It wasn’t much of a secret, but Microsoft’s Xbox-branded third-party handheld is finally official. As rumoured, it’s been made in partnership with ASUS, and is launching later this year.
ASUS’ Xbox handheld actually comes in two flavours; there’s the Xbox ROG Ally and the Xbox ROG Ally X, with the latter targeting “the most demanding players”. Both machines feature an Xbox button – used to call up the likes of chat, apps, and settings – plus contoured grips similar to those of Xbox Wireless Controllers, and support for a range of accessibility features.
The Xbox ROG Ally and ROG Ally X are both powered by Windows 11, and feature an “immersive” full-screen Xbox experience, plus an aggregated gaming library with access to installed games from a range of PC stores, including Steam, Battle.net, and GOG. And, of course, the machine supports Xbox Play Anywhere titles, of which there are now over 1,000.
Those opting for the standard Xbox ROG Ally can expect an AMD Ryzen Z2 A Processor within, alongside 16GB of RAM and 512GB of SSD storage, while the Ally X upgrades that to an AMD Ryzen AI Z2 Extreme processor and 24GB of high-speed RAM. Both will be available this “holiday” across select countries, including the UK and US, with other markets to follow.
Microsoft isn’t talking pricing yet, but says it’ll have more details, including information on accessories and pre-orders, “in the coming months”.