ROG Xbox Ally and ROG Xbox Ally X Announced | Coming this holiday 2025

Hero of Spielberg said:
Not so interested in the handheld but very interested in the OS
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It's either this supposed OS or SteamOS that's going to be my gaming future. Hope MS delivers something competent and SteamOS continues to evolve.
 
apocaliptic said:
So, what is the difference between this and the rog ally x that you can find everywhere? And btw Windows 11 sucks for all of you praising it
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ROG Xbox Ally X uses the AMD Ryzen AI Z2 Extreme, which is the latest and strongest handheld gaming chip. ROG Ally X uses AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme.

ROG Xbox Ally X also features the Xbox UI too
 
ArtHands said:
ROG Xbox Ally X also features the Xbox UI too
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The Windows Xbox app UI. That really hasn't changed very much from what I've seen with this except that it utilizes the controller. The main thing is it launches outside of Widnows.
 
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The meat of the article:
The Xbox full-screen experience is very much the compact mode of the Xbox app taking full control of the ROG Xbox Ally devices, instead of the familiar Windows desktop and taskbar. "When the player boots into the full-screen experience there is a whole bunch of Windows stuff that doesn't get loaded," says Beaumont. "We're not loading the desktop wallpaper, the taskbar, or a bunch of processes that are really designed around productivity scenarios for Windows."

You can still exit this full-screen mode and launch the full version of the Windows desktop, but by default it will by hidden away. "We've reduced many notifications and pop-ups, and we will continue to listen to feedback from players to make continued improvements," says Sones.
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The Xbox app itself in full-screen mode looks very similar to what exists on Windows right now, except the library is now full of all of your PC games from Steam and other stores, alongside ones from Xbox Play Anywhere and Game Pass. Where it really gets interesting is the Game Bar.

"We've made a lot of improvements to Game Bar over the last year, and really it was driving towards this device," says Brianna Potvin, principal software engineering lead at Xbox. A short press on the Xbox button on the Xbox Ally devices brings up the Game Bar interface, and you can use this to access device settings like Wi-Fi or Bluetooth, Asus' Command Center interface, and even Microsoft's new Gaming Copilot. If you long press on the Xbox button then you'll even get a more handheld-friendly task switcher, which lets you alt+tab between apps and games using the controller.
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www.theverge.com

This is how Microsoft is combining Windows and Xbox for handheld PCs

The full-screen Xbox experience is here
www.theverge.com www.theverge.com

Sounds like they're beginning to get on track. This part is possibly a bit disappointing though "You can still exit this full-screen mode and launch the full version of the Windows desktop, but by default it will by hidden away."

Sounds like they're still not ready to completly divorce the legacy Windows experience from a gaming centric one and all the bloat that comes along. Even if they say "there is a whole bunch of Windows stuff that doesn't get loaded" it's hard to say how lean they are willing to go and how effective this approach is before we get some benchmarks.

But still, interesting times ahead.
 
SomeNorseGuy said:
The meat of the article:


www.theverge.com

This is how Microsoft is combining Windows and Xbox for handheld PCs

The full-screen Xbox experience is here
www.theverge.com www.theverge.com

Sounds like they're beginning to get on track. This part is possibly a bit disappointing though "You can still exit this full-screen mode and launch the full version of the Windows desktop, but by default it will by hidden away."

Sounds like they're still not ready to completly divorce the legacy Windows experience from a gaming centric one and all the bloat that comes along. Even if they say "there is a whole bunch of Windows stuff that doesn't get loaded" it's hard to say how lean they are willing to go and how effective this approach is before we get some benchmarks.

But still, interesting times ahead.
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It is a step in the right direction, but honestly, I think not being able to exit out and back to Windows would be a bad thing. Without it, you don't get the freedom to do whatever you want. These devices can double as full desktop PCs. They can also take advantage of stuff like mods. If they lock it down and that stuff goes away then it will be a lot less attractive to a lot of people.
 
Topher said:
It is a step in the right direction, but honestly, I think not being able to exit out and back to Windows would be a bad thing. Without it, you don't get the freedom to do whatever you want. These devices can double as full desktop PCs. They can also take advantage of stuff like mods. If they lock it down and that stuff goes away then it will be a lot less attractive to a lot of people.
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Oh I agree totally, it needs to be unlocked to be successful. No way a walled garden on lock-down will have any success outside of people already locked in. So some kind of user interface for backend stuff is needed for sure. I just hope it's not just a full blown WinXX with all it's baggage.
 
