‘Inconceivable even three years ago’: hands-on with Xbox’s flashy new handheld console

The new ROG Xbox Ally handheld games machines will be available at the end of the year – here’s what it’s like to play on oneJust a few days after Nintendo finally released its follow-up to the Switch, Microsoft has announced its own long-rumoured handheld console: the Xbox Ally. This is a very big deal, not just because it marks the first time Xbox has co-branded a console (with high-end PC specialists Republic of Gamers), but because it’s packing top-of-the-line hardware under its hood. I played the Xbox Ally X, one of two models coming before Christmas, a few hours after they were revealed during 8 June’s Xbox Showcase, and can easily see it becoming a serious competitor for both the Switch 2 and Valve’s Steam Deck.The Xbox Ally springs from the coupling of four different tech firms: Windows, Xbox, AMD and Asus, and it’s definitely their golden child. Both the Xbox Ally and Ally X models have 7-inch 1080p touchscreens, with 16GB of RAM in the Ally and 24GB of RAM in the Ally X, and 512GB SSD storage and 1TB, respectively. Each has Ryzen Z2 chips, though Xbox Ally X has the AI Z2 chip, which integrates an AI processor directly into the silicon. As for what that actually means for players, Microsoft’s head of gaming devices, Roanne Sones, said during a presentation that players will be able to “take advantage of AI experiences without having to compromise anything on the GPU”. The devices both run Windows, but the team has modified it for optimal gaming. Continue reading...

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