Hi friends! If you're interested in purchasing anything that I mentioned in the video then here are some affiliate links: 🔥ASUS ROG Ally: www.baldlyrudy.com/BBROGAlly 🔥STEAM DECK: www.baldlyrudy.com/steamdeck/ Steam Deck Screen Protectors: 🔥amFilm: amzn.to/3ZdijUr 🔥Matte Screen Protector: amzn.to/3Ybx6OJ ASUS ROG Ally Screen Protectors: 🔥amFilm: amzn.to/3JRJAGC 3rd Party Docks: 🔥JSAUX Docking Station: amzn.to/3EyFAIJ 🔥JSAUX Omnicase 2: amzn.to/3JksBMW 🔥iVoler Docking Station: amzn.to/3khmRKN SSD: 🔥SABRENT Rocket 2230 NVMe 4.0 1TB: amzn.to/3JnQQtH microSD Cards: 🔥Samsung 512 GB A2: amzn.to/3KFXXPs 🔥SanDisk 1TB A2: amzn.to/3lXjx7Y Handheld Wireless Keyboards: 🔥Rii K06 Mini Bluetooth Keyboard: amzn.to/468HKuH 🔥Gimibox Mini Bluetooth Wireless Keyboard: amzn.to/46p0JRZ 🔥Rii X8 Portable 2.4GHz Wireless Keyboard: amzn.to/3PgQ5GJ 65W Power Banks: 🔥Baseus Power Bank 20000mAh: amzn.to/3CBfByL 🔥UGREEN Power Bank 25000mAh: amzn.to/3qQyMSG 🔥Anker Portable Charger 24,000mAh: amzn.to/3Pmej2m If you use these links to purchase anything, I may get a commission from the sale. It helps support the channel at no extra cost to you, so thank you!
Great video, curious to know if you have tried Geforce Now for your epic games? It works extremely well and 90% of my epic library is available on the service
I don't own a steam deck but I know folks who do and they love them. I went with the Ally because I had no steam games. And before now was totally new to PC gaming. Was my Xbox and Switch only. Pretty much in the MS ecosystem due to game pass, PC, X Cloud, etc. Since getting it, I've played through a couple Game Pass PC titles and it was a blast. And fun fact... Games I've bought outright have come from Steam. Go figure. The Ally literally introduced me to steam. Which I also love now.
I wanted the ROG Ally, my son wants an nintendo switch. Got a spare 256gb and 512gb micro sd. Ended up buying two 64GB steamdeck for us and at price of one ROG Ally. Yeah, definitely not as powerful as an Ally but no less fun and two people are happy.
Love the Steam Deck for: Ease of Use (SteamOS) • Quick Resume • Super Comfortable to hold • Display is brighter • Valve Support Don't like the Steam Deck for: Can't play Xbox GamePass • A bit heavier/bigger • Display isn't the best at only 800p • Linux Love the ROG Ally for: Display is Awesome • Speakers are Amazing • Xbox GamePass • Runs All Windows Apps • Sleek, Modern Design • Able to Return to Best Buy w/no issues Don't like the ROG Ally for: Software issues with Arm.Crate & Win11 bugginess • SD Card Reader Issues • Battery Life • Not As Comfy as Steam Deck • D-Pad isn't as good
I bought the Steam Deck last week and that was a no-brainer for me. While the reduced price to due summer sale played part in this, I also like the availability of replacement parts and the huge community that develops solutions for the steam deck. Especially the replacement parts are interesting to me since I travel with it a lot. The track pads are a great part and I got used to them quickly. Overall I have been happy with it so far.
I've got dual boot set up on the Steam Deck on the internal SSD. Best of both worlds, I primarily use SteamOS for emulation and verified games, and use Win 11 for Gamepass and Steam games that don't work under SteamOS. So happy with this device!
Just saw an Ally at Best Buy yesterday and the screen made me pretty jealous, but the Ally not having track pads is 100% a deal breaker for me. I love them and constantly use them on my Steam Deck
Many good points. The one standout and key factor for me is VRR on the ROG Ally. It makes all games smoother if they can stay within the VRR threshold.
I really hope the ROG Ally is gonna be successful, so Asus won't give it up, because a huge manufacturer like Asus is important for the handheld market as such and they could convince Microsoft to make an interface specifically optimized for handhelds! In this regard the biggest advantage of the ROG Ally is also its biggest disadvantage...
If it becomes successful doesn't mean they will start making one every year like they do with their other hardware and then stop support for the older versions?
@@Jur1_00 Of course that's what it means. But if it's not becoming successful they might stop the experiment and the handheld market stays in the hands of Valve and Windows handheld experience stays crap, so bad luck for Ayaneo, GPD and so on.
@@fairphoneuser9009 I don't really like when companies do that. I'd rather they make one device and keep working on the software etc and then in 5 years when there is a huge jump in performance they can make another one
Steam Deck owner for a few months. I love the track pads and 4 back buttons. For instance; in Elden Ring, I’ve mapped the d-pad to the right track pad so I don’t have to do an awkward claw or take my thumb off of the left stick to switch weapons, magic, or potions. I’ve also mapped the dodge roll button to L4 and I’m loving that. This is my Soulslike preset now. It’s so nice to be able to customize my playing exp with these options.
Actually Steam Deck is available and they have 15% to 20% Discount Sale,64 Gb version cost 389.10,The 256GB version cost $449.65 and the 512GB cost 519.20
I might end up going for the Steam Deck just because I trust Valve. They are a software and gaming first company, and they have proven it with updates. I dunno about Asus. Their recent update caused a drop in performance and their build quality is questionable.
Games work great on the deck too which I’m not sure why people seem to want “better” because I have zero complaints with how well it runs. So far I’ve tried halo MCC, Minecraft Java with fabric/shaders (runs great!), elden ring and heroes of Hammerwatch. All of them felt just as good to play as they do on my 3080 desktop, just on a smaller screen.
Yup my overaly super bad experience with Asus computers , their RMA and EU pricing made me nope the he'll out of Ally ... personally I don't really even need the extra power it has over deck. Given what I play Really curious how will this handheld pc segment t develop over the years
Sold the Deck to buy an Ally and I can tell you, the VRR, the raw performance, and able to play Game Pass is huge. I was able to emulate games way easier especially the Switch games much more easier. The Deck caused more of a headache cause it requires a lot of tinkering and whatnot to get it to run halfway decent. I slap in the Nreal AR glasses and it’s a dream
@@baldlyrudy I was on the same boat as you and was skeptical about it initially. But after when I got it, it has been amazing. To the point that it's a necessity if you can afford it. The color on the glasses produce is rich thanks to the micro OLED panels it has and the large real estate is a game changer.
@@baldlyrudy TCL and Rokid is what comes in mind for me. I’ve done extensive researching before I pulled the trigger but here is my opinion and why I chose the Nreal over them. People say the TCL gets uncomfortable and it gets hot on the forehead part of the glasses. And the Rokid Max has better specs but the Nreal has been in the AR scene the longest and has the best customer service. The Rokid Max doesn’t look appealing and people will notice you’re using AR glasses compared to the Nreal which looks like a pair of Ray Bans
Wild that you just posted this 14hrs before I was asking myself which I should get. Based on what you’ve said, I think the ROG Ally might be the better fit due to me having game across multiple launchers, steam actually having the least.
ROG ALLY all day ! After I did some tweaking this thing is getting some serious performance ! Extremely happy with it and added a 2tb ssd was extremely simple and easy to re install everything !
I got a Ally and I’m loving it , but honestly the main reason i got it was cause my Best Buy store had a 50% off accommodation for the Ally for employees so i got it for $350 made the choice between a steam deck and ally very easy 😅
Got both and love both. My Deck is for Emulation and less heavy titles and my Ally is for the AAA bangers. Both have a 1tb SSD installed in them but my Deck also has a 1tb sd card as well. Deck has way better joysticks than the Ally imo and the trackpads are A1. I lean more towards the Ally because of the power and being able to play gamepass is a plus.
