It's the cooling and screen that really sold me on this device. Even though this device is a bit slower than the other 7840U handhelds on indiegogo, FSR easily makes up for that difference for better usability.
@Taki Udon Thanks. I'll go back over it. Overall for 800 vs the 700, would you recommend the A1 pro? Better yet, can you do a comparison video since they're very close is cost to performance?
honestly this is a very thorough review, the time and dedication put into not only getting the device but also stress testing it through different scenarios makes it that much better for us consumers on launch day.. Thank you
I can't believe I have to explain this to you kids.Testing aaa games is what u want tested.if a game like cyberpunk 2077 will run more then likely a pos game like mine craft will run.trust me I know this.i most likely was playing atari 2600 b4 you were swimming in your dad's nutsack.pixalated games don't take much to run
Very nice review, I pre-ordered one and am stoked. Most of the games I wanna play will require at least 15w so I don't have any issue with that but those software bugs need to be fixed asap 🔥
Great review/overview. Most ROG Ally reviews show only usable footage and I'm sure they've encountered bugs along the way but only quickly dismissed them. Your video was done extremely well with no BS and was straight to the point. Thank you. I believe these are just teething issues and should be resolved a couple of months after the release date.
@MechanicalMonk I think they really mean to say, newly released AAA games, because any AAA game 3 years or older plays like butter on most pc handhelds.
Taki remember if you set the display to 60hz it locks you into v-sync and you cannot use variable refresh rate which this device supports! This may affect the frame limiter! Edit: noted on Digital Foundry if I recall.
@@Artanis5 there really is no need with VRR honestly. You can still set a framerate cap, and VRR will just automatically vary the refresh rate on its own. I guess in a desktop environment / web browsing etc it will use more power, but in that situation you don't need VRR anyway so you can just set refresh rate lower.
I was playing Lost Planet 2 on my Onexplayer 5800u 8.4 inch screen at 2560x1600 yesterday and it made me realize there is no rush to upgrade to the latest and greatest as there are so many fun games to play without worrying about trying to play brand new games.
@@adpbobcat I honestly play the Steam Deck more, but the Onexplayer has an amazing screen and much better analog triggers than Steam Deck. Also Windows 11 updates are a pain as I boot directly into Bigbox as my launcher and try to forget Windows is being used. I use it for non Steam games and games that require a lot of mods / patches which makes it easier than Steam Deck as my time is very limited for gaming. I bought a massive battery brick and a long usbc cable and put the battery on the floor when I'm playing on the couch and have no issues with battery life.
@@mechanicalmonk2020 exactly. I don't find any reason to change my steam deck to this piece of terrible performance. 8trfs compare to 1.6trfs on steam deck and I found not a big difference in performance. Is a shite piece of technic
@@mechanicalmonk2020 Not to mention, Asus is a hardware company, while Valve is primarily a software company, and you can sort of see how that difference manifests in the products that they've put out so far. ROG is definitely a powerhouse compared to the deck, but the amount of work that Valve has put into the Steam and SteamOS software over the past year has been very admirable. Even a year later they're still pumping out weekly updates for the deck and I'm quite happy with that. What I would LOVE to see is when SteamOS becomes an open build and we can put it on the ROG Ally.
@@inquisitive5418 Npt to mention that these windows handhelds are miserable to use without a keyboard and mouse. The only ones worth the money are the GPD devices.
From what I read, Asus is already working on fixes and improvements to the device so that it's ready for consumers when it ships. So I have hope that some of the bugs will be fixed and everything.
@@franciscofredviana743 The price range for premium devices is $1200, this is not a premium device, but it can compete against them. @potato20 Also nah, Asus won't have all fixes ready by launch. Problems will persist, this is not Valve.
@JavierSegura I never said all the problems would be fixed. But I read they are trying to do their best at trying to fix bugs and stuff from reviewers' feedback.
Most of the bugs you encountered have one thing in common, It's usually controller (HID) related. My guess is that a driver needs to be worked on and improved before release. Great video!
The freesync with low framerate compensation is what tipped me over. Also most reviews don't go into the benefits of having freesync. They barely touch on it.
the big question is: do we trust Asus to give it a good long term support? Like Valve made a custom shader compiler for Elden Ring to make it run better on Steam Deck. I don't see Asus doing anything like that.
If it’s someone looking to get the simplest experience I’d say steam deck over this all day. But if you are ok with tinkering. Steam os will be a thing that will be available if not now via 3 party soon
Awesome hands on impressions. Asus will definitely try to fix these issues I'm sure with updates. I'll be patient with it but I'm exited to get mine day 1 🔥
7:09 I know this is COMPLETELY off topic but damn. Seeing that Spiral Knights icon (lower right) really made my day. What a throwback to when I first got into steam in ~2011. I remember being a broke college kid and looking at interesting cheap/free things to play with my friends between classes, and that game easily was the second-most played (after terarria) for me. TF2 probably would have been more nostalgic to me but my laptop couldn't even run it, so spiral knights was my go-to :P
I gots the Steam Deck and love it but will also be getting the Ally... I'm just a gaming handheld junkie. Next year Alienware and Razer needs to have their own portables... Xbox portable maybe?
That's exactly what I'm hesitant about. The best indicator of what a company will do in the future is looking to what they've done in the past. ASUS is likely to do just as you said, although I have see them support their laptops for up to a year. So 6-12 months is a fair prediction. That's another reason why I'm considering the Steam Deck instead. I know Valve supports the sh*t out of that thing, and will continue to for the foreseeable future
@@TheSixthSLoT that’s why I waited a year to get the steam deck so I can see the kind of support it get. And even if Valve stop supporting the steam deck you know they’re are community members that will carry on
Being a Windows device, the chances are good that it was updating when things were going out on you. I hate Windows doesnt tell you when it is updating.
Anyone who got a deck day one will remember how buggy it was it took many updates to get it where it is now. Just give the ally some time and I think its gonna be a great handheld.
