Asus’ ROG Xbox Ally and Ally X Are Now Available in 45 Countries

The Asus ROG Xbox Ally and Ally X gaming handhelds are now available in 45 countries today, and this launch marks a new milestone in Microsoft’s ambition to redefine what an Xbox is. Developed in partnership with Asus and AMD, the two Xbox Ally handhelds run Windows 11 with a new Xbox Full Screen Experience providing direct access to PC games, including those installed from competing storefronts like Steam.

The Rog Xbox Ally with 16GB of RAM, 512GB of storage is priced at $599 in the US, while the premium Ally X with 24GB of RAM, 1TB of storage, and a faster AMD Ryzen 2E Extreme chip is priced at $999. The latter also features impulse triggers, a larger 80Wh battery, and a Thunderbolt 4 port in place of one of the two USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports on the base Xbox Ally.

“We’ve seen incredible excitement from players during pre-orders and availability may vary depending on the retailer and device,” the Xbox team said today. Both versions of the handheld are available to purchase directly from xbox.com in select markets, and the Xbox website can also redirect users to other retailers in their region.

So far, the critical consensus on the two Xbox Ally models is that the hardware is solid, but the software experience still lacks some polish. The full-screen Xbox experience lacks the ability to manage local storage and other things, and it’s not possible to fully avoid the Windows desktop. This is still a PC, not an Xbox console, and Xbox players who don’t want to mess with the complexity of driver updates, power profiles, and other PC things may be disappointed.

Microsoft is already committed to improving performance, battery life, and the software experience on the Xbox Ally, however. With its Handheld Compatibility Program, the company is also working with game developers to get more games optimized for the devices.

“In the coming weeks, Xbox Ally players can look forward to previewing Default Game Profiles, a new feature that balances frame rate and energy use for select titles to give players smooth, enjoyable gameplay while extending battery life. And that’s just the beginning. Early next year, we will also roll out enhancements to the docking experience for both Xbox Ally handhelds, introduce AI-powered features like Automatic Super Resolution (Auto SR) and highlight reels for the Xbox Ally X, and much more,” the Xbox team also said today.

Are you planning to purchase the ROG Xbox Ally or Ally X? Let us know in the comments below.