SomeNorseGuy said:
Oh I agree totally, it needs to be unlocked to be successful. No way a walled garden on lock-down will have any success outside of people already locked in. So some kind of user interface for backend stuff is needed for sure. I just hope it's not just a full blown WinXX with all it's baggage.
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Ah….gotcha. Yeah a fully gamer focused version of windows would be nice. That would be cool on non-handhelds as well
 
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Orbital2060 said:
Yeah I guess you can.

I was thinking of how there was a "leaked" image of a user interface on an Xbox device with Steam integrated into it. Maybe its a different thing, or they are changing the layout. There is section on the top on the ROG Ally where it says My Apps, maybe you can have access to Steam from there.


steamapp.png

From the showcase trailer:

Screenshot-2025-06-09-000942.png
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OPENING A BILLION DOORS WITH XBOX
PfVtgrf.jpeg

They are so going to regret that tagline later.
 
So, we've had Xbox handhelds all along with previous windows 11 handhelds like Rog Ally and Legion go. I mean all you are getting with this is some Xbox controller themed grips on the side.
 
SomeNorseGuy said:
The meat of the article:


www.theverge.com

This is how Microsoft is combining Windows and Xbox for handheld PCs

The full-screen Xbox experience is here
www.theverge.com www.theverge.com

Sounds like they're beginning to get on track. This part is possibly a bit disappointing though "You can still exit this full-screen mode and launch the full version of the Windows desktop, but by default it will by hidden away."

Sounds like they're still not ready to completly divorce the legacy Windows experience from a gaming centric one and all the bloat that comes along. Even if they say "there is a whole bunch of Windows stuff that doesn't get loaded" it's hard to say how lean they are willing to go and how effective this approach is before we get some benchmarks.

But still, interesting times ahead.
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This is a plus for me. I would consider it a negative if I couldn't launch into full blown windows. Would be such a waste to have all those PC components and be locked into a paired down gaming only version of the OS.
 
Dacvak said:
There's no chance this is less than $800. The current ROG Ally X is $900 with a Z1 Extreme, and this new one has a Z2 Extreme. Might even be more than $1000.
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Explain to me why this debt would be worth that cost compared to a deck oled?
 
Pimpbaa said:
So, we've had Xbox handhelds all along with previous windows 11 handhelds like Rog Ally and Legion go. I mean all you are getting with this is some Xbox controller themed grips on the side.
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It for sure is just a little more than a branding deal, as we should see this gaming mode offered on all PC handhelds in short order. Essentially Xbox just advertised how they are going to make all handheld PC's a better place to play. I'm thankful because while this looks like a great handheld PC, the one I eventually get will have to have touchpads. I can live without a dedicated "launch Xbox UI" button.

For the first time in my life, I stayed away from first generation offerings. I think with the release of the Z2 extreme, I'm ready to jump in. Just not with this specific handheld.
 
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ReasonBeing said:
This is a plus for me. I would consider it a negative if I couldn't launch into full blown windows. Would be such a waste to have all those PC components and be locked into a paired down gaming only version of the OS.
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Could be a dual-boot option for desktop situations maybe. I'm coming from a living room/handheld OS perspective.
 
SomeNorseGuy said:
Could be a dual-boot option for desktop situations maybe. I'm coming from a living room/handheld OS perspective.
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That's what I'm thinking, restart to launch into full desktop mode. I'm ok with that, but it would be cool if they could figure out how to switch on the fly. I would also like if you could partition some of your SSD drive space to bring quick resume to all PC's.
 
ReasonBeing said:
This is a plus for me. I would consider it a negative if I couldn't launch into full blown windows. Would be such a waste to have all those PC components and be locked into a paired down gaming only version of the OS.
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Yup, hard pass if I can't use it for non-gaming related stuff.
 
ReasonBeing said:
That's what I'm thinking, restart to launch into full desktop mode. I'm ok with that, but it would be cool if they could figure out how to switch on the fly. I would also like if you could partition some of your SSD drive space to bring quick resume to all PC's.
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Quick resume would be god-sent that's for sure. And If MS actually manages/are willing to fully shut down all unneeded services and processes, with minimal impact on performance I have no objections to that.

No matter what road they take, it's going to be very interesting to see what they come up with.
 
Arsic said:
Explain to me why this debt would be worth that cost compared to a deck oled?
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I can't say it's worth it, personally. But, the Steam Deck's SoC is a 4-core Zen 2, while the Xbox Ally thing is an 8-core Z2 Extreme. I'd have to look at benchmarks to give you an exact comparison, but the Z2 Extreme is significantly more powerful.

