More from Steam Deck, ROG Ally, and more: all the news about the handheld PC gaming revolution
We knew that swapping the Windows gaming handheld’s SSD and battery was a breeze — but it turns out most every Asus part is easier to remove than Steam Deck!
Unfortunately, Asus hasn’t yet committed to actually offering replacement parts. Valve, meanwhile, lets iFixit sell almost every Steam Deck component at its website.
I keep thinking about the ROG Ally’s weird internal layout. Lotta unused space — see how two smaller batteries are connected with a bridge instead of a single bigger one? Why a small vertical SSD slot instead of a long horizontal one? Email me if you make it better!
ETA Prime just got a fork of SteamOS running, and while there’s no indication of battery life (he plays plugged in), it looks like Windows won’t be the only answer for long. I can confirm that HoloISO is also working to support the Ally’s processor.
In a recent Q&A, Asus says owners can absolutely install whatever they like, but it won’t provide customer support for SteamOS issues.
Valve, March 14th: “The idea that you could just swap in a new screen and be done—it would need more than that to be doable.” Today: F(x)tec reveals “DeckHD”.
Even if Valve’s exaggerating, the Deck’s advantage over competitors is battery, which might suffer with a “better” screen, and F(x)tec is best known for a mediocre crowdfunded phone that arrived two years late. Plus, 60Hz is so last year. (via GamingOnLinux)
Aokzoe is now claiming to have the “world’s first AMD Ryzen 7840U handheld.” Ayaneo is naming it too.
AMD would rather you pay attention to the Z1 Extreme, a chip that’s apparently identical save “entirely new power ranges and optimize[d] voltage curves specifically for this use case” that “should not be trivialized,” AMD’s Don Woligroski tells The Verge. Those sound important, but will AMD really not share them with anyone but Asus?
The Steam Deck competitor will be sold in both Z1 and Z1 Extreme configurations, Asus confirms to The Verge. (That was expected, but it’s good to know for sure.) So when you see the starting price on May 11th, know it’s for a somewhat less powerful model.
Here’s our ROG Ally hands-on.
I had a fun time testing this device, but everything’s going to come down to price.
The company says the ROG Ally, its handheld gaming PC that actually wasn’t an April Fool’s joke, will be releasing worldwide “sooner than you expect,” but I’m still mad about the April Fools’ Day shenanigans. Fingers crossed it actually launches in the near future, though.