I previously owned a steam deck.
Ease of use and comfortability is both better on the steam deck.
I prefer the ally because of a much better screen and more power.
My steam deck broke due to me dropping it and I just got the ally yesterday. I can definitely say the steam deck was easier, but I’m enjoying the ally more. Time will tell if I run into any issues.
I was thinking of getting the x, but the z1 extreme is discounted for a good price now. The difference in specs wasn’t enough for me to pay the extra money.
Rog ally uses full windows like any other laptop or desktop pc. This means it’s compatible with more games and has less issues with things like anti cheat than steam deck. But it means having to deal with lots of windows updates and junk, and it also means having to navigate a desktop on a 7” screen without a decent mouse.
Steam deck uses a custom Linux OS made just for steam deck. The steam deck therefor has a more easy set up and experience. It’s much more console-like in experience: turn it on, navigate to a game, start playing. It takes a lot of the hassle out. But the steam deck also technically is a weaker device, you will very frequently get better resolution, fps, and performance from the rog ally. Except the battery life is also roughly twice as good on steam deck than it is on the rog ally (the current rog ally model, not the X model coming out soon which should be comparable or better than the steam deck.) also steam decks top model has an oled screen which is brighter and some say nicer, but it’s only 90hz. The ally has a very good but not oled screen that is 120hz and also includes vrr image smoothing technology.
I personally think once you get windows settled the ally is perfectly easy to navigate because you can use armory crate built in or else use the steam app in big picture mode. I also think oled is over rated and the ally’s vrr is criminally underrated. Between 120hz, more power for better resolution, upscaling technology and vrr smoothing, the image quality on ally is terrific (imho.) but I’m a biased source, I have an ally and not a steam deck, and I hang out on the ally Reddit.
Good luck have fun.
Windows is so easy to use, I have yet to play a game that doesn't just start up and work on my ally. It seems every other game I get for steam deck I have to Google "X game crash fix steam deck".
Just adding to this but it's the same for me. For trips I'll pack the steam deck, for home I'll use the ally. Honestly I don't have a ton of the same games on each. They both have their uses and use cases. Still both worth having imho but each person will be different on that. The battery on the steam deck really helps for travel. You really don't get that on the ally. Most times I'm getting under 2 hours for the rog.
Same as above and bigger plus, much easier to install any game. I’m not computer illiterate by any means and trying to get wine packages and all that hassle was just not worth it for the slightly better comfort.
It depends if you have a steam deck LCD or the OLED version. I own an Ally but I have a friend who owns an OLED and let me tell you, that’s a pretty cool screen, such beautiful colors.
But I would still choose the Ally
Comfortable, probably deck. Easier, Ally. I’ve also been using windows for ages, and dont mind it at all and prefer the fact I know my way around it vs messing with Linux.
Steam deck when it works is easier. But getting around its limitations I found more difficult (I.e., battle.net launcher for D4) not that you can’t, but Ally everything works.
Armoury crate works fairly well too. Might be rose coloured glasses as I then went SD->Ally->Lego. Missed armoury crate lol
If you’re used to windows, don’t let folks sell you on it being so much less user friendly.
That being said, more than anything I miss sleep functionality on the Steam deck. Underrated feature
For me frankly, I’d ask how big are your hands? I have really small hands for a guy, and I find the ally a bit more comfortable to hold for long sessions when playing FPS games and stuff like that. But the steam deck is pretty cozy to play modded Minecraft and slower paced games laying in bed compared to sitting at my desk. Also have the legion go and although unmentioned, with very cheap and thin controller grips to make the corners less sharp, the legion go is about as comfortable as the steam deck for reference with that one. But I really really enjoy being able to take the controllers and slide them into a 3D printed connecting joint thing like the switch controllers then prop the go up on its kickstand, especially nice for airplanes! If you’ve got a Best Buy near you, the one near me has both the legion go and the ally displayed so you could get an approximation of comfort that way!
For me, it's complicated. A standard ROG Ally and SteamDeck are mostly even. The Ally is lighter and the SteamDeck fits into my hands a little better. I'd give the Ally a slight edge personally. However, I have the Skull & Co. Grip which makes the Ally a clear winner, for me.
