It has finally arrived.

The newest portable console from Asus was officially launched on June 13. We bring you a first impressions review, evaluating technical aspects and gameplay.

With an AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme processor, a Zen 4 architecture chip, and RDNA 3 graphics (which were developed specifically for handheld devices), this device becomes one of the most powerful and best-performing on the market.

As a direct competitor to the Steam Deck, the Asus Rog Ally has arrived on the market to change the perception of what a portable console is. In comparison, the new device has very powerful configurations, and it is even possible to implement an external video card (purchased separately) and further increase the capacity of this device.


Rog Ally connected to an external graphics card using the Asus PCIe port.

Before its release, the Rog Ally already promised to deliver performance and several applications beyond gaming. Of course, its focus is on the various platforms it has access to, such as Xbox Game Pass, Battle.net, Steam, Epic Games, and so on, but it also arrived with the premise of being used as a PC, given all its specifications.

Thus, you can use various programs (such as Internet access, recorders, and video editors) for day-to-day work, but that does not mean that they are an ideal substitute for your computer. The console helps you and can be helpful in times when you cannot access the PC. It can be a great ally for some basic tasks such as browsing sites, opening e-mail, and using social networks, but let's not forget that its main focus is playing games.

One of the biggest plusses of the Rog Ally is Asus' cooling system. The company works with ROG Intelligent Cooling, which contains an anti-gravity tube (which pulls in and dissipates hot air) and a good set of fans that cool and promise not to overheat either the back or the display.


Cooling system

This compound is already used in other devices from the brand and has very positive reviews. It does not make as much noise as other systems used today and has a big temperature difference compared to other laptops. The Asus Rog Ally comes out ahead and has the best technology for this.

Another very positive aspect, in my opinion, is the display of the console, which has a Full HD resolution of 1920x1080p with a refresh rate of 120 Hz. It's a differential in this line of portable consoles, allowing you to run a wide variety of current and heavy games at over 60 FPS (which for a console is wonderful). It also has buttons that are comfortable to push, don't lock up, and have good ergonomics (with a good weight and shape).

Also, the colors of the Rog Ally are very vivid and beautiful. The console delivered fluid and vibrant animations, and it is even possible to play in the sun without too much difficulty.



Technical Specs

The Rog Ally is raising the bar by having more specific and powerful configurations, reaching a certain niche market, and enabling competition with other handheld consoles. In this sense, it can be considered a premium product because it has good configurations and a good launch price compared to competitors.

See below for the technical specifications of the notebook:

ASUS ROG ALLY

- AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme processor
- 512 GB of storage
- AMD RDNA 3 Video Card
- Dual speakers with Dolby Atmos
- 16 GB RAM
- 6E Wi-Fi connection
- Weight: 608 grams / 1,340 lbs
- 40 Wh battery
- 7-inch IPS display, with Full HD resolution that renders up to 1920x1080 pixels
- USB Type-C ports, Headphone jack, MicroSD expansion, and Asus PCIe port
- Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.2

Model: ASUS Rog Ally 7" 16GB RAM, 120 Hz, Full HD 1080p, AMD Z1 Extreme 512 GB

Price: US$ 699 | 799 EUR

The Windows Experience

Naturally, early versions of handheld consoles have some "bugs" and complaints. So, considering that the device has just been released, it is expected that in the coming weeks, several updates will be made available, seeking to correct the problems, improve, and raise the level of the project until it becomes a quality product for both the market and the consumer.

Thus, there are some problems and issues that we need to mention here, some bigger than others, but that still need to be commented on. This is the case with the Windows 11 operating system itself that the console has, which, when used, can cause the most traditional problems for those who use it daily by computer.

Program freezing, the big amount of program updates, and the scary blue screen of death It is a typical Windows problem that indicates a serious system error (and that, in a way, is scary for being present on a laptop). The initial configuration of the operating system itself, when the device is started for the first time, is slow, seems to take a while to adapt, displays too many updates, and freezes a bit.

The good news is that, in partnership with Microsoft, Asus is listening to the initial feedback from the device, and it may be that in a short time, these details will be fixed and will only remain in memory. Microsoft's operating system is good and is present in the daily lives of millions of people, and it's not by chance; it's because it works properly and delivers good service.


Windows Desktop

How about the battery?

Specifically for gaming, the Rog Ally needs a specific battery enhancement. Based on our tests, we had a battery life of only 1 hour in high-performance mode. This ends up being a big problem for the user who wants to use the device outdoors, away from any power outlet, because the device has super-powerful settings that consume a lot of power. Therefore, it will be necessary to change the mode to low performance and, of course, run the games at a lower quality, aiming to prolong the battery's durability.

With the performance mode set to low and using Rog Ally for simple computer activities, we achieved a battery life of up to 3 hours, which in our opinion is a satisfactory time.

Some other problems

Based on our experience, Rog Ally also had some problems with settings and with the operating system crashing. In some classic games, such as Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, we had difficulty with the camera movement, which we could not configure in any way, the right direction, or even access the game controls menus.

Another issue is that now, when playing Diablo IV, after playing for some hours without any problem, we had the idea to try to migrate to the TV using the USB-C connection with HDMI. Aiming for greater comfort, we connected an Xbox controller via Bluetooth, but when returning to the game, the commands were not recognized.

We accessed all the possible configuration panels, and so far we don't know if it is a compatibility problem with Battle.net (which doesn't accept the inclusion of the control through Rog Ally) or with Diablo IV itself on the device. Maybe this problem can be solved in the future with some updates, but this was an attempt that did not work.


Settings menu

After this frustrating trial, we tried to return to the game only through the laptop, removing the USB-C connection, but Rog Ally crashed, making it necessary to restart the device so that we could use it again and continue our Diablo IV experience.

However, even with this problem mentioned above, we were able to play some other games normally using the external controller from other platforms such as Steam, Epic Games, and Game Pass, as well as classic platform emulators connected to the television.

Cloud Experience

There are some problems well known to the gaming audience that uses any streaming service, which we need to comment on here again anyway when using Rog Ally.

We played for several hours different games using the Game Pass servers from Microsoft, and at some moments we felt the FPS drop and the image presented for a few seconds some kind of tearing. Of course, this depends on many factors, such as the speed and stability of the local connection in which the user is located and even the distance from it to the router. But as mentioned above, these are well-known problems that, in a way, we are already accustomed to daily, whether we are playing on another platform or watching a series or movie on some streaming platform.


Forza Horizon 5 via Game Pass

Let's get down to business...

Well, slightly up in this review, we cited some technical problems we had with some specific games and also with our cloud experience, but now let's comment a little on its offline performance and also praise some points.

After some settings were made in the device and the operating system itself, we played several current games like Hogwarts Legacy, Resident Evil 4, Street Fighter 6, Forza Horizon 5, and Miles Morales, among others, and the experience was perfect and satisfactory in performance mode.

Of course, these games were running on the device's 512 SSD, which gave us great gameplay with great response times and no framerate drops, whether playing by Rog Ally itself or with it connected to a TV.



If you are a user that has a vast game library on several services, the Rog Ally will provide you with several hours of entertainment and convenience, even if there are still some games that do not have 100% compatibility with the portable experience of the device or are incompatible with using an external controller.

So we are looking forward to the next updates from Asus and the gaming platforms that are present in the Rog Ally so that it becomes more and more optimized and becomes a reference model for this new portable market.

This review was performed with a European model device bought by our team in Germany.