Xbox’s Game Showcase of 2025 brought with it quite a few surprises, including the reveal of the much-anticipated Xbox handhelds. This was quite the welcome surprise, given that there were rumors of Xbox delaying the handheld indefinitely.
These rumors were proven wrong, though, and Xbox unveiled not one, but two handhelds – each being created in collaboration with ASUS’s ROG. The ROG Ally and ROG Ally X appear deceptively similar, but are quite different machines.
ROG Xbox Ally vs ROG Xbox Ally X: Specifications, expected performance, and more
Both handhelds appear to be quite similar in their designs, but have vastly differing specifications on offer. In short, the ROG Xbox Ally X is a much stronger device, and comes equipped with the yet unreleased Ryzen Z2 Extreme chipset.
You can find a more in-depth look at their specifications below:
| Specification | ROG Xbox Ally | ROG Xbox Ally X |
|---|---|---|
| CPU | AMD Ryzen Z2 A | AMD Ryzen Z2 Extreme |
| RAM | 16 GB LPDDR5X-6400 | 24 GB LPDDR5X-8000 |
| Storage | 512 GB 2280 | 1 TB 2280 |
| Display | 7’’ FHD IPS, 1080p@120 Hz + FreeSync Premium | 7’’ FHD IPS, 1080p@120 Hz + FreeSync Premium |
| Connectivity | 2x USB 3.2 Type-C + MicroSD | 1x USB 4 + MIcroSD |
| Battery | 60 Whr | 80 Whr |
A major point of comparison here would be the CPUs on offer. The Ryzen Z2 Extreme is the successor to the AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme (which is known to power current-gen handhelds such as the ASUS ROG Ally X), and should be a minor but much-appreciated upgrade to the same.
On the other hand, the Z2 A is a more budget version of the chip, and should be considerably less powerful. If anything, though, it should compare to the already available Z2 Go chipset.
The other major difference would be in the amount of RAM available, but given that the Z2 Go is a more budget machine, 16 GB should prove to be more than plenty.
The ROG Xbox Ally X also features a bigger battery, which might make for an additional hour of gameplay, assuming that the HX 370 and Z2 Extreme remain relatively similar.
Which handheld should you pick?
This bit depends largely on the type of games you want to play. If you want to play the latest and greatest, then there really is no other option here – the Xbox Ally X will be your only choice. It should be able to run even the most demanding of games at playable frame rates, but is expected to be a lot more expensive in return.
The regular Xbox Ally is expected to be a lot cheaper and offer a lot less performance in return. However, for most users, this might be more than enough, and they should be perfectly fine with a lower-end handheld.
This is especially true if you do not plan on doing much other than emulation or playing last-gen games.
Alternatively, the original Z1 Extreme version of the ROG Ally is also available at a ridiculously low price and might be worth looking into. The only disadvantage here would be the much smaller 40 Whr battery.
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