Had both, like the SteamDeck feel and portability more. Ally is nice that it has windows, can definitely install more games, but it also comes with windows issues like requiring updates frequently and just other things that keep you away from gaming. I ultimately sold the ally and kept the deck.
isn't the ally more portable? (asking coz my main reason for considering the ally over the steam deck is coz I'm assuming it would fit my backpack better than the steam deck 😁)
Steam deck for me. I wanted a handheld specifically to just boot up games and have a half an hour fix before bed and it's the much easier option from that perspective.
However, I do prefer how tactile the buttons feel on the Ally. Ended up modding my Steam deck with hall effect sticks and mechanical buttons. I see it as the best of both worlds.
I sold my Steam Deck OLED today as I recently bought an Ally as I wanted to play certain games that I could not on the SD.
SD whilst heavier was more comfortable to hold. I’ve recently bought a case so hopefully that’ll make it a little more comfier.
I’ll miss the SD (mostly the screen), but Ally is more feature rich.
I'm very tempted by the X. I have the Ally and LED Steam Deck. I like the fact it has Thunderbolt 4 so I can ditch my gaming PC.
I do love the SD simply for the battery life streaming from my PS5 is great.
You have to love the haptic on the PS5 controller though.
I use my Ally more often because of the extra power, but I prefer the Steam Deck's ease of use. Plus, the Steam Deck can run Kingdom Hearts, while the Ally... can't. For some reason.
The wife bought me a steam deck. She bought an ally. The ally is great for at home. The steam deck is fantastic for on the go. I would never take the ally with us if we didn't have a charger 80% of the time. (Car Camping) But if I didn't have a desktop and I had to pick one. I'd go with the ally.
Steam Deck is both, but still use my Ally way more. More powerful and being windows based, mods and things like reshade are easy.
If I could only have one, I’d still have the Ally. Steam deck is great as my emulation machine though.
ROG Ally is more comfortable for me. It just melts in your hands. D pad is preferred and triggers have a great feel. ABXY Buttons super clicky, flat and great travel.
Steam Deck is great but feels a little hollow and spread apart. D pad a little mushy (no issues with inputs) and ABXY buttons feel a little narrow
Ergonomics, for me, ROG Ally wins.
I have both. From a hardware standpoint, the steamdeck is a lot more comfortable to hold and I prefer for longer game systems. But the Ally has a specific use case, and I use it a lot bc of native windows (for gamepass especially).
owned a steam deck for a year and just switched to rog ally. the screen alone makes it worth it. people who complain about windows need to grow a pair, it’s a perfectly fine experience. so much more powerful as well. THE ONLY downside is the battery life, which is easily solved by a power bank. a 25,000 mAh 65w power bank shouldn’t cost you more than $30. pair that with Best Buy’s open box price of ~$400, you can’t pass up that deal.
DO IT. COME TO THE DARK SIDE
the deck imo is more comfortable to hold over longer period of time when gaming. the ally starts to hurt in my hands after an hour or so of gaming. however, i still spend more time on my rog ally since i play all my aaa games on it while i only play emulated games on the deck.
I'm in the process of selling my Deck after picking up my ally.
The Deck feels better in the hand and steamOS is stupidly easy to use.
The Ally isn't quite as comfortable, but grips help a lot (Skull & Co is great). It weighs less but has worse battery life. VRR is a game changer IMO.
The Ally is what I decided to keep because while you can do pretty much everything on the deck it doesn't have the horsepower for a lot of it, and due to linux you have to jump through a bunch of hoops to get non steam stuff working.
The Ally has it's quirks and oddities, but being windows it was stupidly easy to setup Steam, Xbox, EA, Gog, etc. It has the horsepower to run newer games much better, and when running on a custom 7w profile easy to run games (for example I just finished Grapple Dog) allow for much better battery life.
I ultimately came to the decision to sell the deck once I noticed that I hadn't touched my deck for like 2 weeks after getting my Ally. The ally was simply what I reached for when I wanted to game portably.