Idk if asus is gonna keep working on the ally the same way steam kept at the steam deck especially given asus lack of support for a lot of their devices
As someone who had an Asus ROG motherboard, don't get your hopes up. Armory Crate is and always was buggy and bloated, and Asus done nothing about it for years.
When you guys are going to understand that the Deck can be improved at OS and Kernel level while the best Asus can do is working on drivers and maybe Armoury Crate?
@@bionic-beaver yeah that's good thing with the steam deck, it has much more ease of use and also the company basically controls anything, Asus probably 20%? of the software, unless Windows made their own windows handheld
Incredibly in depth review and great showcase of the bugs. I will definitely wait for either a newer revision of the Ally or until all the bugs are ironed out
I dont know how, but your dialogue for bug testing *FC1* "PG mode" was hilarious 😂 great video, really hope they fix up the device bugginess and add some advanced tuning options, cause I actually really dig the layout and and attention to detail on the button placement/style and grippy materials.
The ROG Ally is a Buggy Mess right now. The Steam Deck was the same way when it was first released. I'm pretty sure ASUS will fix these issues in future updates.
@@kadupse Exactly. Many of the issues with Windows have existed for years and haven't been fixed. If the Ally gets them to fix those issues finally I'll be happy, but somehow I doubt it..
@@Pridetoons Right, but then you don't get 100% compatibility with all Steam games. Would much rather play my games and deal with a few small less important bugs (which all have to do with ease of use than anything, and not the games themselves).
Awesome even handed review. Highlighting what works great whilst elaborating more on what doesn’t (in more detail than other channels do/won’t do) without being over-zealous. Enough to warn/inform without necessarily put off. Criticism 101.
Great video and review. I am totally satisfied with my Steam Deck but always good to see competition. Also, I love the highlights of Moonlighter in tbe video. I haven't played much since I first picked it up, but now I feel the urge to fire it back up and raid some dungeons to sell loot!
As for the palms of your hands you MIGHT need to adjust your grip aka how you hold it. Try putting the meat of your palms on the top of the device and wrapping your fingers around it so that your fingers line up with the back button instead of putting the corner of the device int he meat of your palm.
@watchmejumpstart he probably watched retro game corps's rog video who said the same thing when he started holding it with palms more on top of it he started to love the way it feels vs initially hating it when he held it more standard controller/steam deck style like taki with it jammed into his palms and hand fully wrapping around it, it's also why then the back button will not align/feel natural to press
1. Does whatever GPD does for their 7840u to get the boosted scores has any negatives for the user or device itself? Can 't see why other manufacturers would not do the same unless it has its own disadvantages. 2. Does your Ally lost to a 6800u at any TDP range?
Drivers are still immature for RDNA3. The 7840U DOES lose to the 6800U on some benchmarks, but it will also be 50% faster on others. This is based on other people's benchmarks though.
I want to get rid of my desktop pc that I use for playing Diablo and some Wow. Would love to see a video about using this machine plugged into a monitor and using it like a normal desktop. If this can run Diablo and WoW I am pretty much sold. I tried the steam deck and just did not get along with it. I love my switch and this one I hope I can use as a day to day remote desktop and also a gaming PC. Great video.
Thanks Taki for giving us a deep dive into the Ally in its current state. I did not expect the software side of the Ally to be so poorly optimized and buggy when its this close to launch day. It makes its Chinese competitors (GPD, Aokzoe, Ayaneo) look good in comparison, which is pretty embarrassing. Correct me if I'm wrong, but the steam deck never had issues this egregious even during the early days at launch. I also really dislike the decision made to "simplify" TDP control, especially on a device with a small battery where conserving battery life is all the more important - what's wrong with the way all other devices openly display and let you adjust TDP? If you need more power to get more frames turn up the TDP value with the full knowledge that you are trading off battery life. Hiding this behind vague power settings really serves no purpose in my opinion. The things the Ally really gets right seems to be the ergonomics, display and sound - all of which appear to be excellent. But I'm not convinced that this is the go-to device. Competition from other 7840U handhelds is fierce - there's the Aokzoe A1 Pro that's also launching in June (at least its supposed to launch in June), and the GPD Win Max 2 (2023 ver) and Ayaneo 2S soon around August-ish. I'm personally thinking of getting the A1 Pro - bigger 8" screen (though the tradeoff is its less bright and 60hz only which is still fine for my use case), much bigger 65wh battery, minimal software bugs (I can't believe this is a plus for Aokzoe...), decent-ish ergonomics, and I use earphones or headphones for sound anyway.
From what i hear and been reading is that the Steam deck had far more bugs in its early days than this. I was also considering one of the Chinese options. But then I came to my my senses that I really don't want a Chinese device. Partly because, it's Chinese, and partly because the hardware support and warranty will be terrible.
@@MaxDrougge as someone who was there in the early days, no it didn't. It had some QOL issues and some minor bugs. Certainly nothing as game breaking as "the controller config just didn't work lol"
@@mechanicalmonk2020 Yeah, one of my friends owned the steam deck during the early days too and I don't recall any game breaking complaints like buttons deciding not to work mid-game session. A lot of QOL and annoying bugs due to Steam OS being somewhat unrefined from what I understood, but the device and controller configs worked once in game.
Great review of the Ally. Hopefully they can get the bugs worked out before launch. Hope you are planning on doing an emulation video as well. I'm very curious to see how this will handle ps3 emulation. I can't wait to try Gundam Extreme VS Full Boost on it!
can you send a link to the dock/stand that you showed in your video with the rgbs on it? that looked like a nice simple and cheap solution to prop up the ally when playing with an external mouse/keyboard or controller. Great video, thanks
When you talked about the glitches reminds me why I'm not sure on this device. I know you state it hasn't happened on other windows handheld but I still think windows holds this device back.
@@ghostlegit Statements like “windows hold this back” is how you tell actual pc gamers from steam fanboys. If you enjoy playing games, you’re gonna go with the device that allows you play the most games possible, no matter the store front.
