I hate to be that guy but the steam deck sucks compared to the Ally

Just FYI, the original Gameboy was 4 batteries not 2.

well steam deck is just linux so for most developers its the opposite

A fully capable portable PC with the option to download or stream from any service including Steam is clearly better for any Windows fan. Ignoring the limitations of Steamdeck for the sake of a lo res OLED is silly.

​@toddanderson8530 800p is fine on a small screen, if you want higher resolution go play with your phone instead

Nah they both are handheld computers, one runs linux and one runs windows

Mama KZfaq flagged your comment for Feedback. Since you used (first little in ) Peter and (first letter) Cat.

Wow, that says a lot! I have a SD OLED and love it, but I was thinking about adding an Ally into the collection alongside it (mostly for the games that require some extra performance). However when I see comments like yours, I realize I may be better off just keeping that extra $600

​@@CompleteProducer84i have both and use both. When at home, if i dont need track pads i use ally cranked out with overclocked 170hz. Ill play lighter titles locally, or heavier games streaming with moonlight/sunshine to my desktop. Its great to play 1080 high refresh rate. If im out and about its always going to be steam deck for battery life.

​@@CompleteProducer84 just got a alloy for 550

​​@@CompleteProducer84What games do require that little bit extra performance?

This is the way. Only kept the Switch OLED for indies, super light build and best battery. Everything else, the SD OLED.

Isn’t the screen incredible? Really an impressive thing

Me too I really wanted an OG deck but I had a feeling that I should just wait. Then I saw the Ally and I just about pulled the trigger at Best Buy. So happy with my 512gb Steam Deck OLED

Yes it’s such luck I decided to wait as well lol Emudeck being a thing has really opened my mind to just how incredible this thing is I love it 😊

I was not as patient and bought an ROG Ally. The experience was so clunky and so many apps like game pass and EA pass not working, I returned it after 4 days of owning it and bought the 512 oled. Glad I did the experience has been seamless and the screen is so incredible it really adds to the experience. Also wow the joysticks are just so much better on the deck than the Ally, but thats just my personal preference.

Bought a NOLED Deck on day 1 and never regretted it. Also have a pair of NReal Air glasses which run on micro olled displays. So there is handheld, big screen oled glory available for a while now. I totally get the appearance of the Steam Deck Oled though, it is a very, very good device.

that's my plan this year lol

Funny, I have both too and I’d choose the Ally for its power and VRR screen. Opinions! Aren’t they great? 😜

This is a 1:1 of my experience

@@FakeReal007Yea but I rather travel and play for longtime with updates

@@GarydeBrown VRR with LFC is a gamechanger for these handhelds. With Steam Deck you have to mess about changing refresh rate and using Vsync. Games just run much smoother on my Ally than my LCD Steam Deck. Would never buy any screen for my desktop PC or a handheld without VRR. Would of been tempted if the OLED Deck had VRR as it would of complimented it's lower framerates.

The Steam Deck OLED wins it for me every time. Having slightly more power sounds great in theory, but in practice, having a longer battery life is far more important. And if you’re at home e anyway, you’d just play on your vastly more powerful gaming PC.

😂 Nice!

🧢

Steam deck have back buttons what are you talking bout 😂

I honestly rarely use the track pads for gaming but they are a game changer for using the deck in desktop mode. When im in desktop mode and trying to browse the internet, downloading and installing mods, or whatever else, i dont wanna have to try to use some janky joystick mouse or smudge up the screen by tapping on it.

Be honest, you really use those track pads for gaming? I don't know, that just seems uncomfortable and annoying. No reason to use with a device designed to be used as a controller with a touch screen.