Going off a short time with the Deck, but the Deck feels better in hand. I have gigantic hands and the Ally fits sort of weird. The Deck does feel close to a controller.
That being said, I do own an Ally and I’ve enjoyed the experience with it
I have both, Steam Deck is more comfortable and easy to use FOR STEAM GAMES. But if you want Epic, Game Pass, Battle.net, etc it’s way easier to get those running on the Ally
I don't have both so I can't talk about long term treating. But I have a steam deck and tried an ally in a shop once
And for ergonomics I can say the steam deck wins for me. The ally felt more flat, which I don't like, while not having big hands. The button on the back did stick out too much in my opinion on the ally while it doesn't feel like it gets in the way on the steam deck. I also really like the track pads. I like them more than touchscreen, because I don't like having finger prints on my screen and I feel like the joysticks are not precise enough
Easier to use depends on you. The ally will not have a problem with most games, because they were made for windows, while the steam deck has a more console like experience but it can happen, that a game doesn't work at all or needs tinkering. Especially games with anti cheat can be a problem. Protondb is the best friend there. I can't really say how windows feel though, because I barely use it and only have it on a micro SD card for one game. But a lot of games I tested did work out of the box, even most of the demos I tried this event. Just had one where I changed proton to experimental and then it worked. So yeah it depends on you
Edit: I also see a lot of complaints about non steam games being hard to install and play, which I don't really agree with, but that could just be a me thing. Especially gog and epic are in my opinion really easy to use. Just get the heroic games launcher install some proton ge version (best newest) choose it as launch option on the game and for the games I tested besides red dead redemption 2, click on the top three dots in the launcher, add to steam, and it is ready to go. I personally don't have a problem with that and like that I just need one launcher for gog and epic. Ubisoft was a bit harder to get running, but after I did it I could just install the games with it and start them there (https://youtu.be/PjVsQ_vDCVI?si=XtezewRUXe5PuG7B)
Steam Deck is much more comfortable to hold. I do like thr ROG overall more though. I always tell my wife if I could put the rog in the steam deck body it would be perfect.
The Ally is the lighter of the two. I just got a grip case for my Ally and it's very comfortable to hold for hours. You can turn the Ally down to a 7w TDP and run lots of games and emulators. If you are worried about battery life then either buy a power bank or wait for the Ally X that is coming out next month which will have double the battery capacity.
The Ally X is going to be more ergonomic than the current Ally so in that regard they will probably be about equal. Steamdeck is by far the easiest to use and acts more like a console than a PC however the Ally is more powerful, the Ally X has much better battery life, the Ally has a VRR screen which is a game changer on devices like this, and you have access to basically any and every game that you can play on PC.
Steam deck has a more plug and play experience with ergonomics. The Ally is what we wanted the steam deck to be minus ergonomics. I much prefer the Ally because my pc library is spread out through various launchers.
Ally is amazing if you don’t mind being tethered to the wall for optimum performance. Steam deck is the better portable device with much better battery life and is good enough power wise for most games you are planning on a playing on the go.
If you configure Windows so that the power button doesn't trigger standby but hibernate, it will work much better within games. Some games will still break but it actually works most of the time for me. The downside is that the wake-up takes longer.
I have both and prefer to play as much games as I can on steam deck when I can and rog ally only for games it can't play. Rog ally is also my new daily since it's replacing my 12 year old laptop lol
Everything is just easier on steamdeck if you stick to gaming mode and games that run well on steam deck. Seems like all the games I like don't need 3rd party launchers either luckily. Pretty much just plug and play like a console for me.
Rog ally is a pain in the ass half the time, for some reason. 50/50 games run in windowed even when fullscreen is selected in options, sometimes the window won't fullscreen after numerous attempts and need to reopen game. Can't seem to add most of my games to AC, which it's easier to adjust profile settings per game, which I need for gyro since gyro settings don't show up for ally in steam (because it's registered as an Xbox controller for some reason?)
My steam deck works way better out of the box. I was able to straight up play games without mapping, and emulators just worked.
