The ROG Xbox Ally X turned a year old this month, and Windows Central has published a re-review asking whether it’s still worth $1,000. The price hasn’t moved in the US as of 31 October 2026, which is a small miracle in a year when memory and handheld prices have mostly gone one way.
The short version: the reviewer still likes it, and the main reason is software. AMD’s FSR 4.1 upscaler is in beta on the device, and Windows Central expects the hardware to stay relevant for 3 to 5 years.
What changed in a year
The headline addition is FSR 4.1, which is currently in beta testing on the Xbox Ally X. According to Windows Central, games that already support FSR 3 pick up FSR 4.1 automatically, so there’s no per-game patching to wait for.
On raw frame rates, the review reports 40 to 60 FPS at 1080p in most games using the Performance and Turbo modes, straight out of the box. That’s a modest figure on paper, but the 7-inch screen is a 1080p panel, so it’s the native resolution that matters here.
Battery life still looks fine to the reviewer. Plenty of 3D games run acceptably in the silent 13 W mode if you’re willing to drop visual quality, and that’s how you stretch the 80 Wh cell. At launch, Tom’s Guide measured 2 hours 56 minutes in its gaming battery test, so heavy 3D titles at full power remain a 3-hour affair.
One practical note for Steam owners: the review points out you can set Big Picture Mode as the default launcher and skip the Xbox front end entirely. That matters because the device runs Windows 11 Home with an Xbox full-screen layer, not a console OS.
Specs: Xbox Ally against Xbox Ally X
Asus and Microsoft launched two models on 16 October 2025. The cheaper white Xbox Ally uses a Ryzen Z2 A, while the black Ally X has the Ryzen AI Z2 Extreme, 8 cores and 16 threads, per Kotaku and Best Buy’s spec page.
| Spec | Xbox Ally | Xbox Ally X |
|---|---|---|
| Processor | AMD Ryzen Z2 A | AMD Ryzen AI Z2 Extreme |
| Memory | 16 GB LPDDR5X-6400 | 24 GB LPDDR5X-8000 |
| Storage | 512 GB M.2 2280 SSD | 1 TB M.2 2280 SSD |
| Display | 7-inch 1080p, 120 Hz, IPS, 500 nits (both) | |
| Battery (Wh) | 60 | 80 |
| Launch price (USD) | 600 | 1,000 |
The Ally X’s chip pairs 8 Zen 5 and Zen 5c cores with RDNA 3.5 graphics. Club386 notes that Asus clocks it at 17 W out of the box, which it calls a sensible balance of efficiency and speed.
How it differs from the original ROG Ally X
The Xbox Ally X isn’t a new platform. GamesRadar described it as the earlier ROG Ally X made more console-flavoured, and Club386 confirms it keeps the same 80 Wh battery. The original used a Ryzen Z1 Extreme; the new one moves to the Z2 Extreme.
The body is where the visible work went. GSMArena found the Xbox-style grips comfortable enough that you rarely notice the 715 g weight, though it called the device one of the heaviest in its class and heavier than the Steam Deck and every earlier Ally.
Not everyone was won over at launch. Kotaku’s review said it didn’t feel ready, and a Game Rant writer wrote up buyer’s remorse within weeks. A year of software updates is the answer Windows Central is giving to those complaints.
The X20 and the rivals
There’s now a pricier sibling. PC Gamer’s review of the ROG Xbox Ally X20 lists the same chip, memory and storage as the Ally X, with a 7.4-inch OLED panel in place of the IPS screen.
| Spec | Xbox Ally X | Xbox Ally X20 |
|---|---|---|
| Screen | 7-inch IPS LCD | 7.4-inch OLED |
| Resolution / refresh (Hz) | 1920 x 1080 / 120 | 1920 x 1080 / 120 |
| Peak brightness (nits) | 500 | 1,400 |
| Thumbsticks | Magnetic | TMR |
| Battery (Wh) | 80 | 80 |
| Weight (g) | 715 | 756 |
| Price (USD) | 1,000 | 1,300 |
Outside the Ally family, the obvious rival is Valve’s Steam Deck OLED. PC Gamer puts the 512 GB model at $789 new and points out that its chip dates from 2023 and uses Zen 2 and RDNA 2. The Lenovo Legion Go 2 with SteamOS was listed by Windows Central at a starting price of $1,199 earlier this year.