I use the track pads all the time, it depends on the type of games you play. there's a lot of MMO's i play like guildwards where the track pads act as extra buttons for mounts and skills, or when i play sims 3 i much prefer using the track pads. I also use my steamdeck as an actual PC if im going to be out of the house for a few days, and i use the deck instead of bringing a laptop with me as well. the trackpads are really freaking useful then if i dont want to bring or forget to bring a mouse with me as well. @@milo_andrs

​@@milo_andrsI played through the entirety of stalker with the touchpads and it was a great experience

Hope we get an updated version (please release it in black or dark gray... White color tech is for the kitchen lmao)

My whole setup is white. Guess I should make it a second kitchen​@@rodrigolopezmaya5974

​@@rodrigolopezmaya5974It's here and actually has the best possible upgrades for a refresh. Literally double the battery size, 80whr. That is f*cking enormous. Not only that but the ram is faster and you get more of it which are also bigger improvements than they sound. The ally has a much more powerful chip than the steam deck but the same memory bandwidth and the deck is already held back by its memory. On the ally this legit just mean about +10% performance The extra memory also significantly cuts how much data has to be shuffled around between the ssd and ram which uses tons of power. First handheld I'm actually considering

To be fair asus has being very consistent with updates, I was in shock To be honest since support for gaming laptops is more or less none existing

@@carimpest The issue theyre pointing out is not ASUS support, but game developer support. Game developers are already targeting Steam, so its easy to also target Steamdeck at the same time.

@Stevieboy7 but both systems use the same architecture so optimization for amd chipsets would improve performance not only in the steam deck but also in the rog ally or any other amd based system

@@Stevieboy7this wouldn’t matter? If they target steam deck it’ll just run just as good if not even better on the ally since it’s also got steam as a launcher

@@huntertipton6197it’s not being optimized for the ‘steam application’ but the hardware of the deck itself. This doesn’t mean the Ally won’t get better performance from it, but there will be greater increase for the deck. However, the Ally still does have naturally more power which means it doesn’t need as much optimization

I'm still in between a rog ally or a gaming laptop, its not like im going to be traveling that much but when i go and visit family that something else, i do have a beast gaming desktop so im unsure what would be best for price/performance

@@KenjiBiHI guess that’ll depends on what kind of game do you plan on playing. There’s some games my ROG ally cannot run but my ROG laptop can

@@Wooden_Hammer the games i would mainly be playing would be Warframe & singleplayer games like witcher 3

@@KenjiBiHthe Ally will struggle with Witcher 3, you’d be better off with a gaming laptop

@@Wooden_Hammer gotcha thank you very much for the info

You did!!!! My girl bought me on for Christmas as well but I couldn’t wait so I gave her 1 gift early & she did the same

​@@certified2919You and your girlfriend are sweet! Merry Christmas to you guys

@@Kyle-Marxluxia thanks brotha, you as well!!!

The resolution you output does not take up more power at all. Power draw when using an internal screen will depend on screen size, brightness, refresh rate, and overall panel type. I'd say both need tinkering because they are both PCs. Neither one will just look exactly or run exactly how you want it out of the box in games. Both systems can have game specific modes though thanks to SteamOS and Armory Crate

Hi, stupid question, can you not install epic in steam deck?

@@Mr.2GD you can't

@@LocalMultiplex yes you can

@@Mr.2GD you can, using lutris( the original launcher ) or the way i prefer, using heroic launcher( the interface is better in my opinion and i like it more )

Those other handhelds miss the point of the product category. What's the point of having a handheld when you're tethered to an outlet. Would rather just game on a PC for high end AAA titles. Valve is smart, they know their audience. These ultra high performing handhelds with poor battery life are DOA for most people.

@@beemoboppins just because you don't like something doesn't mean it's missing the mark🤨 or are you one of those gen z folk that think everything should be made specifically for your needs?

@Gingerlion777 wow straight into an ad hominem, not even debating the point of my comment. I would call you a boomer, but I'll refrain from matching the low leveledness you just displayed here.

Extreme or regular? I'm looking forward to buying one and don't know what to choose

@@khalidxtreme1872 Extreme but you should get the rog ally x tho

@@khalidxtreme1872 Extreme

Just so you are aware, you can run games from other launchers on the steam deck, it's just not as seamless as a native steam game, but the same level of seamless as *any* game on the Ally.