The joysticks on the Ally have these dead zones that are pretty bad. They definitely leave a lot to be desired even with it set to the minimum in Armoury Crate.
So purchased a Steam Deck, been playing/using it for a little over a month. My only thing that is kinda rough to get around is not having easy access to other launchers to play certain/exclusive titles. I don’t feel entirely confident that I can sidestep and and follow closely enough to any tutorials to close the gap. Overall extremely happy/impressed with what is there outta the box! Great vid/content btw!
I'm right there with you. The Steam Deck is great right out of the box. You can tweak things to get other launchers if you have time to follow tutorials and guides. But yeah, it's a solid handheld. Also thanks! Much appreciated! I put a lot of time into making these videos.
I did my research few weeks ago and picked SteamDeck because of the community and how iconic the device is. When you see "SteamDeck" preset mode in Cyberpunk 2077 it means something. ROG Ally in this regards still sits in the GPD/Ayaneo sandbox, trying to make Windows better for small screen paired with controller.
Agreed. It seems like the Steam Deck has set itself up as its own platform entirely. Also, yes the community is awesome. The ROG Ally has the power, but not the community.
I think it comes down to your use case. If your brand new to pc gaming and don’t need a desktop then steams all the way. But if you have an ancient pc desktop and need to upgrade anyway but your main use case is gaming then go with the ally. I plan on getting the ally because it reduces my desktop foot print and cloud applications can pick up on lack of performance.
@@baldlyrudy honestly GeForce now ultimate tier is so good for me, I have zero desire to get another gpu. Im sure your up to date on GeForce now but some may not know as it streams at 1440p at 120 hz and tbh I can’t think of one time I feel like I died in battlefield 2042 because of lag. But my main goal is to consolidate down as small as possible and the ally does that for me.
Both are great! But I personally use my ally way more simply because it's easier to play my games and has better performance that being said battery life is better on SD and the software is miles ahead with it as well. I think the ally has a good chance to run Starfield at low maybe 30fps lol hopefully.
Me to I give build quality and comfort to steam deck feels great in your hands but that’s it really the Ally just better/easier at everything else on the tech side. Valve need to sort the anti-cheat probelms out with some games and make adding launchers easier for people which is doable but a lot more complicated than it is on the Ally to set up having to add launch commands into steam and things
I own both and if I had to get rid of one, it would be the rog ally. To be honest, windows works better than I expected and the joy stick as a mouse cursor is pretty accurate. Listening to spotify or watching videos is a joy. But in task manager, without any tinkering the ram usage was around 50% due to background tasks. Furthermore, the screen got extremely hot. While emulating ps3. While the heat didnt seem to cause any issues. I do worry about long term durability of the screen under this type of heat. I also experienced several issues with docking mode not detecting my monitor and other charging bricks not being fully compatible with the Ally. There is also the lack of a true sleep mode and there is no quick resume which has become almost a must have feature. This is where the deck excels. The software experience is just so much more convenient and apart of me feels like a gaming laptop would be more beneficial than an ally in uts current state
@@DirtyFozzy performance will vary. Light games will be playable. But demanding titles won't be. RPCS3 loves cores and threads. I wouldn't recommend the steamdeck if PS3 emulation is a priority
What do you play, man? I'm so confused between the two. Missing out on windows doesn't scare me nearly as much as the worse screen and performance of the deck
@gadipremikudu2632 honest if you turn brightness up and use decky loader for vibrant deck, tge screens dont seem too far off. I will say the 120hz is nice, but probably why the battery life sucks on the Ally. On the deck ive been bouncing between Celeste, Skate City, and Day's Gone. Performance is good for all 3. I have no complaints, although with triple A's the fans do get loud. Performance is better on the Ally, but its not $700 better. The real benefits of the Ally come frome windows. Especially if you have games that use anticheat or have game pass. I compared Celeste and castle crashers and both experiences were great on both. Fifa 23 struggled on the Ally during cut scenes, the animation became really choppy. But gameplay was good, remained in the 60s and 70s for FPS. I definitely prefer the overall feel of the deck in handheld mode. The bumpers add a nice comfortable grip and the controller layout is much nicer feel. The screen and the speakers are nicer on the Ally. The software experience is far more smoother on the steamdeck and quick resume has become almost mandatory. But you can do more thing in windows much easier, like emulation setup and compatibility. For me I'd keep the deck for its convenience, ergonomics, and battery performance. The Ally isnt bad at all and feel if someone doesn't have a handheld, they will be happier with either
2 devices with different use cases. Both have their strengths and weaknesses. I use the ally plugged in most of the time for the extra power, and because the battery is worse than battery powered handhelds we had in the 90s.. (they should have never released it with such a bad battery) The deck i use for ease of use and smaller games on low wattage.. the ally is absolutely horrible in low wattage. Most people should buy a deck! And they will be more than happy with it.
After having both devices, the emulation is 100% way better on Deck than the Ally. The Ally screen looks amazing compared to the Deck. The screen is so good. The camera does not do justice I promise. If you want to play AAA more than emulation I would go with Ally. Yes, currently is has bugs and I am thinking when the other chip variant comes out Asus will fix it. Device wise I enjoyed the Deck more to be honest. If you can get over not playing COD, D2, Fortnite, Blizzard games etc. then the Deck will be fine for you. You can do all the work arounds in the world and "stream games" but nothing runs better than native. They are both good in my opinion. I wish they could make a baby lol
Your videos have been super helpful. For someone wanting to dive into the Handheld PC's. This for sure has sold me on the Steam deck OLED, in comparison to the Lenovo go, or Asus ally, All my games are on steam. And i want easy emulation. And comfort. I want that Console feeling. Not a PC feeling. Sure extra frames and stuff are nice. But as long things run smooth enough and the colors are nice. I could care less if its 30fps or 120. As long as i can enjoy it comfortably, And its pleasing. In both visuals and audio
Thank you and you're welcome! I'm glad that I could help you. Honestly, if I can help one person, then I feel like I've done a good job at providing something useful to someone in the world. Glad I could help.
Honestly both devices are good in their own ways, though I just wish the deck had a good display. I paid $360 for the 64gb steam deck and upgraded the 512gb ssd for $50. So $410 is a great deal imo. I am more of an indie gamer and I rely heavily on battery, not only that the steam deck performance on low watts crushes the ally easily.
The Steam Deck, just like the Nintendo Switch, is in its own lane. There's no competition in my opinion. I do believe that the ROG Ally is the best option if you want a Windows handheld. Hands down the best value you can get compared to the neverending Ayaneo releases.
I have both and have to say both do not perform very well in big triple A games, you have to keep your expectations in check that’s for sure but where both shine is in indie games, pixel art, that kind of thing. Both perform amazing in these scenarios but they both have different strengths in this situation. Currently the steam deck can get lower in power usage and eek out amazing battery life, we’re talking like 8 hours while playing huntdown or something like that, but where the ally shines is the screen, games like rocket league for example are way nicer to play on ally because you can see further ahead, a lot of pixel break up at 800p on the deck makes it hard to see the other side of the pitch. The deck OS is legendary but a tweaker can make windows work and work well.😊
I do have both, and I can say that the Ally as a handheld needs work. Windows 11 is not great with just analog sticks. However, the screen is beautiful. The fact it runs a higher resolution and gets similar or better battery life is phenomenal. There's definitely things both can improve, but a proper "Steam" OS on the ally will fix many efficiency issues and make it ultimately a best of both worlds handheld.
The thing I like to make use of back buttons the most is mode shift and never ever move my thumbs away from stick because with mode shift, I've binded dpad and ABXY buttons on stick already if I want to click Y I just hold right back button and push my right analog stick up, that's it easy Y for ya, try it out it's more intuitive than you first thought.