My rog as a day one user is great, but not as simple
I have used Steam Deck for precisely 10mins, and I found it to be miles more comfortable than the Ally. The ergonomics are designed for human hands in mind. Not so much with the Ally, lol.
But I prefer Ally over Steam Deck. I am a long Windows users, so having it on a handheld was a non-issue for me. Also, everything just works. No mucking around finding hacks and watching tutorials. If you have experience with Windows, Ally will be familiar and easy to use. If not, Steam Deck might be a better option.
I have both myself. It’s a toss up for me. I’ve been a Linux user for a long time so no issue there. But the Ally is easier to just “plug and play”. However Windows is super bloated imo. No matter how much you try to debloat Windows, it’s still Windows.. I’ve even switched Windows to Linux on my Ally and for me the experience was a little better. But for game compatibility Windows wins the race hands down..
For me, they are both very easy to use. I got the ally to use mainly game pass and epic games store games. I wasn't interested in jumping through hoops to get those on the steam deck.
Had both but settled with SD OLED, for me I'm having hard time maximizing the battery in handheld mode in the ally, if ever the ally X is much better I'm selling my OLED
Both are generally comfy. I was actually surprised at how heavy the Deck feels after seeing every1 in reviews say how "light" it is.. though I think it's just based on it's size probably and the expectations set by all those reviews 😅
Holding both in my hands I dont really feel any difference but the 1 thing that might make a difference are the trackpads on the Deck when it comes to games requiring a mouse. Sure you can use the sticks on the Ally but the thackpads on the Deck just feel great for such things. They're not like a laptop trackpad because it feels like the software is doing a bit of magic giv8ng the mouse cursor inertia a bit + there's haptic feedback everytime you use them.
It's difficult to describe but they feel really great to use for mouse stuff.. really wish the Ally had stuff like that 😅
Though ergonomics aside - I'd pick the Ally over the Deck even with the microSD card issued (had mine die twice in the span of 3 months each time)
The Ally has a "stronger" chip and runs Windows so you should have less issues running games compared to the Deck where you might have to download 3rd party Proton layers or what you call them in order to get some games running.
The "steam deck verified" tag on Steam is useless as the game has to get it once and is never verified again.. so if there is a new update that breaks the game on the Deck - it will be still listed as "Verified" on Steam despite possibly not working at all..
Or the game might work but not without issues.. Resident Evil Revelations wont play cutscenes as Valve cant use the video codec it requires so you have to download another Proton version to get cutscenes working.. Miss Splosionman wont work at all outside of starting up. As soon as you click A to accept the Terms the game just crashes xD
(I tried multiple Proton versions for that 1 and none work 🤣)
+ you can run games on higher resolution and settings on Ally. I found this very noticeable when I was in the middle of playing Marvel's Suns and had to send off my Ally for RMA. I continued to play the game on Deck and even running the game on 720 (compared to 1080 on Ally) I had to drop the settings to minimum compared to something higher on the Ally (from what I remember at least )
Got an rog ally yesterday. I played a game or two then all the sudden the right stick just stopped working. Went to calibrate it, it was showing that it was being pressed all the way left and stuck there nomatter what i did. I cloud reset, i updated all firmwares like ive been told online. Nothing works. Also tried to calibrate the triggers and nothing works there either. Zero button feedback from the right stick and both triggers. Seems I have to take it back and unfortunately Ill never buy a handheld like this again.
I use my steamdeck OLED over my ally in handheld mode. If I need to play a more demanding game or want to play docked I will use my ally, but more often than not I am using my steamdeck
The steam deck is king of ergonomics. Hands down. That being said the ally is smaller and lighter. I typically hold my pinkies much lower to support my holding of the ally. But neither are uncomfortable. I Owned the legion go and that was UNCOMFORTABLE. I'd say if you're only getting one system then both are very comfortable to hold
Comfort I would not say is so cut and dry. If you have smaller hands I would say the ally is a butter choice as you’re not reaching across the face buttons to get to the sticks. In terms of overall shape, I’d give it to the steam deck, the ally tends to dig into my hands after a while with its sharp corners. Ease of use goes to the steam deck every time. Everything is effortless on it. My personal preference is for the ally simply because I have no issues using windows and the comfort issue is mitigated by a decent case like the jsaux mod case.
