Currently, there is no official release date for the ROG Ally, but considering how fully realized the device looks like in David2D and Linus Tech Tips, it wouldn’t be surprising if it were to roll out in the coming months. ASUS confirmed that pre-orders for ROG Ally were coming out soon. People who are interested can sign up through the handheld’s Best Buy link for more information.
Caitlyn Taylor April 3rd, 2023 - 9:54 PM
Another competitor to Valve’s Steam Deck has just been announced, and it’s not an April Fool’s joke. On April 1st, ASUS revealed what many believed to be a fake trailer for a gaming handheld considering the outlandish features advertised. But soon after, the company confirmed their previous April 1st posts to be completely true. The Asus ROG Ally is the newest handheld to enter the PC handheld gaming sphere, and for many, it’s shaping up to be a serious competitor.
It’s real!
Stay tuned for more 👀
Want to know when pre-orders start?
👉https://t.co/ljc2GNN0UU#ROG #ROGALLY #PlayALLYourGames pic.twitter.com/IG6vDtgTag— ROG Global (@ASUS_ROG) April 3, 2023
Despite the social media posts and the announcement trailer for the system, there aren’t too many details about the handheld. Thankfully, since the April fools joke posts, ASUS released more information on what potential users can expect. The ROG Ally will be powered by Windows 11 with a customized Ryzen APU from AMD inside, with the Verge’s Tom Warren pointing out its similarities to the Aerith SOC inside the Steam Deck. ASUS promises that the Ryzen APU will assist the ROG Ally in delivering higher-quality graphics and processing power. ASUS also claimed that the APU was the fastest AMD has ever produced.
Recently released hands-on videos from Dave2D and Linus Tech Tips gave a more grounded and realistic look into the handheld. David2D confirmed the ROG Ally specs being smaller and lighter than Valve’s Steam Deck with ROG Ally’s dimensions being 608 grams, 280mm x 113mm x 39mm compared to the Steam Deck’s 669 grams, 298mm x 117mm x 50.5mm. Additionally, the ROG Ally has a seven-inch 16:9 display with 1920 x 1080 resolution, 500 nits of brightness, and a 120HZ refresh rate.
The ROG Ally shares the standard handheld button and dual analog stick setup and a few extra features like a fingerprint sensor on top of the device. The most interesting feature it advertised was the ability to plugging the Ally into the ROG XG Mobile eGPU Asa offers for use with its gaming laptops while streaming your games to a TV.