I got the Steam Deck over the Ally because: - Trackpads (already have some games in mind where Joysticks just don't cut it) - Sustainability: Valve seems committed to making replacement parts easy to install. - Better D-Pad: I plan to emulate a lot of older games so I really want a good d-pad. - Linux: While gaming on Linux is currently an inconvenience, I am really hoping that a significant market share of Linux gamers means Windows-only releases become a thing of the past. With how much bloatware Windows 11 has (and Windows 12 might have), I am hoping to eventually transition 100% to Linux
I don’t think these should be compared. If you want more premium device, you go for Asus or Aya Neo, GPD Win etc. That especially applies in Europe, where Asus is priced at 799 euros and SD starts at 349. I know ssd will need upgrading, however, steam deck can cost you around 420 with the case, which is a different price category.
I dont think that I would consider GPD or Aya Neo to be more premium just because they are more expensive. Their build quality isn’t better than the SD. Hell, I had a GPD product and the nubs on the joysticks regularly came off.
@@maciejbuczkowski1056 okay, well you said GPD too though. And idk, I can’t really ever think of any of these as a premium experience when the software experience is so incredibly janky. Windows is not meant to be interacted with via a controller. Plus constant driver updates, software malfunctions, fiddling and trouble shooting, lack of good sleep mode, and literally doing things like frying SD cards, controllers breaking or no longer being registered with the device, worse battery life and factory resets, I can’t call these premium devices, even if it has a better screen. I mean, there are phones with better screens than the iPhone, but it still isn’t a more premium device because of its shitty and buggy software. These are just more expensive devices.
@@joker6558 so may things to unpack. Saying windows is worse than Linuksa based SteamOs is like comparing a car to the subway. Windows is not meant to be interacted via controller? I think you meant touch. Just recall what problems steam deck had at the beginning. It can only get better. I don’t think it’s janky. I have o issues with windows, of course it needs tweaking sometimes, but it’s mostly compatible with every game you throw at it. And the last remark about iPhone is just too much. Let’s not go iPhone vs this he rest route
I personally want a AynNeo Geek 1S to be future proof. You can go full sized 2280 M.2. You get 800p screen in a smaller form factor with 3 USB ports. You can get it with 32GB of ram $800 which is overkill but might play a factor in newer games (Starfield) and windows updates (Win12?) down the road. You get a big 52whr battery! You also get all the hall effect hardware with so there are no upgrades left to do. The 16GB model costs $700. I feel that it's a better buy than the ROG Ally. All and all I really wish somebody made a handheld with more usb ports and a bigger battery with a Ryzen 5 7640U to stick with 6cores by 8Cu's. It's a step in the right direction for having enough power with decent battery life in 800p territory. A $360 Deck is tempting though. Just don't want to get sucked into buying upgrades and accessories which quickly add up. Don't forget that fast charging is another benefit to going with something newer than getting the steamdeck! The Deck may start at $360 but you don't have to buy much for upgrades in the Geek 1s with it as is. I here the sticks and the SD card reader are bad on the Rog Ally. Otherwise I'd buy it in a heartbeat.
You say that the battery lives are same on the both handhelds. I had watched another video showing that under the same power and settings, Rog Ally provided 10 fps extra. I wouldn't call them as their battery lives are same though.
I had the rog ally and besides screen, speakers and design it wasn't worth the $700 to me unless they fix the jank with windows and lower the price then yeah i'm in. my steam deck has been great to me. only games i wish could could run is Fortnite and cod that's about it, but i have a lot of back log single player games to play so its good for what i need and i love the track pads. vavle really did something with meshing the console pick up and play experience with giving you the option to play on desktop mode like a pc. SD just needs a better battery and screen (OLED) if they can. btw what game was you playing when you showed the deck off?
Same here. Best Buy was willing to put me on a list to pickup a new one after I returned my faulty unit but the initial headache of Windows installation, updates, and some of the weird quirks just made me get my full refund. It’s a shame too because I’d prefer to ability to play Xbox cloud and PC games that are available on Windows.
Nah. I have. I just don't really see the use for it for the games that I play. But I'd rather have the option to utilize something like custom controls if I ever ran into an issue with the way things are laid out on the Steam Deck. Especially with older titles that don't have traditional controller support.
I have both of them. Personally, I use the Asus Rog Ally for emulation as well as the Steam Library. Glad I won it on ebay at a auction & spent $100 less than Best Buy & in new condition!!
Got my deck a few days ago and its perfect for me. Ofc there could be more but battery life to performance wise i think its right at the sweetspot. Whatever i throw at it runs perfectly fine and some games like forza horizon 5 even surprised me with a stable 60fps with mostly medium settings. All that on a 400€ handheld. Unbeatable imo.
I feel like people are counting out the fact that on the ROG Ally you have a demographic of gamers that use windows that also love to emulate or played dumped classic games. Not only is the Ally slightly better in performing but the variety of what you can do on it is increased as well. I have both but I find myself always grabbing my Ally. Just in my opinion though.
Stuck until you take the 10 minutes to turn some of your free space into a partiton and install windows on that. Then you can choose from both steamos and windows. Rog ally is just windows I mean you could easily install steamos too but its linux so good luck with that
I choose the steam deck im finally getting it tomorrow in the mail im totally excited i got the 512gb model for 519$ on sale the sale ends today on steam.and i love steam games indie games and triple Aaa games i also love to tinker so putting windows on the steam deck and adding additional games will not be that hard for me either and i cant wait to play all my old nostalgic games too.
Steam Deck user here, buddy of mine got an Ally and after helping him setup EmuDeck on it, I have my opinions on this device. It’s a little finicky to work with. This is because of the windows OS if you’re ok with trying to figure out how tab out and not to fat finger everything then I don’t see why not get this device. It’s a cool device, I can tell the screen is better but a lot harder to navigate I’m guessing most consumers know how to work around the finicky part of the Ally. But I can see a situation we’re a parent and child walk in BestBuy and the kid wants an Ally and both the parent or the child don’t know what they’re doing I can see frustration there. But if they were to have a steam deck it would be a less of a pain to learn. These are still little portable computers I don’t some people that aren’t familiar in the space know that But I recommend either or. My buddy got the Ally simply to fornite on it for some reason he likes to play hand held. He was using a switch before the Ally. Running Fornite on Steam deck again it is possible but it’s just another work around you have to deal with.
After reading some comments forgot to add yes I don’t like that the Ally doesn’t have track pads Navigating windows mouse with a joystick or touch screen is VERY finicky that’s my only con Still good device but only flaw
Yeah. I could see problems having someone that isn't 100% into PC gaming getting this. Even someone that's familiar with Windows might have problems with the Ally. The Steam Deck's user experience is just so close to being seamless.
@@Cakebattered Interesting, I can see that. My buddy got use to navigating the system with the joysticks after some use. Personally I like the trackpads, I would love an Ally with some trackpads added to it
@@Herringboner it runs at 50-60 fps... destiny 2 is really good on it.. stays smooth with no stutters... you got to install windows on the steam deck to run it tho. so dual booting is a must but its super easy. mine is set up so it always boots in the last used OS
@@baldlyrudy its damn near perfect imho... you need to install windows tho.. i also found diablo 4 to run better on windows then steam os on the steam deck
@@baldlyrudy you should dual boot windows on the steam deck and then compare them side by side again! ive been looking for a video like that and havent found it yet
I've been researching for awhile now and I'm kind of on the fence. Apart of me likes the gamepass option on the rog ally but I have an xbox already and I feel like it might be kind for redundant. I also am not jazzed about it being a windows based computer because I honestly hate windows and the xbox will be the only windows product in my home. Steam deck on the other hand seems like its more solidly built and more TLC was put into making the product to make it an original experience and it seems that it has a very loyal following but i also have no familiarity with the Steam platform. I can't decide. Ive read some not so favorable reviews of the ally and then I've read really good ones but its availability is much easier
Personally, I've been reaching for my Steam Deck more and more despite having the ROG Ally. Maybe the Legion Go will be different, but I doubt it. The ecosystem/community is just so dang good on the Steam Deck.