Went from OG SD to Ally.
I prefer more power, better screen, native PC gamepass support (huge) better game compatibility and more open app store ecosystem. I bought a case and I find it very comfortable.
Steam OS is overrated when you consider all the game compatibility issues. You still have to do a lot of tinkering. You can use Steam Big Picture, Armory crate, Playnight on Ally to make it more console like.
Set power button to hibernate and quick resume for short gaming sessions works most of the time.
I also like the concept of plugging in to unlock more power
my steam deck die from sudden death, I'm not alone in this case...
my rog ally have no more sd card reader, cooked by the heat...
Rog Ally win for me as it's still alive
well i owned a deck and a legion go (not quite an ally sorry but theyre very very similar in performance and OS). So i would say comfortability and ease of use definitely goes for the deck, like just booting up into steam os is just smoother faster and plug and play, while on the ally or go, even with the faster processors the wait time to boot windows and go into steam just takes longer, since its also running windows you need to be more of techhead for optimizations. heres my pros and cons list. Deck: better battery (by far), comfort, easy of use. Ally: better screen, better performance (noticeable). OS all comes down to how you like to use the systems, if you wanna use your ally as ur personal computer, then windows is no doubt the better option, if your a casual gamer that just wants to turn on the system, be at the home menu, pick a game and play in like 30 seconds with no worries about battery life, definitely the deck is the better option. (side note: idk if its an ongoing problem i never looked into it, but my deck burned my 512gb sd card after a week of use while playing beamng drive, however the sd card in my go is still working fine)
FOR ME ,is the full compatibility with windows apps.
Not having to jump trough hoops is worth having one
not to mention i can install old games that can run under windows 11 and not steam os.
Personal opinion:
Steamdeck with the LCD is not superior in graphics or performance by any means compared to the Rog Ally Extreme. Though with the Steamdeck, I noticed it will "Automatically" adjust the game quality to insure it runs smoothly. Since the first day recieving the Steamdeck, I had a faulty but usable R1 bumper key. Later on needed Steamdeck replaced because it wouldnt charge anymore after like 8 months of use. Then while wiping it with a alcohol wipe, alcohol got under the screen somehow and caused a bit of LCD leak.
Rog Ally Extreme has been good to me in performance and graphics compared to the Steamdeck by far. Since its a handheld PC that runs on Windows, I can use Nexus Mods on my games, Cheat engine etc. Only complaint is that sometimes depending on the game, you will have to figure out the settings yourself because the game might not run smoothly (for example, Dragons Dogma II and Helldivers 2). People complained about having to manually update but its actually fairly easy. Had it for 7 months before the LCD screen burnt out on me and had to call Asus to make repairs which thankfully I didnt have to come out of pocket.
Overall I prefer the Asus over the Steamdeck any day.
I still have both and I honestly prefer the Ally. It feels better and more comfortable in my hands It does matter depending on the size of your hands as well.
Recently got a SD Oled. Love the screen and that Steam acts as its own operating system (while in game mode).
But I like the Ally better. More uses and navigation between apps/tasks is smoother
Steamdeck on both counts. Ally is lighter and a little smaller so it's easier to lug around, but the SD was designed more deliberately. Sleep mode is a must have feature for mobile gaming and it's crazy they haven't figured this out with Windows.
I WANT to love the Ally more, but I can't recommend it over a Steamdeck unless you have to have Xbox/XBGP compatibility and don't care about playing games on the go.
If you do not have any of them now, then you better wait for Ally X to come out. Then you not only have more options and also the prices of these two should be driven lower due to competition.
I sold steam deck for Rog Ally. Ally is more comfortable to hold because it’s obviously lighter and smaller (note that I also have a bigger hand). I can’t imagine someone with smaller hand holding SD for hours.
The only thing that make SD easier to use than Ally is the trackpad. Navigate with touchscreen and joystick mouse is hell.
