Two new Xbox handhelds are coming later this year

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Microsoft, makers of Xbox, have officially unveiled their portable gaming devices. If you weren’t privy to the earlier leaks, these announcements could catch you off guard.

At the Xbox Games Showcase 2025, Microsoft unveiled two new gaming handhelds in collaboration with Asus: The ROG Xbox Ally and the ROG Xbox Ally X. These devices are essentially rebranded and improved versions of the successor to the Asus ROG Ally handheld. There will be two models available, one offering lower power and the other providing more power.

Both devices come equipped with a 7-inch 1080p IPS display, capable of refresh rates as high as 120Hz, along with AMD Ryzen Z2 processors. The ROG Xbox Ally sports an AMD Ryzen Z2 A processor, whereas the ROG Xbox Ally X boasts the more potent Ryzen AI Z2 Extreme processor and 24GB of RAM, a significant increase from the 16GB found in the standard model.

Here are the full specs of each, courtesy of Microsoft: 

Microsoft has announced adjustments to Windows 11, tailoring it better for handheld gaming devices. These changes include a revamped Xbox Game Bar, game libraries consolidated within the Xbox app, and a gaming mode that minimizes background tasks to maximize resources for games. This news is likely to be well-received by PC gamers, particularly those using handheld devices such as the ROG Ally or Lenovo Legion Go, who have been concerned about Windows’ impact on performance in recent times. It remains unclear if these improvements will extend to other Windows 11 devices, but many are hoping they do.

It’s important to mention that while these devices are called handhelds, they won’t support playing Xbox console games directly. Instead, any games available on Windows can be played natively to some extent. However, games not available on Windows, such as all backward compatible games, will require streaming from a console or the cloud for playability.

As of now, no particular launch date for the devices has been disclosed, but Microsoft has confirmed they’ll be available in selected regions such as the US, Canada, UK, and Australia during this holiday season. Further markets will follow suit at a later time. Regarding the cost, Microsoft hasn’t shared the figures just yet, with the information expected to be revealed “within the next few months.” Keep in mind that these devices might turn out to be rather expensive.

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2025-06-09 00:46