@@jollyrancherchick if you enjoy playing games you will get the most software based device that allows you to play said games.... the ALLY does not have the trackpads to play RTS games, have fun with that
@@jollyrancherchick Windows holds back all the industry, tho, Windows shills are the reason why we can't have dev support for way superior OS, tho now mist of the games that you can't playon Linux are the ones who have malware like Denuvo
thanks for reporting on those bugs, I tried bringing them up in the RogAlly subreddit but those guys just want to be told they made the perfect purchase on a perfect device
This review wasn’t an honest review. He stated a lot of false things regarding the performance, screen and a lot more. Watch his video again and go and watch other videos to see how his review is wrong
it’s amazing especially for emulation, 15w 60fps on sonic unleashed, 60fps on god of war 3, 1080p on switch games and still getting decent battery, is nothing short of incredible
My singular issue is with armory crate. Across 2 laptops I’ve only ever had issues, my one daily driver laptop runs crate and then tells me the software isn’t able to change my screen settings so I’m stuck on default missing any other features for the screen. (And trust that I’ve actually spent an unholy amount of time attempting to fix it with customer service) If I could have it as reliable as steam os, I might buy one. But that’s to be seen.
@taki udon The Ally charging dock (the one you have to buy) is actually combo USB hub and charger from what I've seen online. Obviously I don't have one yet since I am not as lucky as you haha, but it seems ASUS combined the dock functionality with a charger to make it more compact. However, I am personally just going to reuse my Steam Deck dock.
for a handheld, im surprised at the lack of reviewers dealing with issues of portability and travel, like using it on a plane offline, rather than the same tech specs deep dives and ergonomics we all know about.
Hey Taki, thank you for this awesome review! Just one question: at the end you said that the z1E should perform exactly the same as the 7840u when everything is levels, then you showed new figures with the 7840u "modded" that performs better ( similar to what the phawx showed on his video). Can you plese elaborate on what modding you did ? Gpu overclocking?
I'll let the companies making these handhelds fight that battle, I don't really want to be involved at all. Job ends at just showing that this performs within the range of other 7840U devices.
@@TakiUdon that is a lie. Come on Taki, the 7840u perfoms better than the Z1 extreme. Come on bro, have you actuallys seen the benchmarks? You of all people, who has the other handhelds should never have said those things you said in this video.
@@AugustineKusiDuah-bk4fr the situation is a little more nuanced than that; as measured by the Phawx, the 7840 keeps within spitting distance of the z1e almost always, but often will turbo higher and drop lower more frequently over time. The z1e in comparison, hits a more stable and consistent performance level over time. In broad strokes it may be a wash, but devices with the z1e may benefit from smoother frametimes, which cannot be discounted.
@@doublinx2 7840u keeps within spitting distance? That was what the Phawx told you? Come on bro, you must have heard it wrong. Go and check the numbers and come back
Hi Taki. Are you planning on doing another video after the recent updates that fixes the bugs and greatly increase performance on all power settings? Would love to hear your thoughts!
I was trying to get that OmniDock that you have but I don't see one with 2 hdmi ports anywhere are the pictures for the amazon link incorrect and they do have 2 hdmi ports?
Never experienced these issues so far, but after the most recent armory crate updates, the quick menu has been very snappy and stable. Switching between desktop and controller has been seemless
Have you tried the streaming from pc or gamepass cloud on the ally? How is it? I had the g cloud but it stuttered too much. Despite that, it was one of my fav handhelds,
Excellent video, can you give me your opinion or add it in next video, how you see this as my personal computer, to use it every day docked and also for games of course. Because at the moment I don't have a pc and if this work for both purpose? Thanks!
what's the brand/model of that RGB dock? XD having already a Steam deck I basically wonder how much of the stuff Deck owners have can be reused for the Ally, due to the higher power consumption. Like the official Deck dock should be able to hold it probably, but won't do the full power delivery just like most power banks / cables if people have gone for specific 45W ones rather than the 65(?) the Ally needs..
You said in your video that the 3 profile options or a 3rd party app are the only power management options, but that isn't true. Armory crate SE also has a manual mode where you can set power limits, adjust fan curves etc. Unless they removed it while they are working on it?
@@TakiUdon hmm that's not what I have seen from multiple reviewers. Again unless it has been changed for some reason while they are working on the low TDP issues. From what I've seen you can set as low as 7w in manual mode
@@TakiUdon to me personally it seems almost certain that there is some weird pre-release issues going on with the bios/drivers/power management back end on the Z1E because compared to the 7840u and especially in the lower half of the TDP range the Z1E is just not living up to it's spec sheet and/or what we are seeing from the 7840u in the same power constrained situations. It seems to me more significant than a matter of binning or silicon lottery. AMD would not take a 7840u die and just make it worse across the board. If you're seeing 15w as the minimum in the manual setting I can only think maybe they have changed it temporarily while they work out the power issues? If you go watch some other reviewers videos you will clearly see the slider in manual goes down to 7w.
Double-edged sword of running Windows on a handheld. I hope MS will make handheld optimized version of Win 11. Asus also not the most reliable manufacturer when it comes to product support. On the other side I still running in to issues when I use Steam deck, starting menus are a mess, touchscreen is unreliable in them
The easiest thing is to just keep the device on turbo mode when you are plugged in and silent or performance when you are on battery. Turn on the floating FPS counter to see if the profile is giving you enough juice for the game you are playing.
If all you want to do is emulation then the $400 Steam Deck is hard to beat price to performance wise. If money is not an issue and you don’t mind dealing with the headache of Windows on a handheld device and the risk of ASUS dropping support in a year give this a try.
The issues its having can (and hopefully will) be adressed with software either by asus themselves or the community. Remember, the steam deck had a bunch of software problems on launch and they have been mostly ironed out by now.
Yeah, but Valve is reputable about updating their tech. Asus kinda isn't. If you look at their laptops over the last few years, Asus has been known the send firmware updates up to about a year before they just don't anymore. The best indicator of what someone will do in the future is to look at their past. Personally, I do not trust ASUS to update this device long term, especially if it isn't successful. Right now, you can still (STILL) preorder this device on Best Buy, and get it the day it comes out. No waiting list or anything. This doesn't seem like a hot seller the way the Steam Deck was, which tells me that ASUS won't be supporting this device long term.