Can someone who own both give a some comparison of their battery life in high demanding game and low demanding ones? I can’t seem to find a detailed video around
I have an ally and the only reason I got it was for windows . Granted I want to go down to windows 10 but I use my ally to diagnose BMWS. . ISTA runs on windows but I prefer windows 10 over 11
Battery life the same? Bullshit. If you absolutely max out the Ally it can kill itself in 45 minutes, whereas maxing out the Deck the fastest you can kill it is maybe 1:20 or 1:30. The absolute longest you're going to get from the ally at the lowest it goes while actually playing a game is maybe 5 hours. The Deck can have games go up to 8. Everything inbetween lines up with that. The Ally is consistently getting about half the battery life, but every reviewer suggests 'it's pretty much the same'. No, it's not.
My bad for not adding this into the video. When I talk about battery life, the Ally is set to 15w because the Steam Deck can't hit 25w. Even with disabling the limit, most people don't recommend going higher than 20w with the Steam Deck. You can max out the Ally at a higher wattage (25w) than the Steam Deck. Of course it'll devour more battery. At 15w TDP, its similar performance for both. I'm sure if the Steam Deck could hit 25w TDP out of the box, it would have similar battery life as an Ally set to 25w TDP.
@@baldlyrudy When the the claims of both "the Ally has more graphical horsepower" and "the Ally has the same battery life as the Deck" are made without that clarifying statement it becomes a lie. I have an honest question: How did you come about that Ally? Did you purchase it?
Steamdeck with new proton version supports lots of anti cheats now. Meaning you now can play games like smite and other mmos :) , already tried it. Its awesome
I did ton of research on both of these devices I wanted to have a handheld pc ..not entirely for gaming but some work as well.. because in 2 months I'll be in Australia and 3 months later travel again..and finally back in aus for good..but i ended up realizing rog ally cost almost around 1400$ aud alone and with dock mouse and keyboard and if storage upgrade will cost more than 1500$ aud..at that point i thought.. wait i can just build a decent pc with that budget and it will be more stable and capable than rog ally...so what i need is something within a handheld rage if you know what i mean ..so steam deck isn't really cheap but it's almost 500$ aud less..and again since i wasn't planning on getting this device entirely for gaming im fine as long as it can function as a pc and runs my softwares..so while i use steam deck I'll build a pc after and have both. Now this doesn't mean rog ally for it's price isn't good ..for those who really don't want a bulky pc and tired of not be able to play their latest games on the go and it's really important and something they always wished for ... then it's great.. just not for me
@@baldlyrudy i forgot to mention i was comparing to the steam deck 64gb as you explained it's smarter to upgrade the storage later than getting 512gb..but even if you go for the 512gb steam deck it's still 300$ aud less
steam deck will fail for sure. they are heavily undercut by ROG ally , Aya Neo, OneX as their product is hard to find outside USA. Here in Asia , ROG ally is much cheaper at $700, SteamDeck price is $1000 😡
That's definitely one of the biggest problems with the Steam Deck. Even a year after launch, it's still difficult to find in some areas in the world. Not to excuse Valve for this, but Valve just doesn't have the distribution pipeline for the Steam Deck established in some countries. Valve is more of a software company than a hardware one. In Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and Hong Kong, Valve had to partner with Komodo. ASUS, for example, has all of the logistics for that figured out, since they're a hardware company. That being said, Steam Deck sales seem pretty strong based on the numbers that Valve has shared so far. Either way, more competition is always better for the consumer.
@@baldlyrudy i'll bet ROG Ally 2 is already confirmed to fix the existing issues on gen 1 hardware. as Asus has yearly iteration of their ROG phone and Laptop. another is if Valve wont step up their game. Nintendo Switch 2 if true is sure to gobble their potential buyers next year.
@Trash67890 agreed on the ROG Ally 2 bit. That's just their MO when it comes to pushing hardware. Nintendo fans and Steam Deck fans may have some overlap, but Valve and Nintendo target two completely different audiences.
This is such a piece of junk. Nothing works. Everything needs to be configured. Apps are slow and buggy. Awful experience. Don’t spend your money on it.
@@baldlyrudy oh, my bad, the Ally. I had such a terrible experience. Nothing would work properly and I’m not down to wait for the company to release updates. It was way too expensive for it not to work well out of the box. Now I’m waiting on my Steam Deck to arrive.
I have the steam deck and it sucks, I use windows on it and can't use the controlls since valve is such dumb butts. so I will have my asus today. I'll be selling off steam its junk in my books
Its def more then a minimal upgrade in fps. Steamdeck basically cannot play starfield without FSR 50% scaling. ALLY 720 low no fsr. Looks way better. I have both btw. Steamdeck is much easier to use as far as being optimized.
I own both, Steam deck has an easier and better UI, and battery life is better Ally ROG: has amazing picture quality and fps is better - battery sucks tho
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Great video, curious to know if you have tried Geforce Now for your epic games? It works extremely well and 90% of my epic library is available on the service
I don't own a steam deck but I know folks who do and they love them. I went with the Ally because I had no steam games. And before now was totally new to PC gaming. Was my Xbox and Switch only. Pretty much in the MS ecosystem due to game pass, PC, X Cloud, etc. Since getting it, I've played through a couple Game Pass PC titles and it was a blast. And fun fact... Games I've bought outright have come from Steam. Go figure. The Ally literally introduced me to steam. Which I also love now.
I wanted the ROG Ally, my son wants an nintendo switch. Got a spare 256gb and 512gb micro sd. Ended up buying two 64GB steamdeck for us and at price of one ROG Ally. Yeah, definitely not as powerful as an Ally but no less fun and two people are happy.
No complaints there man. Nothing beats playing with your son. My son and I love playing games together.
Poor kid, deprived of a Switch.
@@iamCifu nah! We got yuz* 😝
@@iamCifu he can just emu switch...
Love the Steam Deck for: Ease of Use (SteamOS) • Quick Resume • Super Comfortable to hold • Display is brighter • Valve Support
Don't like the Steam Deck for: Can't play Xbox GamePass • A bit heavier/bigger • Display isn't the best at only 800p • Linux
Love the ROG Ally for: Display is Awesome • Speakers are Amazing • Xbox GamePass • Runs All Windows Apps • Sleek, Modern Design • Able to Return to Best Buy w/no issues
Don't like the ROG Ally for: Software issues with Arm.Crate & Win11 bugginess • SD Card Reader Issues • Battery Life • Not As Comfy as Steam Deck • D-Pad isn't as good
I bought the Steam Deck last week and that was a no-brainer for me. While the reduced price to due summer sale played part in this, I also like the availability of replacement parts and the huge community that develops solutions for the steam deck. Especially the replacement parts are interesting to me since I travel with it a lot. The track pads are a great part and I got used to them quickly. Overall I have been happy with it so far.
Yup. It's definitely a solid purchase. And I can't deny that sweet price right now.
I've got dual boot set up on the Steam Deck on the internal SSD. Best of both worlds, I primarily use SteamOS for emulation and verified games, and use Win 11 for Gamepass and Steam games that don't work under SteamOS. So happy with this device!
Definitely the best of both worlds.
I remember someone said this “Steam deck is a Console handheld and ROG Ally is a Windows handheld”
Sounds accurate.
Definitely sounds about right
Just saw an Ally at Best Buy yesterday and the screen made me pretty jealous, but the Ally not having track pads is 100% a deal breaker for me. I love them and constantly use them on my Steam Deck
Yeah I started using them recently on fps games, especially gyro
Yeah same here man after using the trackpad for the months I've had the deck they are hard to give up on.
What actions do you guys use the TrackPads for?
I want to use them… but can’t come up w/ use-cases 😅
@@GoofyPoptart have you used gyro, I'm trying to use them recently on left 4 dead 2 and it's so hard to go back not having gyro on controllers now xd
@@pixelfunk2 games like Minecraft when you have 9 slots on your hotbar I set mine with water bucket and building blocks.
Many good points. The one standout and key factor for me is VRR on the ROG Ally. It makes all games smoother if they can stay within the VRR threshold.
I really hope the ROG Ally is gonna be successful, so Asus won't give it up, because a huge manufacturer like Asus is important for the handheld market as such and they could convince Microsoft to make an interface specifically optimized for handhelds! In this regard the biggest advantage of the ROG Ally is also its biggest disadvantage...
