ASUS lowers XBOX Ally (Z2A) price by $100
The budget ASUS ROG Xbox Ally handheld with Ryzen Z2 A is now down to $489.99 at Amazon in the US, with Best Buy listing it for $499.99. That is more than $100 below its $599.99 MSRP and far below the $999.99 ROG Xbox Ally X. When preorders opened for both models ahead of the October 16 launch in over 30 regions, the $599 tag for the Z2 A model already looked hard to justify next to the Steam Deck OLED, so a fast price correction like this felt inevitable.
The standard ROG Xbox Ally ships with AMD’s Ryzen Z2 A APU , a 4 core, 8 thread Zen 2 chip with 8 RDNA 2 compute units and support for LPDDR5-6400 memory. It is effectively the same class of APU as in the Steam Deck but tuned for a 6 to 20 W TDP range. The handheld includes 16 GB of LPDDR5 memory, a user-upgradeable 512 GB PCIe 4.0 M.2 2280 SSD and a 60 Wh battery, cooled by ASUS Zero Gravity thermal system to maintain performance regardless of device orientation.
The higher tier ROG Xbox Ally X targets a different buyer. It uses the Ryzen Z2 Extreme, an 8 core, 16 thread Zen 5 processor with 16 RDNA 3.5 graphics cores, LPDDR5X-8000 memory support and a wider 15 to 35 W TDP range. This model adds a dedicated NPU for Ryzen AI features such as Automatic Super Resolution, and ships with 24 GB RAM, a 1 TB SSD and an 80 Wh battery. Official pricing for the entry Xbox Ally was set at $599 in the US, 599 euro in Europe and 499 pounds in the UK.
ROG Xbox Ally, Source: ASUS
Both Xbox Ally systems are tied to Microsoft’s new Xbox Handheld Compatibility Program, which marks games as Handheld Optimized or Mostly Compatible and attaches Windows Performance Fit badges to set expectations.
ASUS boots the Ally straight into the Xbox Full Screen Experience on top of Windows 11, while still allowing access to Steam, Epic and other launchers. The 7 inch 1080p IPS touchscreen offers a 120 Hz refresh rate with FreeSync Premium, and owners can lean on cloud gaming over Wi-Fi 6E or even install SteamOS if they prefer Valve’s interface.
At $489.99, the Ryzen Z2 A model now feels much closer to the price bracket where that tradeoff against a Steam Deck OLED starts to make sense.
| ROG XBOX Ally | ||
|---|---|---|
| VideoCardz.com | ROG Xbox Ally | ROG Xbox Ally X |
| Picture |  |  |
| Operating System | Windows 11 Home | Windows 11 Home |
| Processor | AMD Ryzen Z2 A Processor 4C/8T (Zen2) & 8CU (RDNA2) | AMD Ryzen AI Z2 Extreme Processor 8C/16T (Zen5/c) & 16CU (RDNA3.5) |
| Memory | 16GB LPDDR5X-6400 | 24GB LPDDR5X-8000 |
| Storage | 512GB M.2 2280 SSD for easier upgrade | 1TB M.2 2280 SSD for easier upgrade |
| Display | 7″ FHD (1080p) IPS, 500 nits, 16:9 120Hz refresh rate FreeSync Premium Corning Gorilla Glass Victus + DXC Anti-Reflection | 7″ FHD (1080p) IPS, 500 nits, 16:9 120Hz refresh rate FreeSync Premium Corning Gorilla Glass Victus + DXC Anti-Reflection |
| I/O Ports | 2x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C with DisplayPort™ 2.1 / Power Delivery 3.0 | 1x USB4 Type-C with DisplayPort™ 2.1 / Power Delivery 3.0, Thunderbolt™ 4 compatible |
| 1x UHS-II microSD card reader (supports SD, SDXC and SDHC) | 1x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C with DisplayPort™ 2.1 / Power Delivery 3.0 | |
| 1x 3.5mm Combo Audio Jack | 1x UHS-II microSD card reader (supports SD, SDXC and SDHC; UHS-I with DDR200 mode) | |
| 1x 3.5mm Combo Audio Jack | ||
| Network and Communication | Wi-Fi 6E (2 x 2) + Bluetooth 5.4 | Wi-Fi 6E (2 x 2) + Bluetooth 5.4 |
| Dimensions | 290.8*121.5*50.7mm | 290.8*121.5*50.7mm |
| 670g | 715g | |
| Battery | 60Wh | 80Wh |
| Included | ROG Xbox Ally 65W charger Stand | ROG Xbox Ally X 65W charger Stand |
| MSRP | $599 /€599 / £499 | $999 / €899 / £799 |
Source: Amazon
