Gambling turns into a very expensive hobby. You’ve probably heard about all the console price hikes, but few have felt the same pain as the PC gaming market. RAM prices are rising, GPU costs are skyrocketing, and even Intel CPUs are becoming more expensive. Sometimes you have to wonder if the price is worth it, especially when considering portable gaming PCs that aren’t laptops.
Asus has just announced a new entry in its ROG Xbox Ally line of devices: the ROG Xbox Ally X20. This model features an AMD Ryzen AI Z2 Extreme processor and ROG’s new 7.4-inch Nebula HDR OLED display. Oh, and did we mention that the Xbox Ally X20’s case is translucent black with gold trim? Because translucency is making a comeback, it makes it easier to tell when dust is starting to build up and it’s time to clean the device. If you want to pre-order the handheld, prepare to shell out $1,299.
Of course, like many products in the gaming industry, the console (and its high price) is only half the story. Asus also offers “the ultimate bundle”, which is supposed to take your gaming experience to the next level. $1,299 gets you the standalone ROG Xbox Ally Why stare at your console screen when you can wear an accessory that projects the action wherever you look?
The price of power
The Asus ROG Xbox Ally family of consoles is already expensive. The standard Xbox Ally costs $599.99 from the Asus online store, while the more powerful ROG Xbox Ally X costs $999.99, also through the Asus online store. So how does Asus justify the price of the Xbox Ally X20? Well, it’s not the processor.
According to a handy comparison chart in Asus’ press release, the Xbox Ally X and X20 have a few things in common. They have the same processor, 24GB of RAM, a 1TB SSD, and pulse triggers (the Xbox version of the PS5 DualSense’s adaptive triggers), but that’s it. The Xbox Ally And we can’t forget the new transformative D-pad that swaps between shapes to suit different gaming genres. We’re crossing our fingers that it comes standard with the upcoming Project Helix controller.
While the ROG Xbox Ally X20 doesn’t look like the biggest upgrade over the Xbox Ally Eight more GB of RAM, much more powerful CPUs and GPUs, and a larger native game library. If you’re considering a portable gaming PC, the ROG Xbox Ally X20 might be what you need. Sure, it’s more expensive than the competition, but it’s still cheaper than most gaming laptops.