Difference is….. Asus is a hardware first company and Valve is a software first company. Valve is incentivized to keep updating their handheld software in order to keep people on steam. While Asus would probably like to have software more fine tuned for their hardware, what incentive does Valve or Microsoft have to keep putting out updates at the pace Valve has been doing for the steam deck? I would love to be proven wrong, but Im not too confident asus will push for as many updates to the software as people probably want. It would probably be more likely that the ROG ally 2 will have more refined software.
@@TheSixthSLoT That's my concern too, Asus don't have the best history of updating their software. Valve has a lot more support and commitment to the Steam Deck it seems. Although Asus does seem to push these devices pretty hard, but it even launches a pre order in my country in a week already, while their ROG phone usually only launches 3-6 months after global launch. I don't if they have too much stock or what.
@@NTripleOne Seriously they pretty much abandon their $3000 laptops... it's pretty optimistic to think they'll care about upkeeping a $700 device a year from now. They'll just abandon it too and make a Ally 2 or something.
It might be, but I'm not sure yet. Once you get up to an S-tier display, it's hard to see subtle improvements. (this is not taking into account the higher refresh rate)
@@TakiUdon it might be, I’m not sure yet. Meanwhile you said the display is great and probably better than those of any other handheld. Who on earth says this and comes to say, it might be, I’m not sure yet? How is this even possible
I'm currently daily driving this and will keep an eye out for further software updates for the full review!
Thank you for the round trip!
It's the cooling and screen that really sold me on this device.
Even though this device is a bit slower than the other 7840U handhelds on indiegogo, FSR easily makes up for that difference for better usability.
How does this compare to the A1 Pro? The custom ally chip seems to cut cost and allows the 7840u to beat it.
About the same. The section going over if this is custom or not has a benchmark that was done with the A1 Pro.
@Taki Udon Thanks. I'll go back over it. Overall for 800 vs the 700, would you recommend the A1 pro? Better yet, can you do a comparison video since they're very close is cost to performance?
honestly this is a very thorough review, the time and dedication put into not only getting the device but also stress testing it through different scenarios makes it that much better for us consumers on launch day.. Thank you
I can't believe I have to explain this to you kids.Testing aaa games is what u want tested.if a game like cyberpunk 2077 will run more then likely a pos game like mine craft will run.trust me I know this.i most likely was playing atari 2600 b4 you were swimming in your dad's nutsack.pixalated games don't take much to run
Very nice review, I pre-ordered one and am stoked. Most of the games I wanna play will require at least 15w so I don't have any issue with that but those software bugs need to be fixed asap 🔥
Great review/overview. Most ROG Ally reviews show only usable footage and I'm sure they've encountered bugs along the way but only quickly dismissed them. Your video was done extremely well with no BS and was straight to the point. Thank you. I believe these are just teething issues and should be resolved a couple of months after the release date.
Thank you for testing a wide range of games! Other channels are testing mostly AAA games. Hope ASUS irons out some of these bugs before release
Was my exact thought, i saw borderlands 3 and actually got excited it was included, and fallout 4.
@@radioactivebob1 how the heck is BL3 not considered a AAA game?
@MechanicalMonk I think they really mean to say, newly released AAA games, because any AAA game 3 years or older plays like butter on most pc handhelds.
Like Asus would care about customers
Thank you for your preview/review, Taki! You say it as it is - and I appreciate you for that.
I heard some reviews say you have to kinda hold it with your palms on the top of those edges and then its really comfortable
This is the best review of the ally. Got mine preordered
Taki remember if you set the display to 60hz it locks you into v-sync and you cannot use variable refresh rate which this device supports! This may affect the frame limiter! Edit: noted on Digital Foundry if I recall.
Which basically means you must never user refresh rate limiter. Why does it even exist?
@@Artanis5 you mean why does the screen support 60hz?
@@Artanis5 there really is no need with VRR honestly. You can still set a framerate cap, and VRR will just automatically vary the refresh rate on its own. I guess in a desktop environment / web browsing etc it will use more power, but in that situation you don't need VRR anyway so you can just set refresh rate lower.
I was playing Lost Planet 2 on my Onexplayer 5800u 8.4 inch screen at 2560x1600 yesterday and it made me realize there is no rush to upgrade to the latest and greatest as there are so many fun games to play without worrying about trying to play brand new games.
Ding ding ding. Exactly.
If you go from 30fps low settings to 40fps low settings on the latest AAA games, it's not really a benefit is it?
How do you like your onexplayer? I've been looking at it and the Aokzoe a1 pro
@@adpbobcat I honestly play the Steam Deck more, but the Onexplayer has an amazing screen and much better analog triggers than Steam Deck. Also Windows 11 updates are a pain as I boot directly into Bigbox as my launcher and try to forget Windows is being used. I use it for non Steam games and games that require a lot of mods / patches which makes it easier than Steam Deck as my time is very limited for gaming.
I bought a massive battery brick and a long usbc cable and put the battery on the floor when I'm playing on the couch and have no issues with battery life.
The Steam Deck had bugs at launch, but the software of the Ally is just about as good as your average AAA game at launch...
The real issue isn't that it's buggy. The real issue is that there's no reason to suspect that it'll get better
@@mechanicalmonk2020 exactly. I don't find any reason to change my steam deck to this piece of terrible performance. 8trfs compare to 1.6trfs on steam deck and I found not a big difference in performance. Is a shite piece of technic
@@mechanicalmonk2020 Not to mention, Asus is a hardware company, while Valve is primarily a software company, and you can sort of see how that difference manifests in the products that they've put out so far. ROG is definitely a powerhouse compared to the deck, but the amount of work that Valve has put into the Steam and SteamOS software over the past year has been very admirable. Even a year later they're still pumping out weekly updates for the deck and I'm quite happy with that.
What I would LOVE to see is when SteamOS becomes an open build and we can put it on the ROG Ally.
@@inquisitive5418 Npt to mention that these windows handhelds are miserable to use without a keyboard and mouse. The only ones worth the money are the GPD devices.
