Asus ROG Ally Hands-On: Can This Win 11 Gaming Handheld Top the Steam Deck?

pcmag.com:

By now, the Nintendo Switch and the Valve Steam Deck have proven the value of the twin-stick, big-screen handheld form factor, and so, Asus is launching its own take on the subcategory with the ROG Ally.

You may have heard of the Ally before: Asus originally shared the device online as what appeared to be an April Fools’ joke, before clarifying that it is a real product. In reality, a lot of work has gone into this device over five years.

The premise is exciting—this machine is running full-fledged Windows 11—and we were able to go hands-on with it at a preview event in New York. You can watch my impressions of the Ally following my hands-on session in the video up top, and read on for more spec and design details.

I'll get the elephant in the room out of the way first: No price has been announced yet. Asus told us that it is still finalizing the price with retail partners, but as of our hands-on time, would not share even the range the final price will fall into. Hopefully, it comes in at least near the top configuration of the Steam Deck (the Deck starts at $399 and the highest-end model is $649), perhaps a bit more, which would be reasonable for what it is.

During its presentation at the preview event, Asus explained how this device has undergone five years of design iteration. Given that the development time Asus stated predates the Steam Deck's public announcement and release by some time, you have to wonder how much the Nintendo Switch—released in early 2017—was an inspiration if Asus began development sometime in early 2018.

Regardless, Asus—working closely with AMD—has its own vision for the Ally. One of the main target goals for the device during the design phase was a weight of 600 grams, or about 1.32 pounds.