Open Box ASUS ROG Xbox Ally Handheld: 7" FHD 120Hz, Ryzen Z2 A, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD

m0rality

Jan 13, 2026 2:38 PM

1K Comments

Joined Feb 2017

m0ralityJan 13, 2026 2:38 PM

1K Comments

Quote from DilroopG

:

Most games where you'd use pads for ends up feeling too small for the screen size, it's more suitable to play thumb stick input based games on handhelds.

That isn't 100% accurate. The real determining factor is whether or not a game requires a mouse or is much easier to control with a mouse. Strategy games, old RPGs, and some other games are in that category (Strategy games are sometimes difficult to read as you pointed out on a smaller screen). A perfect example is Baldurs Gate 1/2. Frankly this comes down to the games that people play.

m0rality

Jan 13, 2026 2:43 PM

1K Comments

Joined Feb 2017

m0ralityJan 13, 2026 2:43 PM

1K Comments

Quote from mr0x

:

OLED is so much better for gaming and I wouldn't get this.

Get Steam Deck OLED. The refurb ones that were on sale were about this price. They are sold out now but might come back soon.

Great OLED device. What do you recommend that people do that want to play games like Fortnite, etc? Get a Steam Deck? I have a Deck. This is just bad advice. People need to get devices that allow them to play the games that they want to play. Then they can figure out what screen, size, ergonomics, and OLED/IPS.

1

deee5

Jan 13, 2026 3:27 PM

897 Comments

Joined Nov 2011

deee5Jan 13, 2026 3:27 PM

897 Comments

Quote from mr0x

:

You might also need glasses as well.

You're holding those devices too close to your eyes if you're seeing pixels.

Have you had your eye exam?

Yes and they corrected my stigmatism, you should get yours fixed too, lol

deee5

Jan 13, 2026 3:28 PM

897 Comments

Joined Nov 2011

deee5Jan 13, 2026 3:28 PM

897 Comments

Quote from m0rality

:

You cannot readily distinguish the resolution difference on a 7-7.5" screen at arms length. What matters in these devices is color reproduction, contrast, and brightness. At 8-8.5" you may start to notice a difference, but you aren't holding a gaming device on your face like a phone or tablet.

The other factor that matters is performance, memory, and VRR. A higher performance device will enable better frame rates, resolution, and textures. VRR will prevent tearing (ie graphical artifacts due to frame rate changes) with games that run above 48fps...which IMHO is less useful on slower devices because they can't run demanding games at higher frame rates.

I do believe people want a higher resolution on the Steam Deck, but most are willing to settle.

m0rality

Jan 13, 2026 3:33 PM

1K Comments

Joined Feb 2017

m0ralityJan 13, 2026 3:33 PM

1K Comments

Quote from deee5

:

I do believe people want a higher resolution on the Steam Deck, but most are willing to settle.

Thats not accurate. Go look at the Steam Deck and Handheld forums on Reddit. There is hardly ever a conversation about resolution. The biggest concerns are frame rate, textures, etc.. It just isnt that relevant at these screen sizes. 720/800p is often an ideal resolution from a balance of performance, battery life, and image quality. If you go up to 8" it will matter a bit more. Resolution becomes an issue when you start to talk about external monitors.

1

deee5

Jan 13, 2026 4:41 PM

897 Comments

Joined Nov 2011

deee5Jan 13, 2026 4:41 PM

897 Comments

Quote from m0rality

:

Thats not accurate. Go look at the Steam Deck and Handheld forums on Reddit. There is hardly ever a conversation about resolution. The biggest concerns are frame rate, textures, etc.. It just isnt that relevant at these screen sizes. 720/800p is often an ideal resolution from a balance of performance, battery life, and image quality. If you go up to 8" it will matter a bit more. Resolution becomes an issue when you start to talk about external monitors.

I looked on Reddit, it seems if you are already used to tablet or phone gaming the steam res is really disappointing

m0rality

Jan 13, 2026 4:48 PM

1K Comments

Joined Feb 2017

m0ralityJan 13, 2026 4:48 PM

1K Comments

Quote from deee5

:

I looked on Reddit, it seems if you are already used to tablet or phone gaming the steam res is really disappointing

Here is a fact:

A 7" screen with 1200x800 resolution is 206 PPI. Your standard 27" 2560x1440 monitor is half the pixel density at 108 PPI. The resolution seems more than adequate for the screen size.

Seriously, there is no practical issue with Steam Deck resolution. If you go to an 8" or above screen, then you might want higher resolution. The bigger issues are no VRR and that you have to run high end games on lower settings

1

RacingSOUL

Jan 13, 2026 5:01 PM

317 Comments

Joined Dec 2017

RacingSOULJan 13, 2026 5:01 PM

317 Comments

Quote from m0rality

:

Here is a fact:A 7" screen with 1200x800 resolution is 206 PPI. Your standard 27" 2560x1440 monitor is half the pixel density at 108 PPI. The resolution seems more than adequate for the screen size.Seriously, there is no practical issue with Steam Deck resolution. If you go to an 8" or above screen, then you might want higher resolution. The bigger issues are no VRR and that you have to run high end games on lower settings

It doesn't matter what the resolution is if the games are boring. Steam deck OLED is still the best handheld if you want to actually play the games without being plugged into to an outlet rather than brag about specs.