Agreed. This could lead towards more competition with other manufacturers in the handheld gaming space. And I'm all for it.
If it becomes successful doesn't mean they will start making one every year like they do with their other hardware and then stop support for the older versions?
@@Jur1_00 Of course that's what it means. But if it's not becoming successful they might stop the experiment and the handheld market stays in the hands of Valve and Windows handheld experience stays crap, so bad luck for Ayaneo, GPD and so on.
@@fairphoneuser9009 I don't really like when companies do that. I'd rather they make one device and keep working on the software etc and then in 5 years when there is a huge jump in performance they can make another one
@@Jur1_00 That's just not the Asus way. And even Ayaneo and GPD have shiploads of models.
Steam Deck owner for a few months. I love the track pads and 4 back buttons. For instance; in Elden Ring, I’ve mapped the d-pad to the right track pad so I don’t have to do an awkward claw or take my thumb off of the left stick to switch weapons, magic, or potions. I’ve also mapped the dodge roll button to L4 and I’m loving that. This is my Soulslike preset now. It’s so nice to be able to customize my playing exp with these options.
Actually Steam Deck is available and they have 15% to 20% Discount Sale,64 Gb version cost 389.10,The 256GB version cost $449.65 and the 512GB cost 519.20
Where is that offer?
I might end up going for the Steam Deck just because I trust Valve. They are a software and gaming first company, and they have proven it with updates.
I dunno about Asus. Their recent update caused a drop in performance and their build quality is questionable.
Games work great on the deck too which I’m not sure why people seem to want “better” because I have zero complaints with how well it runs. So far I’ve tried halo MCC, Minecraft Java with fabric/shaders (runs great!), elden ring and heroes of Hammerwatch. All of them felt just as good to play as they do on my 3080 desktop, just on a smaller screen.
Yup my overaly super bad experience with Asus computers , their RMA and EU pricing made me nope the he'll out of Ally ... personally I don't really even need the extra power it has over deck.
Given what I play
Really curious how will this handheld pc segment t develop over the years
Sold the Deck to buy an Ally and I can tell you, the VRR, the raw performance, and able to play Game Pass is huge. I was able to emulate games way easier especially the Switch games much more easier. The Deck caused more of a headache cause it requires a lot of tinkering and whatnot to get it to run halfway decent. I slap in the Nreal AR glasses and it’s a dream
How are those NReal AR glasses? I've been thinking about getting them.
@@baldlyrudy I was on the same boat as you and was skeptical about it initially. But after when I got it, it has been amazing. To the point that it's a necessity if you can afford it. The color on the glasses produce is rich thanks to the micro OLED panels it has and the large real estate is a game changer.
Nice! Are there any other companies that make similar products that you know of?
@@baldlyrudy TCL and Rokid is what comes in mind for me. I’ve done extensive researching before I pulled the trigger but here is my opinion and why I chose the Nreal over them. People say the TCL gets uncomfortable and it gets hot on the forehead part of the glasses. And the Rokid Max has better specs but the Nreal has been in the AR scene the longest and has the best customer service. The Rokid Max doesn’t look appealing and people will notice you’re using AR glasses compared to the Nreal which looks like a pair of Ray Bans
Sweet. Much appreciated. 🙌
Wild that you just posted this 14hrs before I was asking myself which I should get.
Based on what you’ve said, I think the ROG Ally might be the better fit due to me having game across multiple launchers, steam actually having the least.
It's like I knew. 😅
ROG ALLY all day ! After I did some tweaking this thing is getting some serious performance ! Extremely happy with it and added a 2tb ssd was extremely simple and easy to re install everything !
What kinda tweaking did you have to do?
I love mine i just had to tweak fan curves and wattage and emulators. You can emulate ps3 without drops and any PC game works like butter
BUT that's almost 1000$ is crazy expensive compared to The Deck , the deck with the 2tb i literally just paid 500$ for used as New
I got a Ally and I’m loving it , but honestly the main reason i got it was cause my Best Buy store had a 50% off accommodation for the Ally for employees so i got it for $350 made the choice between a steam deck and ally very easy 😅
That's an easy choice right there. 🤣
Wow that made me so jealous. $350 is a steal for the rog ally. Paid full price for mine and think it was well worth it
Bro how?? I work there and I never heard anything about that
@@bhavnoorsaini9575 I guess his Best Buy is a better one.
Got both and love both. My Deck is for Emulation and less heavy titles and my Ally is for the AAA bangers. Both have a 1tb SSD installed in them but my Deck also has a 1tb sd card as well. Deck has way better joysticks than the Ally imo and the trackpads are A1. I lean more towards the Ally because of the power and being able to play gamepass is a plus.
The joysticks on the Ally have these dead zones that are pretty bad. They definitely leave a lot to be desired even with it set to the minimum in Armoury Crate.
So purchased a Steam Deck, been playing/using it for a little over a month. My only thing that is kinda rough to get around is not having easy access to other launchers to play certain/exclusive titles. I don’t feel entirely confident that I can sidestep and and follow closely enough to any tutorials to close the gap. Overall extremely happy/impressed with what is there outta the box! Great vid/content btw!
I'm right there with you. The Steam Deck is great right out of the box. You can tweak things to get other launchers if you have time to follow tutorials and guides. But yeah, it's a solid handheld.
Also thanks! Much appreciated! I put a lot of time into making these videos.
I did my research few weeks ago and picked SteamDeck because of the community and how iconic the device is. When you see "SteamDeck" preset mode in Cyberpunk 2077 it means something. ROG Ally in this regards still sits in the GPD/Ayaneo sandbox, trying to make Windows better for small screen paired with controller.
Agreed. It seems like the Steam Deck has set itself up as its own platform entirely. Also, yes the community is awesome. The ROG Ally has the power, but not the community.
I think it comes down to your use case. If your brand new to pc gaming and don’t need a desktop then steams all the way. But if you have an ancient pc desktop and need to upgrade anyway but your main use case is gaming then go with the ally. I plan on getting the ally because it reduces my desktop foot print and cloud applications can pick up on lack of performance.
I agree. Are you going to be getting the eGPU?
@@baldlyrudy honestly GeForce now ultimate tier is so good for me, I have zero desire to get another gpu. Im sure your up to date on GeForce now but some may not know as it streams at 1440p at 120 hz and tbh I can’t think of one time I feel like I died in battlefield 2042 because of lag. But my main goal is to consolidate down as small as possible and the ally does that for me.
Both are great! But I personally use my ally way more simply because it's easier to play my games and has better performance that being said battery life is better on SD and the software is miles ahead with it as well. I think the ally has a good chance to run Starfield at low maybe 30fps lol hopefully.
Oooof. Starfield at 30 fps on the go would be kind of nuts. Now if it could hit 60, even at low settings, I'd be stoked.
i have both, but the Rog ally is just amazing
Me to I give build quality and comfort to steam deck feels great in your hands but that’s it really the Ally just better/easier at everything else on the tech side. Valve need to sort the anti-cheat probelms out with some games and make adding launchers easier for people which is doable but a lot more complicated than it is on the Ally to set up having to add launch commands into steam and things
So between both, I’d go with the steam deck, but I’m not in any rush - it’s barely ever in stock so I’ll wait :)
For the Asus ROG ally, if you're in the USA you can buy it at the best buy at stores, if you're in the UK you can buy it at Currys.
Regardless of which one someone picks let’s all just be thankful we have these mobile PCs now. They are all really awesome.