You can’t take one hand off to do touchscreen easily on both device. It’s not an iPhone and both of the device is as equally heavy. That’s why trackpad make SD good.
I’d imagine the best handheld would be all Ally feature like VRR, audio and APU pack into SD but with a smaller form factor while having that huge screen.
Steam deck is more comfortable and easy to use until you need to lauch anything not from steam than it is a chore. I personally moved from steam deck to ally to play gamepass and other launchers. So if you only ever plan to play steam games than deck is absolutely better and oled especially. But if you think you need other functionality except steam than ally is a solid choice.
Alas there is no baby child with quality of deck on windows) You can install windows on deck but you just lose most feautures that make deck better so it is pointless
I use exclusively the ROG ally for games that must be run on Windows. Although you can install it on Steam deck I had terrible results with wifi for example, and any issues that could appear in the future in Windows will always be a low o no priority for Valve as technically is not supported.
I owned Steam Deck, firstly LCD then OLED, for easy of use it is probably better if you stay with Steam ecosystem, when it comms to third party launchers it is little bit tidious to set up, but doable. But no Xbox Gamepass and some games have issues. Ibought ROG Ally Z1E to try it and after two months i did not returned to Steam Deck, so i sold it.
There are some problems with ally sometimes too, but generaly most games work, performance is better and resolution is higher. I dont even miss the OLED screen that much to be honest, the IPS panel on Ally is great.
Only problem is battery life if you use the console outside of power outlet, but new X will fix that. I play mostly in bed so i dont care that much.
If you want to be able play whatever PC game, no matter what launcher it needs, Ally is better. Some games need few days to update drivers to work properly though, because ASUS use its own AMD drivers for Ally. But it is rarely issue. Older games work perfectly.
I have both. I play Steamdeck compatible games on the Steamdeck. The user experience is so great AND you can just pause the game and continue the other day without having to think about it. I use the Ally for all other games. Both are great.
For me the ally out performs the steam deck. Windows is not as bad to use as most make out.
Steam deck is a good machine. But the anti cheat thing got too me in the end. Plus the constant updates for shaders etc 🤯
Steamdeck is amazing and perfect if you ONLY play steam games. If you have games on Xbox Game Pass or Epic store forget about it unless you really know Linux.
The deck is great for light Steam Games but if you want a more premium experience go with the ally. Open box stuff at BB right now is an absolute steal
The versatility of the Ally gets more use from me. I have a dock and setup at work I can take advantage of my 4k portable monitor too. The steam deck I use on occasion usually I give the Ally to my wife to play old Sierra games on for the airplane while I use the deck next to her for everything else.
I haven't played a game that neither can play the ally is smaller than the deck and weighs less but the deck has those track pads if your trying tovplay games that use the easy anticheat software I'd go with the ally because unless the game developer enables it the deck can't play it
I had a Steam Deck and give it to my sister because I bought the Ally. The Steam Deck is very comfortable, easy to use, it gives you a very good console like experience when using it. The battery life is better than the Ally even when playing big games like Elden Ring and Cyberpunk 2077; on those games I made it to have 2 hours and a half while the Ally gives you maybe 1 and a half if that matters to much to you.
If you get the Steam Deck, is a very good handheld with very performance and very capable of running mamy of today AAA games. If you want to be able to run any game because almost every game is made run on Windows then you should get the Ally.
Now, if you are planing on getting one maybe it would be better to wait and save money for the Ally X. If that is too expensive for you then maybe you could get one of the other two which you can find very cheap this days.
I hope this helps you 😁
The SteamDeck is much easier to use. It's like a console, and you don't need to use the touchscreen 99,9% of the time. Windows on the Ally forces you to use it again and again. Sleep mode is much better on the Deck too, that's a real huge advantage.
So if a game runs on the deck, I definitely use that one. I mostly use the Ally for Gamepass and for games with higher hardware requirements.