Wow even steam has fanboys 😂😂😂😂
From what I read, Asus is already working on fixes and improvements to the device so that it's ready for consumers when it ships. So I have hope that some of the bugs will be fixed and everything.
But you can't fix that big border on the screen. It's 2023, it's time for Bord less screen on premium devices.
@@franciscofredviana743 Nobody cares.
@@franciscofredviana743 The price range for premium devices is $1200, this is not a premium device, but it can compete against them.
@potato20 Also nah, Asus won't have all fixes ready by launch. Problems will persist, this is not Valve.
@@franciscofredviana743 actually no borders help protect the screen
@JavierSegura I never said all the problems would be fixed. But I read they are trying to do their best at trying to fix bugs and stuff from reviewers' feedback.
Love the attention to detail like the texture
Dude's dedication to getting devices alone makes this channel better than the majority of tech channels out there.
It's not hard if you live in China like Taki does.
Most of the bugs you encountered have one thing in common, It's usually controller (HID) related. My guess is that a driver needs to be worked on and improved before release. Great video!
The freesync with low framerate compensation is what tipped me over. Also most reviews don't go into the benefits of having freesync. They barely touch on it.
the big question is: do we trust Asus to give it a good long term support? Like Valve made a custom shader compiler for Elden Ring to make it run better on Steam Deck. I don't see Asus doing anything like that.
There is no company like that at all. That’s why it’s good that this is an x86 machine. Steams support extendeds beyond their hardware
In short the point you make is a non issue
simple answer is no just look at their smartphones lol
If it’s someone looking to get the simplest experience I’d say steam deck over this all day. But if you are ok with tinkering. Steam os will be a thing that will be available if not now via 3 party soon
@@ThaexakaMavro that’s why you shouldn’t buy androids
Awesome hands on impressions. Asus will definitely try to fix these issues I'm sure with updates. I'll be patient with it but I'm exited to get mine day 1 🔥
It’s asus, they’re not great with service that’s it’s main problem.
7:09 I know this is COMPLETELY off topic but damn. Seeing that Spiral Knights icon (lower right) really made my day. What a throwback to when I first got into steam in ~2011. I remember being a broke college kid and looking at interesting cheap/free things to play with my friends between classes, and that game easily was the second-most played (after terarria) for me. TF2 probably would have been more nostalgic to me but my laptop couldn't even run it, so spiral knights was my go-to :P
I gots the Steam Deck and love it but will also be getting the Ally... I'm just a gaming handheld junkie. Next year Alienware and Razer needs to have their own portables... Xbox portable maybe?
Razer already has the Razer edge
@@dimes305 yeah, but it's Android(?) or cloud based? Windows PC handhelds is the hotness.
@@Goalier95 true I think there should be a windows handheld for 400 $700 is a bit much
@@dimes305 yep, more companies, more competition and hopefully cheaper prices.. win for everyone.
I just want a 7840u version of the GPD Win 4 or the 7840u version of the GPD Win 2 Max
With all the Asus products I’ve had in the past, I’d predict a good 6mths of support after purchase.
That's exactly what I'm hesitant about. The best indicator of what a company will do in the future is looking to what they've done in the past. ASUS is likely to do just as you said, although I have see them support their laptops for up to a year. So 6-12 months is a fair prediction. That's another reason why I'm considering the Steam Deck instead. I know Valve supports the sh*t out of that thing, and will continue to for the foreseeable future
after 6 months they will stop supporting it because a lot of people are going to refund it.
@@TheSixthSLoT that’s why I waited a year to get the steam deck so I can see the kind of support it get. And even if Valve stop supporting the steam deck you know they’re are community members that will carry on
Great review Taki! I've got one on pre-order, wish I could get one in my hands sooner to review 😎
I’m waiting on mine and I can’t stop watching reviews
I've seen a user mode for the power output, so you can set it how you want.
Being a Windows device, the chances are good that it was updating when things were going out on you. I hate Windows doesnt tell you when it is updating.
You have to change settings like fps limit before you go in game
definitely gonna get one for myself...this is best laptop alternatif
Thanks for the impressions, especially the current software bugs are interesting
Anyone who got a deck day one will remember how buggy it was it took many updates to get it where it is now. Just give the ally some time and I think its gonna be a great handheld.
Idk if asus is gonna keep working on the ally the same way steam kept at the steam deck especially given asus lack of support for a lot of their devices
Asus is notoriously bad with software updates though
As someone who had an Asus ROG motherboard, don't get your hopes up. Armory Crate is and always was buggy and bloated, and Asus done nothing about it for years.
When you guys are going to understand that the Deck can be improved at OS and Kernel level while the best Asus can do is working on drivers and maybe Armoury Crate?
@@bionic-beaver yeah that's good thing with the steam deck, it has much more ease of use and also the company basically controls anything, Asus probably 20%? of the software, unless Windows made their own windows handheld
Performance mode has been updated to run way better then before. Turbo is also more stable when not plugged in on the newest bios.
Incredibly in depth review and great showcase of the bugs. I will definitely wait for either a newer revision of the Ally or until all the bugs are ironed out
I dont know how, but your dialogue for bug testing *FC1* "PG mode" was hilarious 😂 great video, really hope they fix up the device bugginess and add some advanced tuning options, cause I actually really dig the layout and and attention to detail on the button placement/style and grippy materials.
Also, enjoy New Vegas! Great game, phenomenal mod community, too 👏
It's far cry actually, but you're not entirely wrong. Far cry 1 is basically the crysis game before crysis
@Alexander Kozák lmao, you right 😅 early mornin to ya
Would you say just keeping it plugged in on charge would be the best way to get the most performance for those more demanding games
Yes, that's why I'll use this mostly with a portable charger in the bag.
Why do you need to be plugged in and get lesser performance when handhelds like the Win Max2 give you higher performance with longer battery life?
The drop it now fix it later technique. Love it.
I was waiting for this video,
now that it's here, I'm not waiting anymore 👍🏾
I've watched several reviews and the fact about 3 profile option is incorrect. There's a 4th where you can set your custom TDP.