I own both and if I had to get rid of one, it would be the rog ally. To be honest, windows works better than I expected and the joy stick as a mouse cursor is pretty accurate. Listening to spotify or watching videos is a joy. But in task manager, without any tinkering the ram usage was around 50% due to background tasks. Furthermore, the screen got extremely hot. While emulating ps3. While the heat didnt seem to cause any issues. I do worry about long term durability of the screen under this type of heat. I also experienced several issues with docking mode not detecting my monitor and other charging bricks not being fully compatible with the Ally. There is also the lack of a true sleep mode and there is no quick resume which has become almost a must have feature. This is where the deck excels. The software experience is just so much more convenient and apart of me feels like a gaming laptop would be more beneficial than an ally in uts current state
Have you emulated PS3 on Steam Deck? If so how’s the performance
@@DirtyFozzy performance will vary. Light games will be playable. But demanding titles won't be. RPCS3 loves cores and threads. I wouldn't recommend the steamdeck if PS3 emulation is a priority
What do you play, man? I'm so confused between the two. Missing out on windows doesn't scare me nearly as much as the worse screen and performance of the deck
@gadipremikudu2632 honest if you turn brightness up and use decky loader for vibrant deck, tge screens dont seem too far off. I will say the 120hz is nice, but probably why the battery life sucks on the Ally. On the deck ive been bouncing between Celeste, Skate City, and Day's Gone. Performance is good for all 3. I have no complaints, although with triple A's the fans do get loud. Performance is better on the Ally, but its not $700 better. The real benefits of the Ally come frome windows. Especially if you have games that use anticheat or have game pass. I compared Celeste and castle crashers and both experiences were great on both. Fifa 23 struggled on the Ally during cut scenes, the animation became really choppy. But gameplay was good, remained in the 60s and 70s for FPS. I definitely prefer the overall feel of the deck in handheld mode. The bumpers add a nice comfortable grip and the controller layout is much nicer feel. The screen and the speakers are nicer on the Ally. The software experience is far more smoother on the steamdeck and quick resume has become almost mandatory. But you can do more thing in windows much easier, like emulation setup and compatibility. For me I'd keep the deck for its convenience, ergonomics, and battery performance. The Ally isnt bad at all and feel if someone doesn't have a handheld, they will be happier with either
2 devices with different use cases. Both have their strengths and weaknesses. I use the ally plugged in most of the time for the extra power, and because the battery is worse than battery powered handhelds we had in the 90s.. (they should have never released it with such a bad battery) The deck i use for ease of use and smaller games on low wattage.. the ally is absolutely horrible in low wattage. Most people should buy a deck! And they will be more than happy with it.
The Steam Deck is the best for most gamers. The Ally is a beast though. You just have to deal with Windows.
After having both devices, the emulation is 100% way better on Deck than the Ally. The Ally screen looks amazing compared to the Deck. The screen is so good. The camera does not do justice I promise. If you want to play AAA more than emulation I would go with Ally. Yes, currently is has bugs and I am thinking when the other chip variant comes out Asus will fix it. Device wise I enjoyed the Deck more to be honest. If you can get over not playing COD, D2, Fortnite, Blizzard games etc. then the Deck will be fine for you. You can do all the work arounds in the world and "stream games" but nothing runs better than native. They are both good in my opinion. I wish they could make a baby lol
D4 are playable in sd 😁
I love my steam deck. I feel like it’s better quality, better seamless os. Don’t care if it’s less powerful tbh
Yup. Valve did a phenomenal job of delivering a console-like experience with PC benefits.
Your videos have been super helpful. For someone wanting to dive into the Handheld PC's. This for sure has sold me on the Steam deck OLED, in comparison to the Lenovo go, or Asus ally, All my games are on steam. And i want easy emulation. And comfort. I want that Console feeling. Not a PC feeling. Sure extra frames and stuff are nice. But as long things run smooth enough and the colors are nice. I could care less if its 30fps or 120. As long as i can enjoy it comfortably, And its pleasing. In both visuals and audio
Thank you and you're welcome! I'm glad that I could help you. Honestly, if I can help one person, then I feel like I've done a good job at providing something useful to someone in the world. Glad I could help.
Honestly both devices are good in their own ways, though I just wish the deck had a good display. I paid $360 for the 64gb steam deck and upgraded the 512gb ssd for $50. So $410 is a great deal imo. I am more of an indie gamer and I rely heavily on battery, not only that the steam deck performance on low watts crushes the ally easily.
Agreed. The difference in screens is so apparent side by side.
The low wattage performance on the Steam Deck is amazing.
The Steam Deck, just like the Nintendo Switch, is in its own lane. There's no competition in my opinion. I do believe that the ROG Ally is the best option if you want a Windows handheld. Hands down the best value you can get compared to the neverending Ayaneo releases.
WELL SAID!
Agreed. The user experience that the Steam Deck offers with the capabilities of a PC is unparalleled.
I had to buy an ROG as a Destiny 2 machine, otherwise I wouldn’t’ve. The ideal, right now anyway, is owning both
That's true.
I have both and have to say both do not perform very well in big triple A games, you have to keep your expectations in check that’s for sure but where both shine is in indie games, pixel art, that kind of thing. Both perform amazing in these scenarios but they both have different strengths in this situation.
Currently the steam deck can get lower in power usage and eek out amazing battery life, we’re talking like 8 hours while playing huntdown or something like that, but where the ally shines is the screen, games like rocket league for example are way nicer to play on ally because you can see further ahead, a lot of pixel break up at 800p on the deck makes it hard to see the other side of the pitch. The deck OS is legendary but a tweaker can make windows work and work well.😊
Agreed. Imo they both not made for newest triple A games. I prefer to play them at my Pc. But for everything else you mentioned they both just good.
Thanks a lot brudda! I just might get the ASUS Ally
You're welcome! Happy gaming. 🙌
I do have both, and I can say that the Ally as a handheld needs work. Windows 11 is not great with just analog sticks.
However, the screen is beautiful. The fact it runs a higher resolution and gets similar or better battery life is phenomenal.
There's definitely things both can improve, but a proper "Steam" OS on the ally will fix many efficiency issues and make it ultimately a best of both worlds handheld.
As someone who plays older RPGs that have heavy inventory management, those trackpads feel like a necessity lol.
Oh yeah, I could definitely see that being a necessity for older PC RPGs.
The thing I like to make use of back buttons the most is mode shift and never ever move my thumbs away from stick because with mode shift, I've binded dpad and ABXY buttons on stick already if I want to click Y I just hold right back button and push my right analog stick up, that's it easy Y for ya, try it out it's more intuitive than you first thought.
I got the Steam Deck over the Ally because:
- Trackpads (already have some games in mind where Joysticks just don't cut it)
- Sustainability: Valve seems committed to making replacement parts easy to install.
- Better D-Pad: I plan to emulate a lot of older games so I really want a good d-pad.
- Linux: While gaming on Linux is currently an inconvenience, I am really hoping that a significant market share of Linux gamers means Windows-only releases become a thing of the past. With how much bloatware Windows 11 has (and Windows 12 might have), I am hoping to eventually transition 100% to Linux
I don’t think these should be compared. If you want more premium device, you go for Asus or Aya Neo, GPD Win etc. That especially applies in Europe, where Asus is priced at 799 euros and SD starts at 349. I know ssd will need upgrading, however, steam deck can cost you around 420 with the case, which is a different price category.
I dont think that I would consider GPD or Aya Neo to be more premium just because they are more expensive. Their build quality isn’t better than the SD. Hell, I had a GPD product and the nubs on the joysticks regularly came off.
@@joker6558 I was comparing SD with Aya and the controllers are much better, not to mention the screen
@@maciejbuczkowski1056 okay, well you said GPD too though. And idk, I can’t really ever think of any of these as a premium experience when the software experience is so incredibly janky. Windows is not meant to be interacted with via a controller. Plus constant driver updates, software malfunctions, fiddling and trouble shooting, lack of good sleep mode, and literally doing things like frying SD cards, controllers breaking or no longer being registered with the device, worse battery life and factory resets, I can’t call these premium devices, even if it has a better screen.
I mean, there are phones with better screens than the iPhone, but it still isn’t a more premium device because of its shitty and buggy software.
These are just more expensive devices.
@@joker6558 so may things to unpack. Saying windows is worse than Linuksa based SteamOs is like comparing a car to the subway. Windows is not meant to be interacted via controller? I think you meant touch. Just recall what problems steam deck had at the beginning. It can only get better. I don’t think it’s janky. I have o issues with windows, of course it needs tweaking sometimes, but it’s mostly compatible with every game you throw at it. And the last remark about iPhone is just too much. Let’s not go iPhone vs this he rest route
i use the back buttons so much i love them and setting the config is so integrated and fast.