@@SolidSt8Dj Some games are just a huge pain even with those other launchers. It is still much easier on the Ally than Deck

@@SolidSt8DjI’m about to purchase a steam deck oled but my concern is that I have quite a few games on Epic library apart from steam. Any idea if I can run them?

​@@shrinathsudershanadd them as nonsteam game into your library then u re good to go

@@chad286 sorry but not all games will work and even on steam not all of them do work properly.

This is exactly what I'm wondering. Everyone keeps talking about how unoptomized windows is for handheld gaming but no one is giving any examples of why that is. At this point I'm inclined to go ROG because I prefer the way it looks and I can play Kingdom Hearts without excessive issues.

@FurbTastic1998 These people lack their own opinions, and instead simply echo what popular KZfaq say. Ignoring the fact that those tech guys are using these devices like PCs because that's their fields. These same reviewers also review top end laptops and PC builds. I have both Steam Deck, and RoG Ally. The Deck is only easier if you play exclusively steam games. Otherwise you're doing twice as much work to get games to play And the desktop mode of Linux on the Steam Deck is even harder to navigate on a tiny handheld than Windows. Once either device is set up, you don't have to deal with the OS.

Yeah, I haven't had any issue playing the AAA titles in my library on my Steam Deck OLED. Honestly, I was pleasantly surprised by how well everything ran.

Yes but how many fps?

I don't even use VRR on my desktop gaming PC and Gsync monitor. I don't like my system being maxed out all the time. It produces a lot of extra heat, noise, and extra wear and tear on my PC that I just don't want. Plus, I realized over time that it doesn't smooth out all stutter. If the framedrops are too significant you will still perceive the stutter. I also don't like the clarity and temporal resolution to change like it does with VRR. I prefer to have my games run at a steady framerate that my system can maintain consistently. Noise and temperature are even more important to me on a handheld.

I saw somewhere that when you download a game from Steam to Windows they don't really run at similar speeds, and if you drop the write speed to 30 mbps you will get a more consistent download speed and it wont overheat the SD card leading to shorter life span.

I'm getting my Ally tomorrow. Very curious to see what it's next version will be like. 2024 will be wild for these devices!

​@randerins how is your experience going on

How are your feelings a month Later? Have you had any issues with the Ally?

I got it on launch day and have used it every day since. My gaming laptop collects dust. I haven't had any issues. 0. I upgraded the SDD to 2tb and have a 1tb micro SD as well. All my current play games, Palworls, Baldurs Gate 3, diablo 4, Elden Ring all stay on the SSD. I have mostly emulators and movies on the Micro SD. The updates from Asus have been amazing and keep coming. I'm more excited now about a Ally 2 then ever before

@@araiakunin352 Thank you for the quick reply! I am looking to get one of these to replace my 10 year old custom gaming PC. As much as I have loved my computer she's getting old and is having a hard time keeping up with the new games. Also within these 10 years I have been diagnosed with an autoimmune disorder which causes daily pain and inflammation which makes it hard for me to feel like sitting in my computer chair and at my computer desk for long periods of time. I'm also tired of my computer taking up so much space and I want to being able to take it on the go with me to doctor's appointments (My doc is over 2 hours away). I WAS originally looking into an ASUS gaming laptop about a year ago to solve these issues but now that the ROG has released I'm considering it instead. Mainly I prefer the handheld form factor. I also like that it runs windows because that's what I've used my entire life and I have a lot of windows based games already that I could play right out of the box. My main concern is the battery life. Does this cause you annoyance on a day to day basis? Have you had to purchase an external power source like a battery pack? If so which brand is best? I've looked up so many videos but most of them seem to be fake brand deals so I don't really know the best bang for my buck. I know that using 30w mode uses more power than say 15w mode. I'm not a picky gamer who needs my games to look and play perfect and be 60-120fps. I just want them to be playable at a stable 30fps. Would 15w be good for that or is 30w inevitable? I apologize for the super long comment and all the questions. I've done a lot of research on the ROG ally but it can be hard to tell in the sea of opinions what is factual and what is the truth. If you take the time to read and answer this, thank you.