It has a 15W minimum. It's useless for solving the problem that I brought up.
@@TakiUdon that’s beside the point. It’s still misinformation
I'm in love with that Hard Drive Enclosure. Where can I buy one?
The ROG Ally is a Buggy Mess right now. The Steam Deck was the same way when it was first released. I'm pretty sure ASUS will fix these issues in future updates.
@@kadupse All they can do is report "bugs" back to Microsoft and HOPE they address them with WIndows Updates
@@kadupse Another reason to hate Microsoft. This is why I get mad at developers for not acknowledging Linux as a gaming platform.
@@kadupse Exactly. Many of the issues with Windows have existed for years and haven't been fixed. If the Ally gets them to fix those issues finally I'll be happy, but somehow I doubt it..
@Kadu Penuela this. Steam os was made from the ground up and made specifically for steam deck while windows is more tailored towards beefy pc.
@@Pridetoons Right, but then you don't get 100% compatibility with all Steam games. Would much rather play my games and deal with a few small less important bugs (which all have to do with ease of use than anything, and not the games themselves).
i really need that video of that external hard drive
Awesome even handed review. Highlighting what works great whilst elaborating more on what doesn’t (in more detail than other channels do/won’t do) without being over-zealous. Enough to warn/inform without necessarily put off. Criticism 101.
How is the screen compared to something like the oled switch
Got my order in already. Will make a bunch of Emulation videos. 😎
Can you please make switch emulation videos
@@gouravburnpur sure thing
Just subscribed. Look forward to those emulation videos.
@@slickrik302 cool, will most likely be on my 2nd channel
Great video and review. I am totally satisfied with my Steam Deck but always good to see competition.
Also, I love the highlights of Moonlighter in tbe video. I haven't played much since I first picked it up, but now I feel the urge to fire it back up and raid some dungeons to sell loot!
As for the palms of your hands you MIGHT need to adjust your grip aka how you hold it. Try putting the meat of your palms on the top of the device and wrapping your fingers around it so that your fingers line up with the back button instead of putting the corner of the device int he meat of your palm.
@watchmejumpstart he probably watched retro game corps's rog video who said the same thing when he started holding it with palms more on top of it he started to love the way it feels vs initially hating it when he held it more standard controller/steam deck style like taki with it jammed into his palms and hand fully wrapping around it, it's also why then the back button will not align/feel natural to press
@watchmejumpstart Why you so defensive? Dude was only trying to help Taki😂
1. Does whatever GPD does for their 7840u to get the boosted scores has any negatives for the user or device itself?
Can 't see why other manufacturers would not do the same unless it has its own disadvantages.
2. Does your Ally lost to a 6800u at any TDP range?
Drivers are still immature for RDNA3. The 7840U DOES lose to the 6800U on some benchmarks, but it will also be 50% faster on others.
This is based on other people's benchmarks though.
@@ezg8448 loses to which benchmarks?
@Augustine Kusi Duah - This very video and plus videos from the Phawx.
@@ezg8448 meaning? I don’t get what you are trying to say
@Augustine Kusi Duah - You wanted benchmarks, they were always there. Go over the video again, plus the phawx's work validated it.
Wonder if rog will support the software as actively as valve, the decks updates come pretty quick
In their q&a they said that they intend to support this thing wholeheartedly.
@@wrathtard1428😂
having other rog devices from them like motherboards/rog phones.. i say they will support it for 1 year ..... :P
Asus might have nice hardware, but you absolutely should not trust them to provide good software support with meaningful updates.
@@wrathtard1428 asus are known liars though lol
great review! I didn't know this channel but I'm subscribed now!
Thanks!
29:00 What's the game you're playing here? Nice review btw, I always appreciate the honesty of pointing out all the most glaring flaws and some more
Last Campfire
@@TakiUdon ty
*The Last Campfire*
I want to get rid of my desktop pc that I use for playing Diablo and some Wow. Would love to see a video about using this machine plugged into a monitor and using it like a normal desktop. If this can run Diablo and WoW I am pretty much sold. I tried the steam deck and just did not get along with it. I love my switch and this one I hope I can use as a day to day remote desktop and also a gaming PC. Great video.
Thanks Taki for giving us a deep dive into the Ally in its current state.
I did not expect the software side of the Ally to be so poorly optimized and buggy when its this close to launch day. It makes its Chinese competitors (GPD, Aokzoe, Ayaneo) look good in comparison, which is pretty embarrassing. Correct me if I'm wrong, but the steam deck never had issues this egregious even during the early days at launch.
I also really dislike the decision made to "simplify" TDP control, especially on a device with a small battery where conserving battery life is all the more important - what's wrong with the way all other devices openly display and let you adjust TDP? If you need more power to get more frames turn up the TDP value with the full knowledge that you are trading off battery life. Hiding this behind vague power settings really serves no purpose in my opinion.
The things the Ally really gets right seems to be the ergonomics, display and sound - all of which appear to be excellent. But I'm not convinced that this is the go-to device. Competition from other 7840U handhelds is fierce - there's the Aokzoe A1 Pro that's also launching in June (at least its supposed to launch in June), and the GPD Win Max 2 (2023 ver) and Ayaneo 2S soon around August-ish. I'm personally thinking of getting the A1 Pro - bigger 8" screen (though the tradeoff is its less bright and 60hz only which is still fine for my use case), much bigger 65wh battery, minimal software bugs (I can't believe this is a plus for Aokzoe...), decent-ish ergonomics, and I use earphones or headphones for sound anyway.
The Steam Deck was insanely buggy! The Ally has a huge boost in performance
From what i hear and been reading is that the Steam deck had far more bugs in its early days than this.
I was also considering one of the Chinese options. But then I came to my my senses that I really don't want a Chinese device. Partly because, it's Chinese, and partly because the hardware support and warranty will be terrible.
