Jacob Roach / Digital Trends
Last yr , I wrote about how Iwent back to my Steam Deckafter using the ROG Ally for several months . Asus ’ twist is a substantial competitor ( read ourAsus ROG Ally reviewto see why ) , but there are a handful of aspects of the Steam Deck that make it the proper handheld for me . That could change with the ROG Ally 2 , however .
Rumor has it that Asus is gear up to release anupdated version of the ROG Allyfor 2024 . Even if this is n’t an entirely Modern handheld , it ’s voiceless to conceive of Asus will exit the existence ofhandheld gaming PCsany clip soon . And if it create a few key changes to the next iteration of the ROG Ally , I might finally retire my Steam Deck for good .
Jacob Roach / Digital Trends
No Windows lock screen
By far , my boastful frustration with the original ROG Ally is the Windows ringlet screen . Asus smoothed out the cognitive operation of lumber into Windows by place a fingerprint reader in the king clitoris , but being meet with the lock chamber covert and having to sign in each time I boot up the gimmick completely kills the handheld gambling experience .
It sounds lowly , and to a grade it is , but the deficiency of a lock chamber screen on my Steam Deck is one of the main reasons I still use it . I touch on the power button , and I ’m immediately at my game . I do n’t need to sign on in and wait on Windows to launch slews of background project before I can get into a game I want to diddle .
Asus can do this , too . It ’s possible — though avowedly hard — to bypass the lock silver screen in Windows 11 . Moreover , Xbox was a close partner for the ROG Ally . With those kind of association to Microsoft , I obtain it hard to ideate there is n’t a world where some form of bypass can be enabled . You should be capable to beak up the machine , press the power clit , and be at your library .
A proper sleep mode
This works paw - in - hand with bypassing the Windows lock chamber screen . A crowing pointedness of contention on the ROG Ally is the fact that it does n’t have any variety of sleep mode . you may put the twist to sleep , but there ’s no warrantee that your game will still be working when you wake it back up . On the Steam Deck , you’re able to tap the baron button , suspend your game , and clean up flop where you left off .
It ’s slenderly pestering having to in good order back out and quit a game when you ’re done playing , but not a dealbreaker . The main reason I want a rest modality is for game where that ’s not potential — games with limited checkpoint systems or delivery options . There are plenty of berth where I need to put down my Steam Deck for a few minutes to do something else before resuming my plot . And with the current ROG Ally , I just have to will my game run and go for the equipment does n’t put itself to sleep .
In paleness to Asus , I ’m not indisputable this is something that ’s potential with Windows . There are several different sleep states in Windows , and they ’re already batty as is . Even on a desktop without a game run for , sleep Department of State do n’t always knead how they should . Still , it ’s a magnanimous thing separating the Steam Deck and ROG Ally for me .
A verification system
Valve ’s Deck Verified program is far from perfect , but it ’s still a good signpost for the handheld . At the very least , it gives you an idea if a game will run on the Steam Deck , and this type of organization is completely scatty from the ROG Ally . I ’d contend that it ’s even more important on Asus ’ equipment considering you may install and play virtually any game .
The problem is that you have no idea about how your games will run . You might be able-bodied to come up a YouTube video or Reddit thread about how a particular secret plan performs , but if you ca n’t , you ’ll just have to add the secret plan and see out on your own . That could mean clear out place , waiting for an install to finish , and playing the game for five hour before realizing it ’s too demanding .
With the ROG Ally 2 , I would love to see some sort of performance estimation in Armoury Crate . I ’m not asking for ne plus ultra , but even a universal estimate of how a game will work would go a long fashion . It should n’t be terribly difficult to do , either . Asus can extract in system essential metadata and equate that with the chip inside , coming away with a few different execution tiers .
A more robust overlay
The Armoury Crate utility program for the ROG Ally is powerful — and it expect even more impressive stacked up against devices like theLenovo Legion Go — but it ’s far from perfect . One area that ’s clean is the overlay . you may add a modified number of functions to the overlay , pull it up while in games , and tweak whatever options you have there . Still , I ’d like to see Asus go further .
With the Steam Deck , you’re able to do nigh everything through the two overlays available . If you lie with where to reckon , you never require to pop into the setting . With the ROG Ally , you have access tosomeoptions , and you ’re complimentary to customize what those options are , but you ’ll still need to poke around Armoury Crate to access everything the equipment is capable of .
I ’m sure as shooting redesigning Armoury Crate is mellow on Asus ’ list of priorities for the ROG Ally 2 now that it has stabilized performance through several updates . A most racy overlay with dense options available is unquestionably something I ’d care to see if that redesign is underway .
A functioning microSD card
If there ’s anything Asus is definitely plump to fix with the next ROG Ally , it ’s the microSD card slot . A firestorm arrange off across the net when referee discover that excess heat couldessentially fry your microSD cardwhile it was in the ROG Ally . That ’s no near , especially considering it ’s the primary way most people will boom their storage .
Asus has addressed the problem with BIOS update that reportedly cut heating plant , but this is a strong-arm design defect more than anything . The next ROG Ally require to have a function microSD card expansion slot , and I reckon that ’s the first thing Asus will tackle when design the next iteration of the handheld .
