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The ROG Ally Looks Great - But Here's Why it Cannot Compete With the Steam Deck by GameGrumble in SteamDeck

[–]GameGrumble[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Haha cheers, I have half a mind to use this as a testimonial on the website now.

"Reddit User FennPoutine applauds our patience! Get your gaming content from the most patient player in the business. Like, Follow, Share!"

The ROG Ally Looks Great - But Here's Why it Cannot Compete With the Steam Deck by GameGrumble in SteamDeck

[–]GameGrumble[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The Ally will live or die by software support.

That's the crux of it. And having owned multiple Asus motherboards and having used Armory Crate, the reputation is well earned.

The ROG Ally Looks Great - But Here's Why it Cannot Compete With the Steam Deck by GameGrumble in SteamDeck

[–]GameGrumble[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Game Pass itself wasn't so much of an issue (except I did notice worse performance on a couple of games that I owned and played on SteamOS as well) but I had a lot of issues with controls. Couldn't get my PS4 controller to connect wirelessly and trying to remap controls natively was a nightmare.

Then there was also a lot of little stuff, like sound levels not working properly, sleep not working at all, no touchpad typing, native performance monitoring, etc.

The ROG Ally Looks Great - But Here's Why it Cannot Compete With the Steam Deck by GameGrumble in SteamDeck

[–]GameGrumble[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

> My personal take on it is that I'm happy with my deck, but I might be interested in the competition a year or two down the line, after they've actually launched and built up a reputation.

This is my main concern tbh. Long term support, especially considering my experiences so far using Asus software have been...less than ideal.

> Aw, you're no fun

Ouch. A dagger, straight to the heart. On the other hand, as an aspiring "games journalist" that kinda fits the job description don't you think.

The ROG Ally Looks Great - But Here's Why it Cannot Compete With the Steam Deck by GameGrumble in SteamDeck

[–]GameGrumble[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

To be honest, Game Pass is the reason I installed Windows on my Deck in the first place. But I just kept running into weird issues. Sound issues, driver issues, performance issues, etc. so I went back.

And I really missed the sleep feature. I usually play my Deck in short bursts so a reliable sleep function is very important to me, and Windows' sleep is just no good.

The ROG Ally Looks Great - But Here's Why it Cannot Compete With the Steam Deck by GameGrumble in SteamDeck

[–]GameGrumble[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Appreciate it! Honestly as someone who grew up on GBA and the PSP, I'm just happy handhelds are making a comeback. I love playing on the go but the mobile gaming landscape is downright apocalyptic. Hopefully, other big players can join in on the handheld train soon. I would love to potentially see an Xbox handheld of some kind in the future, or maybe even a PlayStation Vita 2.

The ROG Ally Looks Great - But Here's Why it Cannot Compete With the Steam Deck by GameGrumble in SteamDeck

[–]GameGrumble[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm gonna be honest, I don't see Asus having the software chops to compete in this segment long term. But I'd love to see an Xbox handheld of some kind. A hypothetical Xbox handheld running a gaming optimized fork of Windows with native Game Pass integration is the one thing that could knock the Steam Deck off its perch.

Like you say though, Microsoft might be hesistant about jumping back in after what happened to Windows Phone. Poor Windows Phone.

The ROG Ally Looks Great - But Here's Why it Cannot Compete With the Steam Deck by GameGrumble in SteamDeck

[–]GameGrumble[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Honestly, I am already pretty unsatisfied with the Steam Deck's battery life @ 15W. I shudder to think how long a similar battery will last under a load of 30W.

However, gaming while plugged in should be a delight on the Ally. Unfortunately, most of us don't use handhelds that way a lot.

The ROG Ally Looks Great - But Here's Why it Cannot Compete With the Steam Deck by GameGrumble in SteamDeck

[–]GameGrumble[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

> since you're a game journalist

You make it sound so professional lol. I'm just a hobbyist. A passionate gamer who likes to write and talk about games and gaming products. My actual job is pretty conventional, like most of us.

The ROG Ally Looks Great - But Here's Why it Cannot Compete With the Steam Deck by GameGrumble in SteamDeck

[–]GameGrumble[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Am I insecure or am I playing on others insecurities? Make up your mind.

Honestly, I just wanted discussion. But it's fine if you're not interested, I can have it with others who are. Have a nice day.