Also, I would rather support a good company like Valve, and possibly switch to SteamOS on my desktop, rather than greedy ones.

Last edited by RacingSOUL January 13, 2026 at 09:08 AM.

imasuperhero

Jan 13, 2026 5:04 PM

234 Comments

Joined Mar 2007

imasuperheroJan 13, 2026 5:04 PM

234 Comments

Chances are these were returned like the old Ally units. It's not power up and play, you still have to tweak settings for some games. The big caveat is if the previous owner registered it, you'll not be able to get support from Asus. It is locked to the prior guy. I tried to contact Asus with my Ally, no luck.

1

RacingSOUL

Jan 13, 2026 5:09 PM

317 Comments

Joined Dec 2017

RacingSOULJan 13, 2026 5:09 PM

317 Comments

Quote from imasuperhero

:

Chances are these were returned like the old Ally units. It's not power up and play, you still have to tweak settings for some games. The big caveat is if the previous owner registered it, you'll not be able to get support from Asus. It is locked to the prior guy. I tried to contact Asus with my Ally, no luck.

some people returned it because they thought it is a portable xbox.

3

itank2

Original Poster

Jan 13, 2026 5:35 PM

741 Comments

Joined Nov 2010

itank2

Original Poster

Jan 13, 2026 5:35 PM

741 Comments

Our community has rated this post as helpful. If you agree, why not thank itank2

Quote from imasuperhero

:

Chances are these were returned like the old Ally units. It's not power up and play, you still have to tweak settings for some games. The big caveat is if the previous owner registered it, you'll not be able to get support from Asus. It is locked to the prior guy. I tried to contact Asus with my Ally, no luck.

I've purchased multiple Steam Decks, 1 refurbed OLED and 2 brand new LCDs. The refurbished OLED arrived in literally the identical condition as a brand new Steam Deck LCD. I opened all of them to switch out the SSD, replace the backplates(with heatsink plate) and add a lot more thermal padding. The Steam Decks arrived completely wiped and cleaned, hardware and software included.

2

1

deee5

Jan 13, 2026 5:47 PM

897 Comments

Joined Nov 2011

deee5Jan 13, 2026 5:47 PM

897 Comments

Quote from RacingSOUL

:

It doesn't matter what the resolution is if the games are boring. Steam deck OLED is still the best handheld if you want to actually play the games without being plugged into to an outlet rather than brag about specs.

Also, I would rather support a good company like Valve, and possibly switch to SteamOS on my desktop, rather than greedy ones.

I have a big free epic games catalogue, ubisoft, etc. If I $500+ I would want access to those. I understand a lot of people are ok with a 32 inch 2k monitor, I thought so until I got a 4k one. Different priorities.

2

1

m0rality

Jan 13, 2026 6:50 PM

1K Comments

Joined Feb 2017

m0ralityJan 13, 2026 6:50 PM

1K Comments

Quote from deee5

:

I have a big free epic games catalogue, ubisoft, etc. If I $500+ I would want access to those. I understand a lot of people are ok with a 32 inch 2k monitor, I thought so until I got a 4k one. Different priorities.

You can access Epic and Ubisoft on a Steam device. Epic is pretty easy. Just install Heroic Launcher. It automatically adds games to your Steam UI. I use it with Epic, Amazon, and GoG. It has been flawless. Ubisoft is just a bit more effort. You can install that launcher directly or use "nonsteamlaunchers".

You cant run XBox as a launcher on Steam OS. However you can access XBox Cloud Gaming or GeForce Now

Last edited by m0rality January 13, 2026 at 10:53 AM.

4

deee5

Jan 13, 2026 7:47 PM

897 Comments

Joined Nov 2011

deee5Jan 13, 2026 7:47 PM

897 Comments

Quote from m0rality

:

You can access Epic and Ubisoft on a Steam device. Epic is pretty easy. Just install Heroic Launcher. It automatically adds games to your Steam UI. I use it with Epic, Amazon, and GoG. It has been flawless. Ubisoft is just a bit more effort. You can install that launcher directly or use "nonsteamlaunchers".

You cant run XBox as a launcher on Steam OS. However you can access XBox Cloud Gaming or GeForce Now

sounds good, I think I am on the market for a z1, go or ally x running Steam OS. Depending on if I want to stream the game or download it.

barrera_j

Jan 13, 2026 9:15 PM

1.6K Comments

Joined Mar 2019

barrera_jJan 13, 2026 9:15 PM

1.6K Comments

Quote from ghostfreckle

:

These perform similar, if not a bit better than a SD and are excellent for emulation and PC gaming.

Plus, Windows 11 25H2 has Full Screen Experience, that is similar to SD's Big Picture mode and increases performance by decreasing windows' burden on RAM.

It also shows all of your games, across platforms, all in one location.
Plus, if you want to play online games with anti-cheats, you can. Not like SD.
Plus, plus, you can install SteamOS, Bazzite, etc... if you want to.

No. The STEAMDECK will still outperform it because of Windows messing up with itself

1

Open Box ASUS ROG Xbox Ally Handheld: 7" FHD 120Hz, Ryzen Z2 A, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD

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