Have you been longingly watching Asus ROG Ally review videos? Getting lost in benchmark deep dives and itching to whip out your credit card? Before you do that, there are a few things you need to know about the Asus handheld gaming machine.

You can read my longer form take on the console here. But if you have some burning questions about the Ally, then read on.

Is it better than the Steam Deck?

Let’s get straight into it. The short answer is: yes, on paper. The Steam Deck has a custom AMD “Van Gogh” chip to the Ally’s more powerful AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme. The Ally has a 1080p display to the Deck’s 800p, with a 120Hz refresh rate to the Deck’s 60Hz. That means it can run more demanding games smoothly. As I said in my review:

"So for Gotham Knights, on battery turbo mode, I was hitting 55fps on medium settings consistently at 1080p. Pushing the Ally further I tried the highest settings at 1080p, 120Hz on 30w turbo mode (plugged in) and I hit 30fps, but it will dip below in action areas.

"Performance mode at 720p comfortably hit 30fps on the high settings, but push it to 1080p and you will get something closer to what you see on Valve’s device. The Steam Deck will hover around 30fps at medium settings (and frequently dip below in action areas). If you ask for much more the fan will angrily huff and it visually turns into a flipbook animation."

There are improvements all across the device. It’s lighter, quieter, cooler and smaller than the Steam Deck. The battery charges faster and the 1080p display, with a 120Hz refresh rate, is amazing. I’m not entirely sure how Asus packed all of this into a portable but they should be commended for pushing the technology forward. There aren’t any trackpads, so some RTS and FPS gamers who don’t typically use gamepads might not like the transition. Windows is also a bit of a pain, but more on that later.

How’s the battery life?

The Steam Deck is better at power management. It can run less demanding games at a lower wattage, which means it can be played for hours. The most I’ve ever got is between four and five hours, but I have seen other reviewers claim they've eked out nine hours of battery life from the Steam Deck. The Ally, with all of that power, will run out of juice quickly. Even with less demanding games at a lower wattage, it doesn’t quite match up to the Deck’s long lasting abilities. I trust the Steam Deck when I’m travelling, less so the Ally. The upside is that it does charge much faster.

What’s the competition like?

Before the ROG Ally launched there were two giant questions that needed to be answered: battery life and price. The answer to both would indicate if Asus was a competitor with the Steam Deck, or it would join the ranks of other, vastly more expensive, handheld gaming PCs. Obviously we know the price now and it is competitive at $699.99 for the top model. The main rival device is the Steam Deck, which comes in at $649 for the top unit (it was also briefly on sale for $584.10 recently). A key difference here is that the cheapest Steam Deck has the same internals and costs $399. Other devices like the upcoming Ayaneo 2S and OneXPlayer 2 are similarly impressive in terms of tech specs, but can cost up to $1000. Stay tuned for me review of the former.

Are there any compatibility issues?

If there are, I haven't experienced them yet. Windows is your friend here, any games that run on your PC will run on the Ally (within its specification limit). The Steam Deck runs on Linux and uses the Proton compatibility layer to run Windows apps and games. Valve has a verification system for games that run properly, but the only compatibility issue I have run into is playing the old Arkham games. The Ally has another major advantage over the Steam Deck in that it can easily run other platforms like Xbox Game Pass, the Epic Game store and, of course, Steam. If there's any way you play games on your PC, you can do the same the Ally.

When I got my Steam Deck I spent an afternoon trying to get my years-old Windows games over to the Valve device. After trying and failing to use a combination of Steam Link and UWPhook, I ended up buying the games again on Steam. If I’d had the Ally I would’ve saved that money and a couple hours of frustration.

How is Windows on a handheld?

If you play PC games on your desktop you will feel at home with the Ally. All of the familiar Windows quirks are present, including games randomly closing, or prompts interrupting your gaming session. It’s a full Windows experience so it can feel a bit cramped when you’re traversing through settings to make changes. If you want a simplified, proper console experience then the Steam Deck wins hands down with its SteamOS software that has been developed for the device. Asus' Armoury Crate acts as the central hub for tweaking settings and as a launcher for games and platforms. Just like SteamOS, I imagine this will improve over time, but it’s a much more DIY experience right now.

Are there any deals available?

Not right now. As the Ally competes with the Steam Deck, and any other challenger that might appear this year, we’ll see some competitive pricing. But for now you’re going to have to pay full price. Valve briefly discounted the Steam Deck in March and I'm sure it will do so again.

Why shouldn’t I buy it?

Don’t pick up the Ally if you want a full console experience. If you’re not prepared to spend a lot of time tinkering with settings, or battling with whatever mood Windows is in that day, don't bother. If you’re on a budget, Valve’s cheapest Steam Deck costs a mere $399, with the exact same specifications as the top model. Compared to the Ally’s $699.99, that’s a big price difference. There is another, cheaper, Ryzen Z1 model coming out later ths year but I haven't reviewed it. The battery life is also highly suspect, as I said in my review I’m not entirely convinced by the Ally’s portability.

Why should I buy it?

The Ally is smaller, lighter, quieter, cooler and faster. It’s frankly incredible what it can do with demanding games in such a small device. If you want the absolute best performance, at a reasonable price, the Ally is a no brainer. Just make sure you’re near a power socket.

More on Forbes

Google’s Pixel 7a Has Found The Perfect Balance

Motorola Razr 2023 Gets New Update Policy, But Still Can’t Beat Samsung