On June 2, ASUS will officially release the ROG Ally X, a semi-sequel to its handheld gaming PC. bigger battery. We exclusively revealed the rough construction last Thursday, but I’ve now also gotten my hands on an early engineering sample – and I’m happy to say it’s much more comfortable to hold.
Asus made a bunch of ergonomic changes that made it almost blend into my hand, but the original didn’t. While I still prefer the Steam Deck’s more powerful grip and symmetrical thumb lever, the Ally X is easily my runner-up.
First, a disclaimer: This is not a practice I consider appropriate.. ASUS won’t let me turn it on, play any games, or show you any pictures. I couldn’t bring my old ROG Ally into the room or use any of the tools. The company even covered its ports with black electrical tape to prevent me from investigating too much!
But I think you’ll enjoy the discussion of design changes anyway. Let’s get started, shall we?
Think of the black ROG Ally — a black version of the white handheld you see above. This is what the ROG Ally X looks like from the front: the same large screen bezel, the same smooth cover glass, the same button layout, the same speaker placement, almost the exact same shape. But the palm rest is now no longer a jagged corner, but a smooth curve.
Flip it over, and those curves dominate the handheld’s rear grip, with no more unnecessary edges. ASUS no longer makes you try to wrap your fingers around the recessed version of ROG’s signature slash – although the rainbow foil slash design mark itself remains.
The new back buttons no longer contain slashes, either; they’ve shrunk to almost heart-shaped pebbles and are positioned further away from the grip. The grip isn’t as sturdy as the Steam Deck, but it’s enough to keep my fingers moving.
Add all of this together, and I can now pick up this handheld device and hold it above my head without any edges digging into my fingers or palms. It’s easier to grip, and the rear buttons are no longer in the way – if I need them, they’re there, if I don’t, they’re there.
It’s not a lightweight handheld device. A larger battery will make it thicker and heavier, and the engineering sample is definitely heavier than the original.But I won’t say how I feel Heavythanks to the extra comfort when holding it.
I’m not going to guess how much it weighs, but I able To give you an educated guess as to thickness: probably up to a third of an inch thick.
how could I know? I use my index finger as a ruler! The “tablet” part of the handheld device is about as thick as the length of the tip of my index finger, while the grip adds about the thickness of my index finger nail. Since my fingertips are about an inch (27mm) long and my nails are about half an inch (13mm) long, the total thickness of the Ally X is about 1.5 inches and 40mm. At the same time, the thickness of the original ROG Ally is 1.27 inches (32 mm), of which the tablet area is 0.83 inches (21 mm).
While I mentioned before that the Ally melted in my hands, I do feel like saying that is a little premature: the engineering samples I saw were the completely unfinished, glossy, cheap-looking piano black that Asus planned before Its grip is stippled and textured.
That’s the sculpture… where’s the rest?It’s hard to tell without actually playing the game, but here’s what it looks like i think i noticed play:
- The ABXY face buttons feel like they’ve been moved slightly south, closer to the analog sticks, so the B button now intersects slightly with the controller
- The front buttons have slightly less rattle, although they still have a pleasant rattle
- The joysticks now have a very sticky rubber coating in the middle, just like the Steam Deck OLEDs – they also feel slightly tighter to throw
- The D-pad now has an eight-way indicator, which feels a bit floaty
- The trigger could have a little more feel but still has a nice smooth pull
- Still only have two back buttons
- it still uses phillips head screws
- There are still RGB LED ring lights around the stick; I can’t tell if they’ve been added to the buttons, but they’re still bi-color
- From the vents of the case, you can see a pair of fans inside
That’s all I can gather – but if ASUS can improve comfort and With long battery life and a low price tag, this is definitely a handheld device worth watching. Leaked by @MysteryLupin Claimed price is $799 And equipped with 1TB storage space, 24GB RAM, up to eight hours of battery life – but if I remember correctly, Asus claimed that the original Ally also had up to 8 hours of battery life.
I guess we’ll find out in June!
