Which gaming handheld to buy in November 2026

Handheld prices moved a lot this year. As of 4 November 2026, the Steam Deck OLED costs €779 for 512GB and €919 for 1TB in Europe, up from €549 and €679. The Nintendo Switch 2 also got dearer in September.

This guide covers five devices that are worth a look right now: the Nintendo Switch 2, the Steam Deck OLED, the ROG Xbox Ally, the ROG Xbox Ally X and the Lenovo Legion Go 2. Prices below are European where we found them, and we flag where a figure is a launch or list price rather than today’s shelf price.

What happened to prices in 2026

Valve told buyers the Steam Deck increase came from memory and storage costs. Galaxus reported that DRAM and NAND prices have risen sharply because of demand elsewhere in the industry, which also hits the whole handheld market.

Nintendo moved too. The Switch 2 went from €469.99 to €499.99 in Europe on 1 September 2026, with the figure confirmed at My Nintendo Store as of 20 October 2026. Lenovo’s Legion Go 2 has gone up as well: FinalBoss reports that US regular pricing rose to roughly $1,499 to $1,599 (as of 29 June 2026), well above its launch price.

The practical effect is that the cheapest sensible entry point is now the Switch 2 at €499.99, and the “premium” tier starts around €780.

The five handhelds at a glance

The table lists each model’s platform, screen, battery and euro price. Where we couldn’t confirm a figure from a manufacturer or a reliable outlet, we’ve said so rather than guessing.

Model	Platform	Screen	Battery	Price (EUR)
Nintendo Switch 2	Nintendo system software	7.9 in, up to 1080p in handheld mode	5,172 or 5,220 mAh (depends on version)	499.99 (4 Nov 2026 check: 20 Oct store price)
Steam Deck OLED 512GB / 1TB	SteamOS	OLED, HDR	Not verified in our sources	779 / 919
ROG Xbox Ally	Windows 11	7 in, 1080p, 120Hz IPS	60 Wh	599 (launch price)
ROG Xbox Ally X	Windows 11	7 in, 1080p, 120Hz IPS	80 Wh	899 (launch price)
Lenovo Legion Go 2 (Z2 Extreme)	Windows 11	8.8 in OLED, 1920 x 1200, up to 144Hz	74 Wh	1,299 (reported list price)

The Switch 2 is the odd one out because its battery is rated in mAh and the others in Wh, so don’t compare those two numbers directly.

Handheld price in euros. Price (EUR): Switch 2 499.99, ROG Xbox Ally 599, Steam Deck OLED 512GB 779, ROG Xbox Ally X 899, Steam Deck OLED 1TB 919, Legion Go 2 (Z2 Extreme) 1299 (EUR) — Handheld price in euros
Source: My Nintendo Store (20 Oct 2026), Gematsu (Valve), Wikipedia (ROG EU launch prices), S4G (Legion Go 2 reported price)

The chart above plots the euro prices from the table: €499.99 for the Switch 2, €599 for the ROG Xbox Ally, €779 for the 512GB Steam Deck OLED, €899 for the ROG Xbox Ally X, €919 for the 1TB Steam Deck OLED and €1,299 for the Legion Go 2. The ROG and Legion figures are launch or list prices, so check the shelf price before you pay.

The specs that matter

Chip and memory

On the Windows handhelds, the chip decides how long the device stays useful. Newegg’s buying guide calls the Z2 Extreme the mainstream high end and says the Z2 A and Z2 Go are noticeably slower. It also recommends at least 16GB of memory, since graphics share it with the system.

The ROG Xbox Ally spec table shows how wide that gap is. The Ally has a Ryzen Z2 A, 16GB of LPDDR5 and 512GB of storage, with graphics rated at 1.638 TFLOPS from 8 compute units. The Ally X has a Ryzen AI Z2 Extreme, 24GB of LPDDR5X and 1TB, with 16 compute units at 5.530 TFLOPS.

The Legion Go 2 uses the Z2 Extreme as well, at a configurable 15 to 35W. Tom’s Hardware found the gains over its predecessor are clearest at 1280 x 800, and the review unit’s 32GB of RAM and 1TB SSD were the configuration that cost $1,349.99 at launch.

Screen

Both ROG models share a 7-inch, 1080p, 120Hz IPS panel rated at 500 nits. The Legion Go 2 swaps that for an 8.8-inch OLED with variable refresh from 30 to 144Hz, according to S4G’s spec round-up. The Steam Deck’s selling point is its HDR OLED, which Gamermarkt lists alongside SteamOS’s battery-friendly interface and the Proton compatibility layer.

The Switch 2 screen is 7.9 inches, larger than the Switch OLED’s 7 inches. Nintendo’s specs cap handheld output at 1920 x 1080, with 120 fps support in the lower output modes.

Battery and weight

Battery is where handhelds disappoint, and the numbers explain why. The Ally X’s 80Wh pack lasts around 3 hours at peak power draw, according to CogConnected’s review. Nintendo itself rates the Switch 2 at 2 to 6.5 hours, and says that depends on the game.

