Asus ROG Ally X hands-on: Thoughtful upgrades abound

I got to play with the new Asus ROG Ally X handheld gaming handheld at Computex 2024. It's not something totally new, but more like an upgrade to the original ROG Ally that came out last year. Though, it’s a significant one, on paper, and promises to solve the problem with the old one. Let’s dive in.
The ROG Ally X retains the same core specs as the original Ally that launched in 2023 - the custom AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme APU and 7-inch 1080p 120Hz display.But Asus has made a raft of updates around those to improve the overall experience. There’s a bigger battery, faster and extra RAM, and even more storage.
The most significant change is the huge increase in battery capacity, going from 40Wh to 80Wh. Asus claims this can provide up to twice the battery life, which if true, would be a game-changer for handheld PC gaming. The original Ally struggled to crack 2 hours in the most demanding games.

Despite doubling the battery, Asus has impressively kept the weight down, with the Ally X coming in at 678g compared to 608g for the standard model.
The chassis is slightly thicker to accommodate the battery, but not enough to significantly impact ergonomics. In fact, Asus has rounded the rear grips and angled the face buttons and sticks to make the Ally X more comfortable to hold over long sessions. The sticks themselves use higher-quality components now too.

While the Ryzen Z1 Extreme APU remains at the core, there is an extra 8 GB of memory that’s faster, a 24GB LPDDR5X unit up from 16GB, providing more overhead for both the CPU and GPU. The 512GB SSD has been doubled to a roomier 1TB model. And in a move that will be music to tinkerers' ears, Asus has switched from the shorter 2230 size drive to the more common 2280 size, while also making the SSD easily user-replaceable.

Port selection has been rejiggered, with Asus dropping the proprietary eGPU connector for a pair of USB-C ports, one of which supports Thunderbolt 4. The microSD slot has been repositioned too. Inside, there's an upgraded cooling system with new fans that Asus claims improves both thermals and acoustics.
While these hardware changes are all very welcome, it remains to be seen how much they'll boost real-world performance and battery life. The Ryzen Z1 Extreme is still doing the heavy lifting after all.
Chances are that AAA games will still need their settings pulled back, especially for 60fps. The original Ally was quite capable in this regard though, so the Ally X should at least maintain that standard, with the potential for some uplift from the faster RAM.

The other big question mark is software. The Ally X runs Windows 11, which provides incredible flexibility and compatibility but isn't always the most streamlined experience on a handheld. Asus has built its Armory Crate SE software to simplify things, but you're still at the mercy of Windows to an extent. Valve's SteamOS is more purpose-built and console-like.

Well, right now, it’s too early for a final verdict until I've had more time with it, but based on my initial hands-on impressions, the ROG Ally X is shaping up to be the Windows handheld to beat. If Asus' battery life claims hold up and performance sees even a modest bump, that would be a huge win. Windows will likely still be a bit of an achilles heel compared to the relative simplicity of SteamOS on Deck. But for power users who want a no-compromises handheld PC gaming experience, the Ally X looks seriously compelling.

At $799 though, it has stiff competition from the $649 Steam Deck, which has also seen upgrades recently in the form of an OLED model. Valve's device has the benefit of a custom OS and deep integration with Steam. And don’t forget there are new handhelds popping every now and then, like MSI’s Claw (there’s also a new one coming with Intel’s Lunar Lake), and Zotac Zone, among others.
I'll have more to say when I get my hands on the ROG Ally X. Asus tells us that the ROG Ally X should hit the Indian markets later this year, so there's some waiting to do.