I personally want a AynNeo Geek 1S to be future proof. You can go full sized 2280 M.2. You get 800p screen in a smaller form factor with 3 USB ports. You can get it with 32GB of ram $800 which is overkill but might play a factor in newer games (Starfield) and windows updates (Win12?) down the road. You get a big 52whr battery! You also get all the hall effect hardware with so there are no upgrades left to do. The 16GB model costs $700. I feel that it's a better buy than the ROG Ally. All and all I really wish somebody made a handheld with more usb ports and a bigger battery with a Ryzen 5 7640U to stick with 6cores by 8Cu's. It's a step in the right direction for having enough power with decent battery life in 800p territory. A $360 Deck is tempting though. Just don't want to get sucked into buying upgrades and accessories which quickly add up. Don't forget that fast charging is another benefit to going with something newer than getting the steamdeck! The Deck may start at $360 but you don't have to buy much for upgrades in the Geek 1s with it as is. I here the sticks and the SD card reader are bad on the Rog Ally. Otherwise I'd buy it in a heartbeat.
You say that the battery lives are same on the both handhelds. I had watched another video showing that under the same power and settings, Rog Ally provided 10 fps extra. I wouldn't call them as their battery lives are same though.
Tbh Rog ally is the way to go
If you want half the battery life and tons of hardware issues (like running so hot i kills its own SD card reader).
I had the rog ally and besides screen, speakers and design it wasn't worth the $700 to me unless they fix the jank with windows and lower the price then yeah i'm in. my steam deck has been great to me. only games i wish could could run is Fortnite and cod that's about it, but i have a lot of back log single player games to play so its good for what i need and i love the track pads. vavle really did something with meshing the console pick up and play experience with giving you the option to play on desktop mode like a pc. SD just needs a better battery and screen (OLED) if they can. btw what game was you playing when you showed the deck off?
Same here. Best Buy was willing to put me on a list to pickup a new one after I returned my faulty unit but the initial headache of Windows installation, updates, and some of the weird quirks just made me get my full refund. It’s a shame too because I’d prefer to ability to play Xbox cloud and PC games that are available on Windows.
Which games? I showed off quite a bit and put the names on the bottom left. I may have missed one. 😬
this guy never once setup a custom control sceme and experienced the power of steam tools ,,, what a shame,,, it is the future ! ABSOLUTE FREEDOM
Nah. I have. I just don't really see the use for it for the games that I play. But I'd rather have the option to utilize something like custom controls if I ever ran into an issue with the way things are laid out on the Steam Deck. Especially with older titles that don't have traditional controller support.
I have both of them. Personally, I use the Asus Rog Ally for emulation as well as the Steam Library. Glad I won it on ebay at a auction & spent $100 less than Best Buy & in new condition!!
That's a heck of a win.
Got my deck a few days ago and its perfect for me.
Ofc there could be more but battery life to performance wise i think its right at the sweetspot.
Whatever i throw at it runs perfectly fine and some games like forza horizon 5 even surprised me with a stable 60fps with mostly medium settings.
All that on a 400€ handheld. Unbeatable imo.
I feel like people are counting out the fact that on the ROG Ally you have a demographic of gamers that use windows that also love to emulate or played dumped classic games. Not only is the Ally slightly better in performing but the variety of what you can do on it is increased as well. I have both but I find myself always grabbing my Ally. Just in my opinion though.
After having the ROG Ally for so long, I've got to get an updated video out. 😅
rog ally might be bit better but definetly not double of price better.
I went for the Ally for the freedom and flexibility of playing other Windows games on the go other than being stuck on the Steam Deck ecosystem
Stuck until you take the 10 minutes to turn some of your free space into a partiton and install windows on that. Then you can choose from both steamos and windows. Rog ally is just windows I mean you could easily install steamos too but its linux so good luck with that
its really whatever you prefer i just got the steam deck because it was cheaper i already had steam games and it was really simple to understand
Yup. If that's where all your games are at, then you might as well go with it.
Ayaneo Kun the beast is coming out soon.
I choose the steam deck im finally getting it tomorrow in the mail im totally excited i got the 512gb model for 519$ on sale the sale ends today on steam.and i love steam games indie games and triple Aaa games i also love to tinker so putting windows on the steam deck and adding additional games will not be that hard for me either and i cant wait to play all my old nostalgic games too.
Steam Deck user here, buddy of mine got an Ally and after helping him setup EmuDeck on it, I have my opinions on this device. It’s a little finicky to work with. This is because of the windows OS if you’re ok with trying to figure out how tab out and not to fat finger everything then I don’t see why not get this device. It’s a cool device, I can tell the screen is better but a lot harder to navigate
I’m guessing most consumers know how to work around the finicky part of the Ally. But I can see a situation we’re a parent and child walk in BestBuy and the kid wants an Ally and both the parent or the child don’t know what they’re doing I can see frustration there. But if they were to have a steam deck it would be a less of a pain to learn.
These are still little portable computers I don’t some people that aren’t familiar in the space know that
But I recommend either or.
My buddy got the Ally simply to fornite on it for some reason he likes to play hand held. He was using a switch before the Ally.
Running Fornite on Steam deck again it is possible but it’s just another work around you have to deal with.
After reading some comments forgot to add yes
I don’t like that the Ally doesn’t have track pads
Navigating windows mouse with a joystick or touch screen is VERY finicky that’s my only con
Still good device but only flaw
Yeah. I could see problems having someone that isn't 100% into PC gaming getting this. Even someone that's familiar with Windows might have problems with the Ally. The Steam Deck's user experience is just so close to being seamless.
@@Cakebattered Interesting, I can see that. My buddy got use to navigating the system with the joysticks after some use. Personally I like the trackpads, I would love an Ally with some trackpads added to it
Just dock it and bluetooth a keyboard/mouse. Perform any functions you need to to tweak it ready. After its ready you undock it.
@@Cakebattered It isn't steam desktop operating mode it's Linux
Nice video. I'm a steam deck owner and I don't think another hand held is better
Thanks! Yeah. There are plenty of options out there and the Steam Deck hits a sweet spot in terms of power vs price.
tbf emudeck runs pretty great on the ayaneo pro 2021. not as easy as on steam deck, but waaaaay better, than a year ago
i got the steam deck and dual boot windows with a 1tb hard drive... destiny 2 runs amazing so im good for now 😊
Will it run 60fps though? Curious. Because im leaning ally. I dont own a lot of steam games. Lots or Xbox ones though digitally.
How's Destiny running on it? I'm curious as well.
@@Herringboner it runs at 50-60 fps... destiny 2 is really good on it.. stays smooth with no stutters... you got to install windows on the steam deck to run it tho. so dual booting is a must but its super easy. mine is set up so it always boots in the last used OS
@@baldlyrudy its damn near perfect imho... you need to install windows tho.. i also found diablo 4 to run better on windows then steam os on the steam deck
@@baldlyrudy you should dual boot windows on the steam deck and then compare them side by side again! ive been looking for a video like that and havent found it yet
Emudeck has a version for windows that is currently in beta and is available for patreon supporters.
Nice! I'll check that out.
Thanks steam deck is the best choice
You didn’t mention how the ALLY metales way less noise
Ooo. Yeah. You're right. My bad.
@@baldlyrudy you’re good, love your videos , forgive the misspelling 🤣
Thanks! And no worries. Autocorrect always gets me. 🤣
Very tempted to buy steam deck but I'll miss out on Gamepass access😢
There's a way to get xCloud on there through Linux. It's a long process, but doable.
Great video
Thanks! Much appreciated! 🙌
I only play the sims 4 most of the time, does it run on steam deck by using ea app?
