However, these are more ASUS consoles than Microsoft consoles.
Three years ago, Valve exploded onto the portable hybrid PC console market with its Steam Deck, which has been a resounding success ever since. The results are such that many other firms have followed in the footsteps of Gabe Newell's company, offering portable machines in their turn. We've seen products from ASUS, Lenovo, MSI and Zotac, to name but a few of the best-known manufacturers, while a number of lesser-known Chinese companies have also got in on the act.
The first official photos of the ROG Xbox Ally X © Microsoft
While the Steam Deck is still THE reference today, ASUS is undoubtedly one of the most successful brands with its various versions of the ROG Ally, a model that may be more expensive than Valve's machine, but which boasts numerous assets and runs on Microsoft's Windows 11 operating system. ASUS's success no doubt also explains Microsoft's choice, precisely at a time when the father of Xbox consoles was expected to enter the market a little earlier. For months now, rumors have been circulating about the possibility of a portable Xbox, with nothing to show for it.
But now, at an event organized a few days ago - the Xbox Games Showcase - Microsoft has finally lifted the veil on this machine, which is in fact twofold, designed in partnership with ASUS and AMD. The two machines will be called ROG Xbox Ally and ROG Xbox Ally X, to reflect the difference in performance/power between them. The former will feature only a small AMD Ryzen Z2 A processor (4 Zen 2 CPU cores, 8 RDNA 2 GPU cores), 16 GB LPDDR5X-6400 RAM and a 512 GB SSD. The second, on the other hand, is expected to be very strong, with its AMD Ryzen AI Z2 Extreme (8 Zen 5 CPU cores, 16 RDNA 3.5 GPU cores), 24 GB LPDDR5X-8000 RAM and 1 TB SSD.
The software interface is a synthesis of Windows 11 and Xbox software © Microsoft
Both consoles will feature a 7" diagonal IPS-only screen, which is significantly less than that of the Steam Deck OLED (7.4", OLED), but the chassis promises a particularly studied ergonomic design, which is somewhat reminiscent of the design of Xbox controllers. The consoles will feature an impressive 60 Wh battery for the smaller machine and 80 Wh for the larger one, but it's at the software level that the changes are most interesting. ASUS has set aside its Armoury Crate interface to let Microsoft design a special graphics overlay for Windows 11.
A graphical overlay that won't prevent access to the Windows 11 desktop © Microsoft
An original software overhaul, formerly codenamed Project Bayside, with a focus on gamers. The idea, of course, is to put gaming at the heart of the system by offering a kind of synthesis of the Xbox interface and that of Windows 11. In fact, as with the Steam Deck, it's still possible to access the system's desktop via a simple toggle to enjoy a true Windows 11 PC. Of course, we'll have to wait and see how practical this overlay really is, and whether Windows 11 proves too cumbersome. For the moment, we have no exact release date for consoles that will arrive before the end of 2025.