This. The stuttering and frametearing on the Deck is atrocious. VRR, especially with low power devices, is a critical and essential feature.

🧢 it doesnt work well with age of empires 2 at all

Just wait for the next gen tbh.

It's a great option.

Depends. I would personaly never put anything on sd card if its not pre 2012 games/emulation. If you can get under 280$ its definitely worth it, if just tiny bit tech savy, you could upgrade cheaply up to 512gb ssd easily

@@diddymies the sd cards are very fast now these days. i did not even get the best one but the sandisk extreme i got is ok to me and cheaper than change the ssd and less trouble also. i saw some reviews saying that the games will run just as good on sd card but the installation can be slower.

Why the hell would you do that lol

@@Mardoxx7 Why the hell wouldn't I do that lol

@@Aethelbeorn Maybe because you literally can't use them at the same time? It's a waste lol

@@Mardoxx7 Maybe you literally can't but I literally can lol

@@Aethelbeorn I see, just by seeing your profile pic I should have known I wasn't talking to a sane person, good luck I guess lol

I had the same thoughts but I got an ally 3 months ago and it's just as good as the steam deck more so if you wanna play more demanding games. Navigating on the internet is as easy. The only thing I do miss is the trackpads for overall gaming experience

Yep, for people that mostly play at home this is epic.

How to do that?

@@akey_9655 steam remote play or sunshine/moonlight.

​@@joeykeilholz925why ? Is it not better to Just play on a pc monitor with à real setup ?

Sitting on the couch downstairs. Oled screen. ​@@TheVindu33380

it should be a cake walk for it if compatible

Best choice

Do you encounter issues because of Windows not being super compatible with a handheld

@@yaboim4thematixummm I haven’t yet especially when I put it in gamepad mode

to be really honest, I think neither are going to fulfill that "main gaming pc" need right now, the devices are simply not powerful enough, ROG ally has the slight advantage in some games, but it is not really that huge of a gap, you would probably still not want to play cyberpunk or any major AAA game on the ROG the same way you woudn't on the deck, mainly because of performance but also battery life, the battery gets drained really fast on a more demanding game. You would not get that "main gaming pc" experience unless you are plugged to a wall 24/7, and if that is the case, you have better options for the price.

You right, brother. If i want a god gaming experience, i have to play it on pc

Update: I got the steam deck OLED and honestly I’ve had no problem playing heavier games on medium/high settings. I mostly play docked but if I want to take it with me I can which is great. Maybe I’m just not as picky as y’all about performace 🤷‍♂️ For me this definitely was the way to go

I think it is actually above 48 fps.

VRR is only applicable between 48hz and 120hz

No you can set VRR to run from 1 to 120 Hz with CRU which might even be better than low framerate compensation below 48 Hz.

@@DannysHauntedJourney While yes, the ROG Ally has LFC that engaged below 48fps. Rule of Freesync Premium, you need to have LFC that engaged below your VRR range to qualify. and the ROG Ally has it.

People who have never used it don’t know how good it is..

I was thinking about that. How easy is it to do? That would basically make all of the Steam library playable, would it not? (Most of my games are in Steam, but I do have Game Pass and a couple of others.) Thanks.

What did u end up going with

Its called compatibility. Dont play dumb. The SD doesn't match up in that area.

anti cheat games that don't support proton. the possibility of a new game not working(this got much better after steam deck became popular)

Any multiplayer games that uses the anti cheat engine is almost impossible to run correctly in the Steam Deck, for a lot of people that's a hard no

It runs Windows versus the Linux on steam deck. This means you get to run PC games, and launchers like Epic so you can negatively play Fortnite. Also, you have access to Xbox game pass, and you can download any of those games and play them on the machine because it runs windows.