@@MaxDrougge as someone who was there in the early days, no it didn't. It had some QOL issues and some minor bugs. Certainly nothing as game breaking as "the controller config just didn't work lol"
@@mechanicalmonk2020 Yeah, one of my friends owned the steam deck during the early days too and I don't recall any game breaking complaints like buttons deciding not to work mid-game session. A lot of QOL and annoying bugs due to Steam OS being somewhat unrefined from what I understood, but the device and controller configs worked once in game.
@@conner_productions and worse battery life due to bad software....
I really hope that as a first ever handheld for me this won't disappoint...
I actually like the way they manage TDP here
I agree about different colors. I wish it came in black!
Looks like some good EDM'd texture, they can do crazy stuff.
Great review of the Ally. Hopefully they can get the bugs worked out before launch.
Hope you are planning on doing an emulation video as well. I'm very curious to see how this will handle ps3 emulation.
I can't wait to try Gundam Extreme VS Full Boost on it!
Great video as always just thumbs up
I think you’re maybe the only reviewer who didn’t run Forza Horizon 5 on the Ally. :-)
Please can you do a side by side comparison between gpd win4 and asus rog ally.
can you send a link to the dock/stand that you showed in your video with the rgbs on it? that looked like a nice simple and cheap solution to prop up the ally when playing with an external mouse/keyboard or controller. Great video, thanks
When you talked about the glitches reminds me why I'm not sure on this device. I know you state it hasn't happened on other windows handheld but I still think windows holds this device back.
Windows doesn't hold this device back. In fact if it wasn't windows I wouldn't even consider buying it.
@@ghostlegit Statements like “windows hold this back” is how you tell actual pc gamers from steam fanboys. If you enjoy playing games, you’re gonna go with the device that allows you play the most games possible, no matter the store front.
@@jollyrancherchick if you enjoy playing games you will get the most software based device that allows you to play said games.... the ALLY does not have the trackpads to play RTS games, have fun with that
If you care about smoothness of the experience then yes Windows hold it back.
@@jollyrancherchick Windows holds back all the industry, tho, Windows shills are the reason why we can't have dev support for way superior OS, tho now mist of the games that you can't playon Linux are the ones who have malware like Denuvo
Will some of the things that may be problems possibly fixable with eventual software updates?
I want that portable hard drive. I need it like asap
How would you rate the ayaneo 2 in regards to comfort and screen to the rog ally.
Any chance your having trouble with steam & steam input running in the background? Great video and thank you for your efforts in making it.
thanks for reporting on those bugs, I tried bringing them up in the RogAlly subreddit but those guys just want to be told they made the perfect purchase on a perfect device
Thanks for the honest review.
This review wasn’t an honest review. He stated a lot of false things regarding the performance, screen and a lot more. Watch his video again and go and watch other videos to see how his review is wrong
"Its the ally's world and im just living in it" 😂
I'm excited for mine.
it’s amazing especially for emulation, 15w 60fps on sonic unleashed, 60fps on god of war 3, 1080p on switch games and still getting decent battery, is nothing short of incredible
My singular issue is with armory crate. Across 2 laptops I’ve only ever had issues, my one daily driver laptop runs crate and then tells me the software isn’t able to change my screen settings so I’m stuck on default missing any other features for the screen. (And trust that I’ve actually spent an unholy amount of time attempting to fix it with customer service) If I could have it as reliable as steam os, I might buy one. But that’s to be seen.
is that "hdd" expensive? love the size.
If you want that "advance user" setting. Since its windows you can go to registry and change things.
Should work
What game was shown with that fps game with the pumpkin head dude? Love this review
@taki udon The Ally charging dock (the one you have to buy) is actually combo USB hub and charger from what I've seen online. Obviously I don't have one yet since I am not as lucky as you haha, but it seems ASUS combined the dock functionality with a charger to make it more compact. However, I am personally just going to reuse my Steam Deck dock.
Do you have a third party dock? Because I saw in other reviews that it doesn’t fit in the Valve dock
Also the steam dock has less power then what ally needs
@@Splackavellie85 Yes, although, I am not 100% sure it will fit either. I guess only way to know is to wait until the release date.
Will you be doing another video nearer or after launch?
Taki, what’s the last game you were playing in the video?
for a handheld, im surprised at the lack of reviewers dealing with issues of portability and travel, like using it on a plane offline, rather than the same tech specs deep dives and ergonomics we all know about.
Hey Taki, thank you for this awesome review! Just one question: at the end you said that the z1E should perform exactly the same as the 7840u when everything is levels, then you showed new figures with the 7840u "modded" that performs better ( similar to what the phawx showed on his video). Can you plese elaborate on what modding you did ? Gpu overclocking?
I'll let the companies making these handhelds fight that battle, I don't really want to be involved at all. Job ends at just showing that this performs within the range of other 7840U devices.
@@TakiUdon No problem sir 🤗 will be tweaking the z1 when i receive the ally!
@@TakiUdon that is a lie. Come on Taki, the 7840u perfoms better than the Z1 extreme. Come on bro, have you actuallys seen the benchmarks? You of all people, who has the other handhelds should never have said those things you said in this video.
@@AugustineKusiDuah-bk4fr the situation is a little more nuanced than that; as measured by the Phawx, the 7840 keeps within spitting distance of the z1e almost always, but often will turbo higher and drop lower more frequently over time. The z1e in comparison, hits a more stable and consistent performance level over time.
In broad strokes it may be a wash, but devices with the z1e may benefit from smoother frametimes, which cannot be discounted.
@@doublinx2 7840u keeps within spitting distance? That was what the Phawx told you? Come on bro, you must have heard it wrong. Go and check the numbers and come back
Can you play while charging with this console? It does not harm the battery
Hi Taki. Are you planning on doing another video after the recent updates that fixes the bugs and greatly increase performance on all power settings? Would love to hear your thoughts!
Could you do a comparison video Asus Rog Ally vs A1 Pro? And which you would recommend...
I was trying to get that OmniDock that you have but I don't see one with 2 hdmi ports anywhere are the pictures for the amazon link incorrect and they do have 2 hdmi ports?
www.kickstarter.com/projects/jsaux/omnicase-2-the-usb-c-hub-for-gamers-and-digital-nomads?ref=discovery
It has 2 HDMI ports.