Source: Kotaku, PC Gamer, Windows Central; US prices as of 31 October 2026 or at launch
The chart mixes launch and current prices, so treat it as a ladder rather than a snapshot of one day. The figures are in US dollars: $600 for the Xbox Ally, $789 for the Steam Deck OLED 512 GB, $1,000 for the Xbox Ally X, $1,199 for the Legion Go 2 SteamOS and $1,300 for the Xbox Ally X20.
Price and availability
The Xbox Ally X launched at $1,000 and, as of 31 October 2026, Windows Central says it has escaped a price increase. The sources used here quote US dollars; none of them gives an official euro price, so there’s nothing to convert.
Context helps. PC Gamer wrote in its X20 review that the memory crisis has worsened to the point where the Ally X’s original price now seems fairly reasonable. It also notes that a Steam Deck OLED at $789 is the cheapest of that line, so the old gap between Valve’s handheld and Asus’s has narrowed in absolute terms.
Here’s a way to see what you pay per unit of battery. Our calculation: $600 / 60 Wh = $10.00 per Wh for the Xbox Ally, $1,000 / 80 Wh = $12.50 per Wh for the Ally X, and $1,300 / 80 Wh = $16.25 per Wh for the X20, using launch or listed US prices.
Source: Our calculation from US prices (Kotaku, PC Gamer) and battery capacities (Best Buy, PC Gamer)
Battery capacity isn’t the whole value story, since the Ally X also doubles the SSD and adds 8 GB of RAM over the base model. But the arithmetic shows the X20’s OLED screen costs you 30% more than the Ally X for the same cell.
Who should care
If you own a large Xbox Play Anywhere library, this is the handheld the reviewer built the verdict around. Game Pass subscribers get the most from the Xbox layer, and the screen is the same 7-inch 1080p panel the base Ally uses, so the extra $400 buys memory, storage, chip and battery.
If your library lives on Steam, the Ally X still works, but you’re paying for Windows to behave like SteamOS. Buyers with no existing platform loyalty should price the Steam Deck OLED against the $600 Xbox Ally before looking at the $1,000 model.
Anyone who bought at launch has the least to worry about. The FSR 4.1 beta arrives by software, and the hardware hasn’t changed.
Also this week
Threads of Time gets a summer 2027 window
The indie JRPG Threads of Time, from Riyo Games and publisher Balor Games, was revealed for Switch and Switch 2 during Nintendo’s Indie World showcase, according to Analog Stick Gaming on 28 October 2026. The studios say it launches in summer 2027 on Switch, Switch 2, PC via Steam and Xbox Series X|S. That’s a launch window, not a fixed date.
Steam Deck gets an Xbox dashboard plugin
A community plugin called Decky Xbox Dashboard swaps Steam Deck’s Game Mode home screen for an Xbox Series X|S style layout with LB and RB tabs, according to its GitHub page. It needs Decky Loader, and the latest release is v0.0.9-alpha, so expect rough edges.
What this means for you
Own an Xbox Play Anywhere library and want it on a 7-inch screen? The Xbox Ally X at $1,000 is the version to price-check, especially if you can find a discount, since its chip and 80 Wh battery are what separate it from the $600 model.
Mostly play Steam games? Compare the Steam Deck OLED 512 GB at $789 first. You give up the faster chip and gain a simpler software setup.
Tempted by the X20? Its OLED screen, 1,400 nits peak brightness and TMR sticks cost $300 more than the Ally X, with the same battery and chip. Buy it for the screen, not for any speed gain.
If you already own an Ally X, check for the FSR 4.1 beta driver and try it in a game you’ve been running at low settings. It’s free, and it’s the main reason the one-year verdict is positive.
Sources
- Windows Central: A year later: Xbox Ally X re-review
- PC Gamer: Asus ROG Xbox Ally X20 review
- Club386: Asus ROG Xbox Ally X review
- GSMArena: Asus ROG Xbox Ally X review
- Tom’s Guide: ROG Xbox Ally X review
- Kotaku: ROG Xbox Ally X review
- GamesRadar: ROG Xbox Ally X review
- Best Buy: ROG Xbox Ally
- Windows Central: Lenovo Legion Go 2 (SteamOS) vs Steam Deck
- Analog Stick Gaming: Threads of Time travels to Nintendo Switch platforms
- GitHub: decky-xbox-dashboard
- GitHub: Xbox Dashboard v0.0.9-alpha release
Header photo of the ASUS ROG Xbox Ally X: RuinDig/Yuki Uchida, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.