I've been researching for awhile now and I'm kind of on the fence. Apart of me likes the gamepass option on the rog ally but I have an xbox already and I feel like it might be kind for redundant. I also am not jazzed about it being a windows based computer because I honestly hate windows and the xbox will be the only windows product in my home. Steam deck on the other hand seems like its more solidly built and more TLC was put into making the product to make it an original experience and it seems that it has a very loyal following but i also have no familiarity with the Steam platform. I can't decide. Ive read some not so favorable reviews of the ally and then I've read really good ones but its availability is much easier
Personally, I've been reaching for my Steam Deck more and more despite having the ROG Ally. Maybe the Legion Go will be different, but I doubt it. The ecosystem/community is just so dang good on the Steam Deck.
You can play all the steam games on the Ally.
Can someone who own both give a some comparison of their battery life in high demanding game and low demanding ones? I can’t seem to find a detailed video around
What would you consider a high demanding game? Would Baldur's Gate 3 be high enough?
SUBBED bc we bald/bearded tech creators gotta stick together 👨🏻🦲🧔♂️ lol, great vid friend
Much appreciated! 🙌
Steamdeck always in my heart🥰
Yes bro steamdeck is special 🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🇲🇨
I have an ally and the only reason I got it was for windows . Granted I want to go down to windows 10 but I use my ally to diagnose BMWS. . ISTA runs on windows but I prefer windows 10 over 11
Battery life the same? Bullshit. If you absolutely max out the Ally it can kill itself in 45 minutes, whereas maxing out the Deck the fastest you can kill it is maybe 1:20 or 1:30. The absolute longest you're going to get from the ally at the lowest it goes while actually playing a game is maybe 5 hours. The Deck can have games go up to 8. Everything inbetween lines up with that. The Ally is consistently getting about half the battery life, but every reviewer suggests 'it's pretty much the same'. No, it's not.
My bad for not adding this into the video. When I talk about battery life, the Ally is set to 15w because the Steam Deck can't hit 25w. Even with disabling the limit, most people don't recommend going higher than 20w with the Steam Deck.
You can max out the Ally at a higher wattage (25w) than the Steam Deck. Of course it'll devour more battery. At 15w TDP, its similar performance for both. I'm sure if the Steam Deck could hit 25w TDP out of the box, it would have similar battery life as an Ally set to 25w TDP.
@@baldlyrudy When the the claims of both "the Ally has more graphical horsepower" and "the Ally has the same battery life as the Deck" are made without that clarifying statement it becomes a lie.
I have an honest question: How did you come about that Ally? Did you purchase it?
Oh yeah. I bought it with my own money. I'd be surprised if ASUS even knew a channel my size existed.
@@baldlyrudy Well thanks for making the video. I appreciate content like this.
You're welcome. 👍
Have you had any issues with the watts spiking? Mine had major FPS drop, then the wattage spiked above 40 while playing Diablo 4 on 720, med settings
I haven't run into that yet. I haven't played Diablo 4. Personally not a fan of the series.
I use windows on my steam deck, best experience as I want "all" my games to work
Has Windows been running well on the Steam Deck? Last I checked (last year) it wasn't running well at all.
@@baldlyrudy I've not noticed any issues
Honestly it came down to one game i love and that is destiny 2.
The joysticks on my ally feel like a $30 after glow controller it's literally the only real issue I have with it especially since it was $700
The dead zones are really what throw me off on it. I mentioned it in my original review and I hoped that ASUS would have fixed it with a patch by now.
Steamdeck with new proton version supports lots of anti cheats now. Meaning you now can play games like smite and other mmos :) , already tried it. Its awesome
Sweet. Is it Proton Experimental or a version that needs to be installed in Desktop Mode?
Does proton update automatically?
Yeah.
I just wish it would work with dang cods anticheat
I rarely got 1 hour out of my ally. Not sure how you getting those number.
By not playing AAA 3D titles.
Im thinking of maybe trying steam deck as me laptop going out i think as all it do is flicker even without power cord in
It's definitely a good option.
The rog ally is amazing, I bought it and now I sold my steam deck.
It definitely depends on what you want out of the device.
@@baldlyrudy rog ally has been my favorite handheld despite owning majority of others.
I have my gaming pc for home and my rog for work.
The Ally is way better of a system, imo.
I did ton of research on both of these devices
I wanted to have a handheld pc ..not entirely for gaming but some work as well.. because in 2 months I'll be in Australia and 3 months later travel again..and finally back in aus for good..but i ended up realizing rog ally cost almost around 1400$ aud alone and with dock mouse and keyboard and if storage upgrade will cost more than 1500$ aud..at that point i thought.. wait i can just build a decent pc with that budget and it will be more stable and capable than rog ally...so what i need is something within a handheld rage if you know what i mean ..so steam deck isn't really cheap but it's almost 500$ aud less..and again since i wasn't planning on getting this device entirely for gaming im fine as long as it can function as a pc and runs my softwares..so while i use steam deck I'll build a pc after and have both.
Now this doesn't mean rog ally for it's price isn't good ..for those who really don't want a bulky pc and tired of not be able to play their latest games on the go and it's really important and something they always wished for ... then it's great.. just not for me
Wow. That's a huge price difference. In the US they're closer in price.
@@baldlyrudy i forgot to mention i was comparing to the steam deck 64gb as you explained it's smarter to upgrade the storage later than getting 512gb..but even if you go for the 512gb steam deck it's still 300$ aud less
My steam deck runs Callisto protocol better than my old Xbox one s can and that’s all I have to say
I would hope so, given the tech inside of the Steam Deck.
who say steam deck isnt available??
Anyone that lives outside of the countries that can get them.
steam deck will fail for sure. they are heavily undercut by ROG ally , Aya Neo, OneX as their product is hard to find outside USA. Here in Asia , ROG ally is much cheaper at $700, SteamDeck price is $1000 😡
That's definitely one of the biggest problems with the Steam Deck. Even a year after launch, it's still difficult to find in some areas in the world.
Not to excuse Valve for this, but Valve just doesn't have the distribution pipeline for the Steam Deck established in some countries. Valve is more of a software company than a hardware one. In Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and Hong Kong, Valve had to partner with Komodo. ASUS, for example, has all of the logistics for that figured out, since they're a hardware company.
That being said, Steam Deck sales seem pretty strong based on the numbers that Valve has shared so far. Either way, more competition is always better for the consumer.
@@baldlyrudy i'll bet ROG Ally 2 is already confirmed to fix the existing issues on gen 1 hardware. as Asus has yearly iteration of their ROG phone and Laptop. another is if Valve wont step up their game. Nintendo Switch 2 if true is sure to gobble their potential buyers next year.
@Trash67890 agreed on the ROG Ally 2 bit. That's just their MO when it comes to pushing hardware.
Nintendo fans and Steam Deck fans may have some overlap, but Valve and Nintendo target two completely different audiences.
Ally no debate for me
I get that.
No problem since day one pre order unit
👍
both
I hot mine open box for 650
W
I dont understand wat you talk about so watch one fun i dont care i can play on 420p
This is such a piece of junk. Nothing works. Everything needs to be configured. Apps are slow and buggy. Awful experience. Don’t spend your money on it.
Which one?
@@baldlyrudy oh, my bad, the Ally. I had such a terrible experience. Nothing would work properly and I’m not down to wait for the company to release updates. It was way too expensive for it not to work well out of the box. Now I’m waiting on my Steam Deck to arrive.
Ally all day
Rog wins low dif
I have the steam deck and it sucks, I use windows on it and can't use the controlls since valve is such dumb butts. so I will have my asus today. I'll be selling off steam its junk in my books
Its def more then a minimal upgrade in fps. Steamdeck basically cannot play starfield without FSR 50% scaling. ALLY 720 low no fsr. Looks way better. I have both btw. Steamdeck is much easier to use as far as being optimized.
Oh cool, you got a retroachievements profile too! Would you mind sharing your profile with me so I can send you a friend request?
I own both,
Steam deck has an easier and better UI, and battery life is better
Ally ROG: has amazing picture quality and fps is better - battery sucks tho
summary of this comparison?
Steam has a great experience and more stable OS.
ASUS ROG Ally, albeit more powerful, is buggy and janky (mainly because of Windows.)
@@baldlyrudy thanks!!
No worries.
Hey man, I'm a video editor, just messaged you on ig :)
Check that out please :)