@@Gsfan2024 really? How many games?

The ally is a gaming pc it ll run any pc game that windows can run .

i have steam deck and the game pass xbox cloud works great and some epic games do work also

Yoo same with me, if only valve sell deck in my country, but i get ally instead, the price is also the cheapest among 3 handhelds (deck, ally, go) im not giving my money to those third party seller.

For gaming it certainly is if you want a smooth experience.

These windows handhelds are much easier to get things up and going. Like emulation, mods, non steam stores etc. I don't understand the narrative of the windows experience being bad. I bet most likely use laptops and shit for work it's the same thing but smaller screen, not a big deal if you interact with a computer at all during your day, if not okay sure I can see the argument but still feel it's a bit overblown

im a noob with emulators and handhelds but i managed to install many emulators using emudeck on my steam deck in a few minutes. the emulators all seem to work well. it was also very easy to setup my xbox cloud and also gog/epic launcher.

Hey! I need help so I’m torn between the steamdeck OLED and rog ally for the simple fact of the matter is I want a pc like experience that will allow me to play virtually any pc game there is. And I also want to download mods for games such as . Arkham knight& Spider-Man remastered. Which is truthfully the only two games I truly want to mod. Based on this info what do you guys suggest I get? I’m 17 btw.

@@user-bx6iy2ut9y In all honesty if you want to play "virtually any PC game" you should spend a couple of hundred more and just get a gaming laptop. You can get a decent specced gaming laptop for 100-150 more than an Asus ROG.

@@user-bx6iy2ut9y i have a steam deck oled. i use the included steam os. some do install windows on it. i guess with windows you can probably play everything just like a pc. i dont know for the rog ally. for the steam deck , i can play my xbox games (ultimate) , i can use many emulators with emudeck program i installed , but i have some issues with some games like from epic. this is with using the steam os. you have to consider that those are still portable systems so some games might be harder to play and to configure the controls. some games are not fully compatible even with steam games. you do can use a mouse or keyboard if you use for example a steam deck stand with usb ports on it. thats what i did. i can even play my steam deck on my big tv since the stand does have a hdmi port. i also have a projector i can also use with the steam deck with my stand. i bought an usb c extension. for the game mods , i dont really know but i guess you could use them.

Still an issue on existing models.

Still an issue.

there's a cheap mod which if you open the Ally, you can pull out the internal SSD and put a 90 degree NVME adapter and it fits perfect with no modification.

R8 models and R9 models apparently haven't experienced it but earlier models yes

Why not just pick up a gaming laptop then?

The Ally is the worst PC Handheld on the market.

I love my Ally, only "downfall" is it can run games without controller support and if the Ally doesn't auto map controls then your stuck waiting till more controller support arrives for that game or just using a mouse and keyboard. Either way it'll run it and usually at high/ultra settings right off the bat. That may sound redundant if you already have a gaming PC but at least you have options where the Steam Deck doesn't. Just upgrade your internal memory to NVME it's easy and don't be a n00b and try to game off the Micro SD but if you do, set the download speed on steam to 30 mbps so the SD card doesn't overheat from writing.

@@SolidSt8Dj Cause I have all of that.. I have a gaming PC, laptop and I was looking for a handheld machine that I could use as a PC with my TV. Should I wait for the Lenovo Legion Go to go on Sale? I'm able to buy the Ally for 649€ in my region and the Lenovo is still 799€.

​@@JookerSKif u want a pure portable handheld gaming machine the ally is the way to go,I was also choosing between the ally and legion go but the Legion go is a chunk and why not buy a gaming laptop at that point plus I have a PS5 and no gaming laptop or PC but the ally is perfect fit for me ❤

Ally has the best cooling of all the handhelds and is the quietest

It has the best cooling as it has 2 fans and it also is very quiet

Any game that works with offline mode on deck works fine on the Ally. This hasn't changed at all. Issues with offline mode concerning EGS and others is solely down to them and the Deck would have the exact same issues