Seems the Asus Rog Ally is an actual Steam Deck various, because the part big simply confirmed it’s not an April Fools’ gag. Not solely will the hand-held gaming PC boast Home windows 11 assist, however you’ll have the ability to hook it as much as the most effective graphics card choices to present it a real desktop increase.
Information of the Asus Rog Ally Steam Deck rival arrived on an unlucky day, however that was the corporate’s plan all alongside. When you concentrate on it, unveiling a “too good to be true” product on a day of disbelief is sensible, because it makes for an incredible double bluff. That’s to not say the brand new handheld guarantees something fictitious, however it has a couple of issues going for it that would shake up the transportable PC gaming scene.
For starters, Asus says it has labored along with AMD to supply the Rog Ally with the “quickest AMD APU but.” We’re nonetheless ready for official specs to land, however that would imply it’ll wield the ‘Little Phoenix‘ chip that we thought was meant for the Steam Deck 2. That maybe permits Asus to boldly declare it’ll deliver “true PC efficiency to your life on the go,” though Valve’s handheld arguably already does simply that.
The hand held’s promotional trailer additionally claims it’ll present a easy “Full HD” gaming expertise, which suggests it’ll come armed with a 1080p display. Higher nonetheless, Asus says you’ll have the ability to play below the solar, which means it might include anti-glare capabilities that maintain up towards the 512GB Steam Deck mannequin.
Identical to Valve’s handheld paired with the very best Steam Deck dock, you’ll have the ability to hook up the Rog Ally to a giant display. But, quite than pairing the transportable with a docking station, the trailer says it’ll work with the Rog XG Cell – an eGPU inclosure that permits you to hook up a fully-fledged graphics card to suitable laptops and the upcoming handheld.
That alone will give it a hybrid edge towards each Valve’s handheld and consoles just like the Nintendo Change, as ‘docked mode’ will increase fps. Nevertheless, the most recent Rog XG Cell eGPU enclosure prices an eye-watering $1,999 USD, so the setup is nowhere close to the identical value as a Steam Deck and docking station combo.
Given the Asus Rog Ally’s premium vibe, the hand-held itself will in all probability value rather more than the Steam Deck too. Different transportable Home windows-based Steam Deck alternate options, just like the Onexplayer Mini, are available in at $1,229, so it’ll be something however a rival when it comes to value. That stated, Asus’ achievements inside the very best gaming laptop computer house ought to assist it seize a slice of the transportable PC market pie, one which may allow it to make cheaper fashions sooner or later.
In reality, if Asus efficiently steps into the hand-held limelight, there’s no motive why a SteamOS model of the Rog Ally can’t emerge down the road. Valve has stated it’s open to the concept of producers making their very own Decks, and it might make my dream of a modular Steam Deck 2 extra viable. In fact, we’ll want to check the Rog Ally first-hand earlier than realizing whether or not the corporate can provide one thing actually new, so watch this house for extra deets.