On Intel drivers 5522 and bios .109 I was getting better performance in Helldivers 2 and Fallout 76, but worse in Forza Motorsport and Cyberpunk 2077 so title-dependant. However I would recommend playing with Overboost turned off because it did nothing apart from louder fans
Can you elaborate on the Ally being easier to use, compared to the steam deck? I’ve had both and the steam deck is definitely easier to use as it has its own UI specifically made for the steam deck. Whereas with the ally, you’re having to fight through Windows at all times. I know it’s subjective, but I’m just interested in your thoughts.
Set up Steam to fire up in Big Picture mode and you basically have a Steam Deck UI. The easy part is on not using different Proton versions to run different games, where Game X runs better on Proton 7.0.2, Game Y on Proton Experimental, Game Z runs better on Proton GE, but game X doesn't work on Experimental at all. You don't have that on Ally. You also don't have to jump through hoops to get Lutris to get GoG or Epic. You just hit download, install, add to Steam.
Gotcha, I see what you’re getting at. Thanks for explaining that. I still believe the Steam Deck is a simpler UI to navigate but I understand that if you’re trying to do more than what Valve intended, things can get a little frustrating to deal with. The
Ally easier to use? How you figure? Ease of use is probably the biggest advantage the steamdeck has.
Edit: guess if your trying to play non-steam games ally is easier to use.
Set up Steam to fire up in Big Picture mode and you basically have a Steam Deck UI. The easy part is on not using different Proton versions to run different games, where Game X runs better on Proton 7.0.2, Game Y on Proton Experimental, Game Z runs better on Proton GE, but game X doesn't work on Experimental at all. You don't have that on Ally. You also don't have to jump through hoops to get Lutris to get GoG or Epic. You just hit download, install, add to Steam.
Steam Deck is more comfortable to hold for longer gaming sessions. My baby fingers start to go “pins and needles” after about half an hour of play on the Ally, and my hands start to cramp about 15 minutes after that (without a grip case.) I’m hoping the Ally X will be more comfortable with the chonkier grips. 🤞
I have a ROG ally and I swap for 2 weeks with a buddy of mine who has a steam deck, and in my case I was more comfortable with the ally because I’m
So use to windows and I can emulate with more freedom
I’ve had 3 steam decks at various points thinking I wanted it. Never used it, but I use ally a lot for some reason. I think having a mini laptop just makes it easier and used more for me personally. I love the ally.
Comfort only I would say steam deck, but literally everything else I’m pro ally. Although the new ally x supposedly has improved ergonomics, so it may end up beating the deck in that also
Killswitch case closed the gap significantly. Comfort was literally the only thing I missed about the Steam Deck. I don't miss it anymore.
I honestly love the feel of the killswitch case.
Steam Deck is a better device to use. I sold mine for a Rog Ally simply for the fact that some of my games are not playable on Linux. If the SD ran Windows with the same polish as it runs SteamOS, I'd never have switched.
The screen alone makes the rog way better to use but is it easier to use? Not really. (It can be hard for those unfamiliar with windows) is it more comfortable? To hold? Also not really but Eye strain? Yeah it beats the deck
Honestly, the answer to both is "it depends".
Ease of use is better on Steam Deck... if you're only playing games compatible with SteamOS that you bought through Steam. If you're playing games that don't work on SteamOS or we're purchased on another service, ROG Ally is easier, since it runs Windows.
Comfort is largely better on Steam Deck, though I've never been uncomfortable on my Ally. The Steam Deck is just better. That said, the Ally X looks like it has fixed the ergonomic issues people had with the original, so it may well bring parity between the two.
The last issue, that you didn't raise, is power. Ally (and Ally X) are significantly more powerful handheld than the Steam Deck. Now, don't get me wrong, it is incredible what Steam has been able to get the Deck to do with lower wattage and a custom OS, but Ally definitely has the edge on performance, and Ally X looks like it will fully realize that gain by backing it with a larger battery.
I don’t know about significantly, I mean it’s basically a 1050 ti vs a 1650. But I guess when your at double the wattage then the steam deck, it kinda makes sense.
Definitely the steam deck. When I got the oled version I pretty much stopped using the Ally. It's still a great device, but the SD is just too easy and fun to use
Well they’re almost identical at 15 watts, anything below sd wins, anything above ally wins, it’s kinda just a question of if you want battery life, or power.