Never experienced these issues so far, but after the most recent armory crate updates, the quick menu has been very snappy and stable. Switching between desktop and controller has been seemless
Have you tried the streaming from pc or gamepass cloud on the ally? How is it? I had the g cloud but it stuttered too much. Despite that, it was one of my fav handhelds,
Great video. very informative. how much free space does the ally have for games?
A bit over 420GB.
1.8tb after you buy a real ssd...
@@TakiUdon ok thanks
The taki has stated this bad boy is the game changer. Cant wait to see how it sweeps the community by storm
I really need to know how Sims 4 works on here 🙏🏻🙏🏻 any way you’d be willing to test it?
Excellent video, can you give me your opinion or add it in next video, how you see this as my personal computer, to use it every day docked and also for games of course. Because at the moment I don't have a pc and if this work for both purpose? Thanks!
Sure thing.
how did you get past the bugs? always rebot ?
what's the brand/model of that RGB dock? XD
having already a Steam deck I basically wonder how much of the stuff Deck owners have can be reused for the Ally, due to the higher power consumption. Like the official Deck dock should be able to hold it probably, but won't do the full power delivery just like most power banks / cables if people have gone for specific 45W ones rather than the 65(?) the Ally needs..
@Taki Udon would you recommend me waiting for the ROG Ally or go for the Steam Deck for emulations and some pc games
I'll talk about this in my next video.
As long as it's 80 degrees in some games. That must work great if you take it out in the sun in the summer.
What’s the game at the end like around 26:37?
thank god I didnt pull the trigger on the gpd or ayaneo earlier this year
great video. Still cant decide between win max 2 7840u or ally. ugh!
You said in your video that the 3 profile options or a 3rd party app are the only power management options, but that isn't true. Armory crate SE also has a manual mode where you can set power limits, adjust fan curves etc. Unless they removed it while they are working on it?
The manual mode has a minimum TDP of 15W, which is pointless for what I was trying to show (getting better battery life).
@@TakiUdon hmm that's not what I have seen from multiple reviewers. Again unless it has been changed for some reason while they are working on the low TDP issues. From what I've seen you can set as low as 7w in manual mode
@@TakiUdon to me personally it seems almost certain that there is some weird pre-release issues going on with the bios/drivers/power management back end on the Z1E because compared to the 7840u and especially in the lower half of the TDP range the Z1E is just not living up to it's spec sheet and/or what we are seeing from the 7840u in the same power constrained situations. It seems to me more significant than a matter of binning or silicon lottery. AMD would not take a 7840u die and just make it worse across the board. If you're seeing 15w as the minimum in the manual setting I can only think maybe they have changed it temporarily while they work out the power issues? If you go watch some other reviewers videos you will clearly see the slider in manual goes down to 7w.
Double-edged sword of running Windows on a handheld. I hope MS will make handheld optimized version of Win 11. Asus also not the most reliable manufacturer when it comes to product support. On the other side I still running in to issues when I use Steam deck, starting menus are a mess, touchscreen is unreliable in them
Sorry for the dumb question but... how I know wich profile option use?
The easiest thing is to just keep the device on turbo mode when you are plugged in and silent or performance when you are on battery. Turn on the floating FPS counter to see if the profile is giving you enough juice for the game you are playing.
4:20 What's the game you're playing here?
They already updated armoury crate and it’s a lot better so even before launch they keep updating
Ok for just emulation on its own steam deck or asus rog ally ???
This can emulate a lot more.
If all you want to do is emulation then the $400 Steam Deck is hard to beat price to performance wise.
If money is not an issue and you don’t mind dealing with the headache of Windows on a handheld device and the risk of ASUS dropping support in a year give this a try.
@@WholeHolyHole wow this is great thank you for your feedback really can't wait to get into handheld emulation.
The issues its having can (and hopefully will) be adressed with software either by asus themselves or the community.
Remember, the steam deck had a bunch of software problems on launch and they have been mostly ironed out by now.
Yeah, but Valve is reputable about updating their tech. Asus kinda isn't. If you look at their laptops over the last few years, Asus has been known the send firmware updates up to about a year before they just don't anymore. The best indicator of what someone will do in the future is to look at their past. Personally, I do not trust ASUS to update this device long term, especially if it isn't successful. Right now, you can still (STILL) preorder this device on Best Buy, and get it the day it comes out. No waiting list or anything. This doesn't seem like a hot seller the way the Steam Deck was, which tells me that ASUS won't be supporting this device long term.
Difference is….. Asus is a hardware first company and Valve is a software first company. Valve is incentivized to keep updating their handheld software in order to keep people on steam. While Asus would probably like to have software more fine tuned for their hardware, what incentive does Valve or Microsoft have to keep putting out updates at the pace Valve has been doing for the steam deck? I would love to be proven wrong, but Im not too confident asus will push for as many updates to the software as people probably want. It would probably be more likely that the ROG ally 2 will have more refined software.
Armoury crate is ass and I have no faith in them making it less ass for the Ally
@@TheSixthSLoT That's my concern too, Asus don't have the best history of updating their software. Valve has a lot more support and commitment to the Steam Deck it seems. Although Asus does seem to push these devices pretty hard, but it even launches a pre order in my country in a week already, while their ROG phone usually only launches 3-6 months after global launch. I don't if they have too much stock or what.
@@NTripleOne Seriously they pretty much abandon their $3000 laptops... it's pretty optimistic to think they'll care about upkeeping a $700 device a year from now. They'll just abandon it too and make a Ally 2 or something.
Is the display actually better than the Ayaneo 2?
It might be, but I'm not sure yet. Once you get up to an S-tier display, it's hard to see subtle improvements. (this is not taking into account the higher refresh rate)
@@TakiUdon it might be? Come on bro, how can you even say this? The display on the Aya Neo 2 is better than the Rog Ally.
@@TakiUdon it might be, I’m not sure yet. Meanwhile you said the display is great and probably better than those of any other handheld. Who on earth says this and comes to say, it might be, I’m not sure yet? How is this even possible