Check which Switch 2 you’re buying. In the EU there are two versions: one with a user-replaceable 5,172 mAh battery weighing 441 g, and one with a non-replaceable 5,220 mAh battery at 401 g (both without Joy-Con).

The Ally X weighs 715 g and the Ally 670 g. The Legion Go 2 is the heaviest; FinalBoss gives 922 g, while Back2Gaming quotes Lenovo at 1.04 kg with controllers attached, so the two sources disagree.

Our calculation: dividing list price by battery capacity gives €9.98 per Wh for the ROG Xbox Ally (599 / 60), €11.24 for the Ally X (899 / 80) and €17.55 for the Legion Go 2 (1,299 / 74). The Ally X costs 50% more than the Ally for 33% more battery, but it also doubles the graphics compute units.

Model by model

Nintendo Switch 2

Nintendo’s console is the simplest purchase here, and Nintendo’s own games are the reason to buy it. Backward compatibility with original Switch games is also part of the pitch, and Nintendo has said it was a key design goal.

It won’t run your Steam library. Nintendo hasn’t confirmed how much RAM it has, according to Tom’s Guide, so there’s no spec-sheet comparison to make on memory.

Steam Deck OLED

Valve sells the Deck in two sizes, and the choice is mostly about storage. The 1TB model adds €140 over the 512GB one.

The Deck’s weakness is price relative to the Windows alternatives. The 1TB Deck at €919 costs €20 more than the Ally X at launch pricing (€899), and the Ally X has the faster chip and 80Wh battery. The Deck is still the natural fit for a Steam library; Newegg warns that SteamOS may not run games with kernel-level anti-cheat, so check your multiplayer titles first.

ROG Xbox Ally and Ally X

The pair launched on 16 October 2025 with EU prices of €599 and €899, and a full-screen Xbox interface layered over Windows 11. That interface was an Asus exclusive at first and began reaching other Windows devices in April 2026.

The Ally is the cheaper way into Game Pass on the go, but the Z2 A chip and 16GB of memory make it a 1080p, mid-settings device. The Ally X is the stronger Windows pick on specs. GSMArena’s review put it bluntly: at $1,000 it didn’t feel justified, which is a fair verdict at US pricing and a gentler one at €899.

Lenovo Legion Go 2

The Legion Go 2 has an 8.8-inch OLED screen, plus detachable controllers and a 74Wh battery. VideoCardz reported a €999 entry model with the plain Ryzen Z2, while the Z2 Extreme configuration is the one we’ve priced at €1,299.

That is a lot of money for a handheld. Notebookcheck noted at launch that the top US configuration was over twice the price of the Legion Go S, and the later memory-driven price rises haven’t helped.

Best for… budget and use

Under €600, Nintendo games: Nintendo Switch 2 at €499.99.
Under €600, Windows and Game Pass: ROG Xbox Ally at €599 launch price. Accept the weaker chip.
€700 to €920, Steam library: Steam Deck OLED, 512GB at €779 unless you hoard games.
€700 to €920, Windows and longest battery: ROG Xbox Ally X at €899, with 80Wh and 24GB of RAM.
Money no object, OLED screen: Legion Go 2 with the Z2 Extreme.

One timely extra applies if you live in the US. Microsoft’s X25 promotion gives buyers of eligible new Windows 11 PCs 25 Xbox games, which Windows Central puts at over $500 in value. The offer runs for US purchases from 2 November to 31 December 2026 and is limited to US retailers, so European buyers don’t get it.

gg.deals notes that it targets select Windows Home devices and excludes refurbished and open-box units. Sources give different claim deadlines, so read Microsoft’s terms before relying on one.

Buy now or wait

The Steam Deck is the only device here with a credible successor rumour. Shattered.io reports that Valve is working on one, but as of 2 November 2026 Valve hasn’t confirmed a name, specs, price or date. That is a rumour, and Tech-Insider says a rumoured 26 November release doesn’t hold up.

Both outlets point the same way on price: a new chip with more memory is unlikely to be cheaper, and the current Deck is more likely to rise than fall. If you want a Deck for Christmas, waiting buys you nothing certain. If you’re flexible, Black Friday discounts on the Ally and Ally X are a better bet than an undated Valve product.

What this means for you

If you mainly play Nintendo exclusives, buy the Switch 2 at €499.99 and check which battery version the box contains. If you play on Steam, buy the 512GB Steam Deck OLED at €779, and only pay €919 for the 1TB if you’d rather not swap the drive later.

If you want Game Pass, Epic and Battle.net on one device, the ROG Xbox Ally X at €899 is the pick, and it undercuts the 1TB Deck on price at launch figures.

Skip the Legion Go 2 unless the OLED screen and detachable controllers matter more to you than €400 of extra spend over the Ally X. And if you’re in the US and buying a Windows handheld before 31 December 2026, confirm the X25 bundle applies to your exact model before you check out.

Sources

Header image: illustration, AI-generated.