ASUS ROG Ally
For this $200 discount, the Asus ROG Ally is one of the best budget options for a handheld gaming PC. Crucially, its display is better than all similarly priced competition, including the display on the Steam Deck OLED.
There's much afoot in the handheld gaming PC market of late. First the Lenovo Legion Go launched, then Valve shocked the PC gaming sphere with a stealthy Steam Deck OLED launch, and then Valve slashed Steam Deck LCD prices and Asus cut the cost of the Z1 Extreme version of its ROG Ally. There's even talk of a Steam Deck 2.
After all this, what's left? Well, possibly the most enticing option for your wallet: A $200 price cut on the regular Z1 version of the Asus ROG Ally from Best Buy. If you're in the market for a budget-friendly handheld gaming PC, you won't want to miss this one.
Is the Asus ROG Ally worth it for $400?
We think the ROG Ally is worth its $400 price tag after this massive $200 discount. We already thought it was a great deal when Asus cut its cost by $150 for Cyber Monday. Throw in an extra $50 discount and you can't go wrong if you're in the market for a budget handheld.
Steam Deck vs Asus ROG Ally: What's the difference between the gaming handhelds?
Here's how the two PC gaming handhelds hold up against each other.The ROG Ally is largely considered to be one of the best handheld gaming PCs alongside the original Steam Deck and Steam Deck OLED. And now that it's dropped to this new low price, it's a fantastic option for those of you looking for a portable gaming console that comes with many of the benefits of gaming on PC.
Benefits of the ROG Ally over non-PC handhelds like the Nintendo Switch OLED include access to a fully-fledged desktop operating system, in-depth game setting customizations and, by and large, support for more games and mods. In short: more control over your gaming experience.
For reference, the Steam Deck LCD now starts at $399 for the original model with 256GB storage, or $549 for the OLED version with 512GB storage. So, Asus has lowered the price of the ROG Ally down to the price of the 256GB Steam Deck LCD.
The Ally comes with a Ryzen Z1 processor boasting AMD's latest RDNA 3 GPU architecture. It also features 16GB of LPDDR6-6400 memory, which is great for a now-$400 handheld.
The main draw to the Ally, though, isn't found in its processing power - the Steam Deck wins on that front - but in its display. While the ROG Ally's and Steam Deck's displays are both 7 inches on the diagonal, the Ally features a higher-resolution IPS screen with a refresh rate of 120Hz, allowing for smoother gameplay when framerates allow it.
This screen is seriously impressive for a handheld with a $400 price tag - even the display on the new Steam Deck OLED doesn't support 1080p and such a high refresh rate. Combine the Ally's screen with its 512GB storage and it's a no-brainer for those of you looking for a budget handheld. We suggest you pick it up while you can, because we don't know how long Best Buy will keep this deal going.