The ROG Ally is Still Getting Better (Updated Review)

I've had it for 10 months now. I love it. I'm mostly playing older games I missed over the years - like all the Souls games. But while travelling in Pakistan I used it to play new releases like Starfield and Baldur's Gate 3.

Just FYI. If you set the joysticks to a static color you can make the color something that isn't as bright. In my case I made them white, but in Armoury Crate it's set to a color that is closer to dark grey. The result is a very dim white ring around the joysticks. This will also work with colors by selecting a darker version of the color.

Comprehensive and well articulated. I can attest as well. The ROG Ally is an incredible handheld.

I love that they added an anti-deadzone setting in armorycrate. The armorycrate software has been sigificantly more stable since i bought my ally back in june. Havent had any issues in a while with it freaking out. I also love being able to calibrate the triggers and sticks now. Command center used to get pretty buggy like armorycrate and they both work great now.

Picked up the Ally from a Best Buy Black Friday sale...all I can say is "wow." This thing is amazing. Having a high refresh rate with VRR on the go...playing PC games i never dreamt of playing in a hand held form factor...the speakers. Good Lord, the speakers are some of the best I've ever heard! Something to add, though. Was super paranoid about the SD card issue...so, I have a massively aggressive manual fan curve. While it may be loud - it keeps things running cooler and so far no issues.

Just got my tomtoc ROG Ally case, and I'm loving it! It's super slim, the design is pretty, and it's impressively durable. The cutouts for the sticks are fantastic too!

My Ally has become my most used device. I even use it to browse windows with the analog stick mouse cursor and I find that it feels incredibly comfortable to use this way. I only use my desktop to watch YouTube now.

Love your videos. I’m also happy they have been listening to the community and fixing everything they can. It’s been quite a ride for me since June over on my channel with this thing. I love the Ally so much for all the generations of games I’ve played throughout the years

One of the things I appreciated in this video is you talking about pricing. Lot of ppl only talk about retail price and not about fluctuations which can effect the value of something.

Great review as usual, Russ! Honestly, it seems like you can't go wrong with either the ROG Ally or Steam Deck. I do like the fact that you mentioned the Ally being available at Best Buy so you can just swing by and grab one, see if you like it, and return with little trouble if it doesn't suit you. I picked up a Steam Deck last year and have not regretted it for a minute. I do really like the console-like experience it provides. It is very easy to set up and start gaming!

13:49 I liked my 3080 XG Mobile so much, I used the money I got from selling desktop, for a 4090 XG Mobile. It’s quite significantly more powerful, slightly bigger, and much quieter. But both of these models have been transformative for me as well, it’s amazing how much space the setup saves, and how portable everything is.

I have to drop a comment finally to tell you how incredible your channel and website are for people like me who aren't always the most "in tune" with things. My brother in law has an Ally and showed it to me, I was considering that or the steam deck. I loved the bit I played on his and your comprehensive reviews really helped me have confidence in my choice, especially since these aren't cheap. Since, I've discovered your channel I've learned so much and will keep learning as I slowly go through past videos. Thank you so much!!!!

Thanks Russ for the review. Always informative and useful. Keep doing what you do.

I bought mine back in June and I returned it in like 15-20 days, amazing system but was not optimized and a lot of bugs. Glad to see it's been rectified, I may get it again or wait for a refresh

I've owned the Ally since July when it came to the Philippines. It's so good ngl for my emulation and Genshin Impact handheld gaming, and thankfully the updates have really made it better.

I'm on the wait team! Thanks for the review 😊

Bought mine last Friday and I'm having a blast. It's amazing!

Thanks for the great video! I was considering picking one up open box since the current price is great, but I am content with my LCD Steam Deck, so I want to wait until the next generation of handhelds start coming out.

I've had my Ally since June and really enjoying it. I'm happy to report that it has not had card reader issues. I upgraded the SSD to 2Tb and it has a matte black M2 vinyl face skin. I also upgraded Windows to Pro, mainly for Remote Desktop.

Appreciate your methodical review, 1. Screen, 2. Customization, 3. Audio, 4. Processors, 5. ROG Software updates, 6. Comfort/ ergonomics 7. Windows experience 8. Frame rate 9. Refresh rate , 10. Case & accessories