has additionally restocked the official Xbox Ally 2-in-1 Premium Case.
In case you choose up the Xbox Ally at Amazon, you must also try among the third-party equipment obtainable now, together with docking stations, screen protectors, travel cases, and microSD UHS-II cards. Although it is bought out as a rule at Amazon, the official Xbox Ally 2-in-1 Premium Case is at the moment obtainable to order.
$489 (was $600)
The ROG Xbox Ally is an entry-level Windows gaming handheld with impressive features and performance for the price. The Ryzen Z2 A chip is comparable to Steam Deck’s custom AMD APU, and if you increase the TDP–at the expense of battery life–the Xbox Ally can outperform the Steam Deck OLED. For reference, the Steam Deck OLED 512GB model retails for $549.
The Xbox Ally has a 1920 x 1080p IPS display with 120Hz refresh rate and support for VRR and AMD FreeSync Premium. If you’re comparing to the Steam Deck OLED, Valve’s handheld has a 7.4-inch 1280 x 800p OLED display with HDR and 90Hz refresh rate. So the Steam Deck wins in panel type and size, but the Xbox Ally wins in resolution and refresh rate. That said, to get the best performance on Xbox Ally, you will often want to lock the resolution at 720p, so the Xbox Ally doesn’t always take full advantage of its advantages.
The Xbox Ally is arguably the most comfortable Windows gaming handheld on the market today. Asus opted for the PlayStation Portal approach by essentially splitting the Xbox Wireless Controller in half and connecting it to each side. Along with all of the buttons, triggers, and bumpers found on the Xbox Wireless Controller, the Xbox Ally has two remappable back buttons. It also has motion controls and HD haptics.
One of the big selling points of the Xbox Ally is the custom, console-inspired dashboard that is easier to use than the traditional Windows interface. The Xbox Ally has a 512GB SSD, 16GB RAM, a microSD UHS-II card slot to expand storage capacity, two USB-C ports, and a headphone jack.
Check out the Xbox Ally’s specs and features below. If you want to read more about the Xbox Ally and the higher-powered $1,000 Xbox Ally X, try our purchasing information and our evaluate of the Ally X.
Specs:
- Processor: AMD Ryzen Z2 A
- RAM: 16GB LPDDR5X-6400
- Storage: 512GB M.2 2280 SSD
- Show:
- 7″ IPS touchscreen (Gorilla Glass Victus)
- 1920 x 1080
- 120Hz refresh fee
- VRR supported
- AMD FreeSync Premium
- Controller Design:
- Contoured grips
- Corridor Impact triggers
- Shoulder bumpers
- ABXY bumpers
- 2 remappable again buttons
- Analog sticks with mild rings
- 6-Axis movement controls
- HD haptics
- 5 menu/settings buttons
- Ports:
- 2x USB 3.2 Sort-C
- 3.5mm audio
- microSD: UHS-II reader (solely UHS-II)
- Community: Wi-Fi 6E / Bluetooth 5.4
- Battery: 80Wh
- Battery life: 1.5-5 hours
- Weight: 670g
- Dimensions: 290.8 x 121.5 x 50.7mm
Recreation Go Final subscribers have a built-in library of lots of of video games for the Xbox Ally. Whether or not you have already got a subscription or not, you will need to buy your membership from a serious retailer as an alternative of straight by Microsoft. The value of Recreation Go Final elevated to $30/month in October, however main retailers nonetheless promote prepaid codes for $20/month.
Docking Stations for Xbox Ally
If you wish to play your Xbox Ally in your TV or use it as a daily PC–you can swap to the usual Home windows OS interface–you’ll want a USB-C docking station. The official Asus ROG Xbox Ally 100W Charger Dock will set you again $85 (was $100), however there are stable third-party choices that work nicely and include a stand. UGREEN’s 6-in-1 Docking Station is on sale for less than $30 (was $46) for a restricted time. You possibly can improve to a 9-in-1 model with extra ports for $46 (was $60).
The JSAUX Docking Station & 100W Charger is on the market for $50 (was $70). This one is good as a result of it additionally comes with the AC adapter, so you will have a second charger. In case you do not want an additional charger, you may get the identical JSAUX 6-in-1 Docking Station for $33.24 (was $40). One other notable choice is iVanky’s 14-in-1 RGB Docking Station for $65 (was $80). It would not embrace an AC adapter or USB-C cable, but it surely has extra ports for equipment and is able to 144Hz refresh fee. The entire docks within the listing beneath help 4K decision however refresh charges range; we have included max refresh charges when displaying video games in 4K in parentheses.
Xbox Ally Tempered Glass Display Protectors
The Xbox Ally has a scratch-resistant Gorilla Glass Victus display screen, but it surely by no means hurts so as to add a display screen protector to dear handhelds, even when it is simply in your personal peace of thoughts. Plus, display screen protectors are low-cost. You will get a 2-pack of JSAUX’s tempered glass anti-glare screen protector with an alignment body for $11.59 (was $13). Two of the largest names within the display screen protector market, amFilm and iVoler, have 3-packs for $9-$10 with out an alignment body.
Xbox Ally Carrying Circumstances
The official ROG Xbox Ally carrying case retails for $70. It has a built-in stand and comes with a detachable pouch for equipment. On the again are the phrases: “That is an Xbox case.” It is a very good hardshell case, however when you do not need to spend $70 on a carrying case, there are quite a few third-party choices to take a look at.
JSAUX’s hardshell travel case is barely $25.19 (was $28), and a number of other smaller manufacturers have carrying circumstances for round $30. This is an inventory of among the best-selling ROG Xbox Ally and Ally X circumstances on Amazon.
Xbox Ally Grip Circumstances & Thumbstick Grips
The Xbox Ally already has nice ergonomics, however so does the Steam Deck, and that hasn’t stopped gamers from shopping for ergonomic grips. One of many advantages of a grip case past enhancing consolation is defending the hand held from drop harm when outdoors of a journey case. For a premium choice from a serious accent model, try Dbrand’s Killswitch Journey Case for $72 (was $80). Dbrand’s Killswitch sequence is implausible, and Finest Purchase not too long ago began carrying choose Dbrand grip circumstances. We have not examined the Xbox Ally Killswitch, however the Change 2 Killswitch is the most effective ergonomic grip we have tried for Nintendo’s new console. It’s also possible to discover a just a few budget-friendly choices from generic manufacturers on Amazon, together with this popular $20 silicone grip case with a built-in stand.
microSD UHS-II Playing cards for Xbox Ally
As talked about, you may develop the Xbox Ally’s storage with microSD playing cards. Sadly, the entry-level handheld is proscribed to UHS-II playing cards; the Xbox Ally X can learn UHS-I playing cards, that are cheaper and simpler to seek out in greater capacities. We have rounded up just a few choices beneath. Essentially the most reasonably priced is Kodak’s 256GB microSD for $45.60. For 512GB, the Gigastone Ultimate Pro is the most affordable we noticed at $100.
- Kodak UHS-II microSD (300MB/s)
- Lexar Skilled Gold UHS-II microSD (280MB/s)
- Nextorage UHS-II microSD (280MB/s)
- Gigastone Final Professional UHS-II microSD (280MB/s)
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