ROG Xbox Ally X and ROG Xbox Ally up for pre-order to take on the Steam Deck

Microsoft and Asus have now put the ROG Xbox Ally X and ROG Xbox Ally up for pre-order, ready to take on Valve's Steam Deck.

We continue to see handhelds move in the wrong direction on pricing though. The ROG Xbox Ally X is USD $999.99, but the ROG Xbox Ally is a more reasonable USD $599.99. The problem is, Valve's Steam Deck just cannot be beaten on the price to performance ratio, especially with it currently having a 20% discount making it truly worth grabbing.

Even having the higher specifications on the Xbox Ally X, with the Z2 Extreme chip, the performance difference really isn't going to be worth that price tag. Especially so for the plain Xbox Ally, with a similar chip to the Steam Deck (and powering a higher resolution screen too). However, the anti-cheat problem on SteamOS / Linux is not an issue for Windows - so that might perhaps entice a few more buyers.

Microsoft do have another issue here though — confusion. No doubt with the Xbox naming, there will be plenty who go in expecting traditional Xbox games to work, but they won't since like the Steam Deck it is just a PC. You may not think this is an issue, but I can guarantee it will end up as one. The masses are not particularly well informed when it comes to buying hardware - anyone who has worked retail or technical support will know it well.

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Could be some nice devices to install Bazzite Linux on though. How long do we think it will be before Bazzite gets support for running on the ROG Xbox Ally X and ROG Xbox Ally? It will be interesting to see if Microsoft / Asus have made it difficult to install another OS on it.

Both devices launch October 16th. See the announcement for more info.

We really are entering a new world when it comes to gaming though. Valve truly laid the groundwork here for handheld PC gaming, and now everyone wants a slice of the pie. I do think these are the first actual proper competition for the Steam Deck, since there's an entry model and backing from Microsoft. Plus, Microsoft's work to bring all stores under one roof with their newer UI for handhelds that will debut with the ROG Xbox Ally - we're in for some turbulence here.