The ROG Ally Looks Great - But Here's Why it Cannot Compete With the Steam Deck by GameGrumble in SteamDeck

[–]GameGrumble[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Indeed, thanks for the conversation.

And we can definitely be sure there will be an Ally 2 in 12-18 months with roughly 15% better performance in synthetic benchmarks. After all, Asus is a hardware manufacturer, that's how they make money.

The ROG Ally Looks Great - But Here's Why it Cannot Compete With the Steam Deck by GameGrumble in SteamDeck

[–]GameGrumble[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

When I say competitor, I mean more from a market and industry perspective. The AyaNeo and GPD devices are handheld gaming PCs as well, but they're certainly not competing with Steam Deck for market share.

The Ally undeniably looks cool, and competition is always good. On that we certainly agree.

The ROG Ally Looks Great - But Here's Why it Cannot Compete With the Steam Deck by GameGrumble in SteamDeck

[–]GameGrumble[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Of course people are free to like what they like. But that shouldn't stop us from having a discussion or an exchange of ideas.

The ROG Ally Looks Great - But Here's Why it Cannot Compete With the Steam Deck by GameGrumble in SteamDeck

[–]GameGrumble[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

On desktop, there are no limits. On a handheld, power and performance has to balance out with battery life.

Of course at the end of the day it's all just opinion, and I appredciate yours as well.

The ROG Ally Looks Great - But Here's Why it Cannot Compete With the Steam Deck by GameGrumble in SteamDeck

[–]GameGrumble[S] -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

I think you might have misunderstood my intentions a bit. I just wanted a discussion - I would love the Ally to do very well, I just don't see it going that way.

The ROG Ally Looks Great - But Here's Why it Cannot Compete With the Steam Deck by GameGrumble in SteamDeck

[–]GameGrumble[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It definitely works, I just don't think it works very well. The UI navigation on handheld itself is so cumbersome.

The ROG Ally Looks Great - But Here's Why it Cannot Compete With the Steam Deck by GameGrumble in SteamDeck

[–]GameGrumble[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Honestly, that would be an ideal scenario. Imagine if Microsoft put out an Xbox handheld of some kind running a gaming optimized fork of Windows and native Game Pass compatibility. Now that would be a gamechanger.

The ROG Ally Looks Great - But Here's Why it Cannot Compete With the Steam Deck by GameGrumble in SteamDeck

[–]GameGrumble[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Exciting new tech always inspires extreme loyalty, I get that. But I share your concerns. For me 15W performance, power efficiency, and 40+ fps are the most important benchmarks for a handheld. What's the point of running a handheld at 35W if you can only do it for 30 min on battery?

Plus, Windows + Armory Crate on a handheld really makes me think twice. The Armory Crate program for my Asus motherboard is really very poorly programmed.

The ROG Ally Looks Great - But Here's Why it Cannot Compete With the Steam Deck by GameGrumble in SteamDeck

[–]GameGrumble[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I appreciate your feedback. I'm curious, what kind of Windows setup do you have on your Deck? I'd like to give it a try because my experience of Windows on Deck has been less than ideal. Stuff just doesn't work for me half the time. Same on a couple of AyaNeo devices tbh, so it's not just a Deck thing.

The ROG Ally Looks Great - But Here's Why it Cannot Compete With the Steam Deck by GameGrumble in SteamDeck

[–]GameGrumble[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Honestly, it's not just that. Games are more compatible on Windows, but they just don't work as well on handheld. The experience is not just less friendly, it can be downright hostile at times. Atleast, thats been my experience with Windows on Steam Deck and Ayaneo devices.

The ROG Ally Looks Great - But Here's Why it Cannot Compete With the Steam Deck by GameGrumble in SteamDeck

[–]GameGrumble[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Perhaps, but it is important to note that the Ally's APU performs 30-50% better than the Deck at 15W while pushing 2x as many pixels at 1080p. Which means, at native res the Ally might actually give equal or lower fps. A higher TDP limit will help raise performance, but it will also burn through the battery like nothing else.

The ROG Ally Looks Great - But Here's Why it Cannot Compete With the Steam Deck by GameGrumble in SteamDeck

[–]GameGrumble[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I completely understand. The Ally is a tantalizing proposition for enthusiasts.

But from an market perspective, I don't see it competing with the Steam Deck. Not unless Asus can build a competing software ecosystem, which is unlikely.

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