Steam Deck vs ASUS ROG Ally: Which should you buy?

Whereas handheld gaming PCs aren’t a current idea, they solely actually received a shot within the arm with the launch of Valve’s Steam Deck in 2022. The product has spawned a flurry of rivals, and even a speedy revision, the Steam Deck OLED. Its chief competitors in the meanwhile is the ASUS ROG Ally — so how do the 2 gaming machines stack up?

The very first thing to notice right here is that we’ve gone with essentially the most comparable fashions. Whereas you may get nonetheless get a 256GB, LCD mannequin of the Steam Deck, or a much less highly effective Ryzen Z1 model of the Ally — each of which price about $400 as of this writing — the previous is already outdated, and Valve is aware of it. The one cause it’s nonetheless obtainable is to draw individuals who in any other case couldn’t afford something. You’re getting much more bang for the buck with the Steam Deck OLED, or any model of the Ally, for that matter.

Once you examine the Steam Deck OLED towards the Z1 Excessive Ally, the latter (above) remains to be the hand held to decide on if efficiency trumps each different concern. You’ll see higher framerates in nearly each sport. It may not matter very a lot should you stick with titles with 2D or easy 3D graphics, like Hole Knight or Dave the Diver, however you’ll very a lot admire it when attempting to play one thing like Elden Ring or Baldur’s Gate 3. In case you personal one in every of ASUS’ ROG XG Cellular docks, you may join it and get even sooner graphics  — the present mannequin consists of NVIDIA’s top-of-the-line GeForce RTX 4090 GPU, higher than what you get on most desktop PCs. To get something like that on a Steam Deck, the very best you are able to do is distant hook up with a desktop or laptop computer by way of Steam Distant Play.

There are causes some individuals will favor the Deck nonetheless, together with its show. Whereas the Ally does win in decision and refresh fee, it makes use of a 7-inch LCD, whereas the Deck (beneath) in fact affords a 7.4-inch OLED panel. It’s arduous to overstate how a lot better OLED seems to be — photographs pop, thanks partly to true blacks. The Deck additionally helps HDR in some video games, enabled by 1,000 nits of peak brightness versus simply 500 on the Ally. The Deck is immediately higher should you play in sunlit environments.

Battery life is another excuse, however we’ll contact on that in a later part. Right here we’ll add that solely the OLED Deck has 512GB and 1TB inside storage choices, whereas the Ally is restricted to 512GB. Each handhelds can increase their storage by way of microSD, so this is likely to be a moot level for some. Inner reminiscence is at all times sooner, nonetheless, and the 1TB Deck ships with some further perks, together with an etched anti-glare show and a second slim case that matches throughout the default one. The Ally doesn’t include a case in any respect.

As dimension and weight go, there are variations, however they shouldn’t be a deciding issue. The Deck is technically 32g heavier than the Ally, however each handhelds are cumbersome. You’ll need to prop them up in your legs or one thing else for prolonged gaming periods. The truth is there are third-party kickstand instances for that reason, and a few individuals have even taken to mounting swing arms the place they normally play.

What may very well be completely essential in your determination is software program. The Steam Deck runs Valve’s Linux-based SteamOS, which by default can solely play video games hosted on Steam. Since most Steam video games are literally Home windows titles, they’re “translated” for the Deck by way of a compatibility layer referred to as Proton.

That feels like it might be a recipe for catastrophe, however in actuality an unlimited variety of video games have already been optimized for the Deck or play effectively sufficient on it, and SteamOS gives a streamlined, “it simply works” interface that’s the closest you’ll get to a console just like the Nintendo Change or PlayStation 5. It’s designed for handheld gaming, and it reveals. The draw back is that you just’ll have to make use of (authorized!) workarounds to entry apps from non-Steam sources like Xbox Recreation Go and the Epic Video games Retailer.

The Ally is a full-fledged Home windows PC, however that may be as a lot a hinderance as a profit. It’s a profit in that if one thing works on an equal desktop or laptop computer, it’ll work on the Ally — that features not simply video games like Fortnite (an Epic unique) however obscure emulators and even Microsoft Workplace. Hooked as much as a dock, you may make an Ally your solely laptop.

It’s a hinderance in that whereas ASUS has customized software program for the Ally, it’s not as seamless and omnipresent as Valve’s. You’ll need to tinker with Home windows settings often, and cope with intrusions from different apps. Microsoft is engaged on enhancing Home windows for handheld PCs, however because the firm was caught off-guard by the Steam Deck, we wouldn’t count on an answer anytime quickly.

Mockingly, it’s the Steam Deck that has twin trackpads on prime of the touchscreen, D-pad, gyroscope, analog sticks, and lots of buttons that each units share. You’d assume no less than one trackpad can be warranted on a tool with Home windows, however as a substitute the Ally forces you to make use of stick, pad, or contact enter always except you have got linked peripherals. On prime of this some PC video games are merely meant to be performed with a mouse-like controller, and a tiny trackpad is best than nothing.

Any moveable PC goes to be an influence hog, so many individuals play linked to a USB-C charger once they can. Once you’re touring or in any other case absolutely wi-fi, although, the Steam Deck does beat the Ally. Because of power-efficient OLED and a 50Whr battery, it could run anyplace from 3 to 12 hours on a cost, relying on the depth of what you’re doing. You can conceivably play all over a cross-continental flight and have battery to spare.

The Ally simply doesn’t fare effectively. ASUS claims as much as 2 hours of “heavy” gaming, or alternately 6.8 hours of streaming video content material like Netflix and YouTube. That hardly counts as moveable, so that you’ll completely have to plug into an outlet or battery pack on lengthy journeys. We’re assuming ASUS can be pressured to sort out this on its subsequent handheld, partly by making the shift to OLED.

You’re undoubtedly paying for the additional efficiency of the Ally, which as talked about doesn’t even ship with a carrying case. However in its protection, it’s nonetheless spectacular that you would be able to play one thing like Baldur’s Gate 3 on any handheld, and the Ally can hit 30fps in that sport with medium element. The Deck can wrestle with some triple-A 3D titles.

This can be a legitimately robust query, however we really feel that most individuals should purchase the Steam Deck OLED. It’s cheaper than the Ally, lasts for much longer on a cost, and affords the seamless console-style expertise you’re most likely anticipating from a gaming handheld. It’s annoying that you just want workarounds for issues like Alan Wake or Xbox Recreation Go, however the Deck already has an enormous group prepared to assist on the market.

The Ally is extra best for energy customers. Except for it actually being extra highly effective, giving it entry to extra demanding video games, having Home windows 11 opens up entry to customization and alternate storefronts. In case you subscribe to Recreation Go or have a considerable non-Steam library, it’s best to most likely take into account the Ally first, and the Deck provided that there’s a dealbreaker like battery life. In spite of everything, it hardly issues if a system can play Useless House if it actually dies on you in an hour or so.