Here's the thing, though. The Steam Deck is a fantastic value, because Valve can afford to take a loss on each console since they'll make that up in Steam software sales. ASUS (and essentially every other PC handheld company) can't compete with that, as they have to sell their hardware at a profit.

We still don't know the price, but if other ROG handhelds are any indication, the Xbox Ally will be at least the price of the current ROG Ally X, which is $900.

Between a $550 SD OLED and a $900 Xbox Ally, I'd still say the better value is the Steam Deck, even if it's significantly less powerful.

The big caveat is that, because the new Ally is a Xbox-branded device, it's possible that Microsoft might be able to sell the console at a loss, assuming customers will buy software for it. If the Xbox Ally was, say, $650 or $700, I'd say that becomes a better value than the Steam Deck. But I personally don't think there's a chance they'll price it that low. I'd love to be wrong, though!
 
Dacvak said:
I can't say it's worth it, personally. But, the Steam Deck's SoC is a 4-core Zen 2, while the Xbox Ally thing is an 8-core Z2 Extreme. I'd have to look at benchmarks to give you an exact comparison, but the Z2 Extreme is significantly more powerful.

Here's the thing, though. The Steam Deck is a fantastic value, because Valve can afford to take a loss on each console since they'll make that up in Steam software sales. ASUS (and essentially every other PC handheld company) can't compete with that, as they have to sell their hardware at a profit.

We still don't know the price, but if other ROG handhelds are any indication, the Xbox Ally will be at least the price of the current ROG Ally X, which is $900.

Between a $550 SD OLED and a $900 Xbox Ally, I'd still say the better value is the Steam Deck, even if it's significantly less powerful.

The big caveat is that, because the new Ally is a Xbox-branded device, it's possible that Microsoft might be able to sell the console at a loss, assuming customers will buy software for it. If the Xbox Ally was, say, $650 or $700, I'd say that becomes a better value than the Steam Deck. But I personally don't think there's a chance they'll price it that low. I'd love to be wrong, though!
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Thanks for this.

Another question. Say I stream a Xbox game to this device but then hook it up via hdmi go a TV or monitor. Will it display to that device resolution?

Really if I can play my gamepass titles on the tv then unhook to go upstairs and continue, that could be worth it for me. I'm just not sure how well their streaming quality is compared to GeForce now which is superb. Stadia was trash.
 
Arsic said:
Thanks for this.

Another question. Say I stream a Xbox game to this device but then hook it up via hdmi go a TV or monitor. Will it display to that device resolution?

Really if I can play my gamepass titles on the tv then unhook to go upstairs and continue, that could be worth it for me. I'm just not sure how well their streaming quality is compared to GeForce now which is superb. Stadia was trash.
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Yeah, it should output to whatever resolution you choose for your TV.

As far as I thought, the Xbox Ally lets you install games natively to the device, so you shouldn't need to stream.

That being said, if streaming is your only option for a specific game, Xcloud is pretty bad. Streaming directly from your Xbox or PC locally should be fine, but streaming from the Xbox cloud is terrible.
 
I'm interested and will likely pick up one of the two models at launch. I feel like rumors recently said Xbox was exploring their own portable outside of this collaboration with ROG. Would Xbox really confuse the consumer by releasing another Xbox branded portable so soon after this one? I think that rumor has to be off.
 
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I wouldn't mind if this optimized mode would come to Windows desktop somehow. Something like my htpc, all I really need want is gaming and some light browsing, and media playback functions.
 
InterMusketeer said:
MS can't even be bothered to make its own hardware anymore? Okay then... It might be a cool device. I kinda dig the handheld PC concept, but I don't see this as much different from any of the other available options.
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Yes, that's why they're basically cornering themselves into competing with Valve directly in the user experience department. They now only stand a chance of competing if their own UI/OS is more easy and comfortable to use than SD UI. Which is great, as MS needs to make some serious progress in that area with regards to W11 (I personally like the Xbox OS more than its direct competitors in the console space). They need to create a mobile/HTPC friendly UI that's so good that people will prefer it over what they're used to from Steam. They also need to make their own storefront so attractive people will prefer to buy from them instead of Steam. Which is obviously hard to achieve, given how popular Steam is.
 
LInus is really selling me on this. Will wait to see those real world performance gain and efficiency. If xbox engineers really did custom code the rog we might have a gamechanger.
 
So any digital Xbox game I own under my xbox account name can be played on this or is this designed to just give me portable access to games on Game Pass?
 
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