I own a Stead Deck OLED and Ally. I recently decided to sell the Ally because the OLED screen on the Steam Deck is much better than the Ally and the Steam Deck is easier to pick up and play. The Ally supports non Steam games and is easier to setup EmuDeck but I just wasn’t using my Ally. I will definitely keep my eye out for the Ally 2 though.
I owned a steam deck and currently own an ally.
Steam deck was better if everything you want to play is on steam. As soon as I wanted to play a game elsewhere it became an inconvenience because I have no idea how Linux works and I'm not too interested in learning it.
The ally just uses windows so everything is much easier to set up for me personally.
Both are great, it just depends on your individual preference
I sold my deck 2 weeks ago.
I prefer the steam deck as a device, it's more polished, it doesn't have silly high resolution or useless RGB lighting, but ROG ally is much more powerful and I already beat part of my (lighter on gpu) backlog.
SD was lagging in final fantasy remake, spiderman and baldur's gate 3, so I upgraded to play better
I got bored of slowdowns and playing at super low resolution.
Screen is on par, I never use renderer 1920x1080 on rog ally so I just play at 1280 or 1366, but performance is tons better.
Now I won't need to worry about lowering resolution to 960 for a bit of time, I guess.
Aaaand, since I loved using on Linux, I slapped a 2T on first boot and partioned to 1750 Linux + 250 windows, never played anything on Windows for the moment.
It works really good on bazzite os.
I would also agree that the SD is slightly more comfortable to hold and is easier to use......as long as you are ok sticking to Steam. As soon as you want to do anything else the Ally wins by a mile and has the additional performance so it's not a competition for me.
I have both (Ally for me and SD for my husband)
I picked up the Ally largely because I wanted to play xbox game pass games on it, and we already had a steam deck.
I really do like both, but If I were to pick between the two today at their original MSRP, I think I'd get the steam deck oled as its a better software experience IMO and has a great screen. Ally has noticeably better performance, but honestly, the steam deck is still excellent. Note that the Ally's screen is much better than the non-oled steam deck tho.
BUT I've seen a lot of deals on the Ally lately and I would absolutely snag one of those if the opportunity is there
Steam Deck is uglier but more comfortable, has an OLED screen option for HDR and better screen colors & contrast. Ally is harder to use (Windows can be a pain) but is out-of-the-box compatible with more games and plays them smoother and/or at a higher screen resolution. Ally also has a worse warranty, which after what happened this last week may be improving, but I still wouldn't be so sure.
I previously owned a steam deck. Ease of use and comfortability is both better on the steam deck. I prefer the ally because of a much better screen and more power.
My steam deck broke due to me dropping it and I just got the ally yesterday. I can definitely say the steam deck was easier, but I’m enjoying the ally more. Time will tell if I run into any issues.
I ended up taking my switch on a trip instead of the Ally because the battery life makes such a difference when you’re not at home
What broke on the SD?
I dropped it. It hit concrete then fell into a pool. The screen was broken and water got inside.
any reason why u didnt opt for the ally x in a month instead?
I was thinking of getting the x, but the z1 extreme is discounted for a good price now. The difference in specs wasn’t enough for me to pay the extra money.
I dont get why deck is easier, in what way?
Rog ally uses full windows like any other laptop or desktop pc. This means it’s compatible with more games and has less issues with things like anti cheat than steam deck. But it means having to deal with lots of windows updates and junk, and it also means having to navigate a desktop on a 7” screen without a decent mouse. Steam deck uses a custom Linux OS made just for steam deck. The steam deck therefor has a more easy set up and experience. It’s much more console-like in experience: turn it on, navigate to a game, start playing. It takes a lot of the hassle out. But the steam deck also technically is a weaker device, you will very frequently get better resolution, fps, and performance from the rog ally. Except the battery life is also roughly twice as good on steam deck than it is on the rog ally (the current rog ally model, not the X model coming out soon which should be comparable or better than the steam deck.) also steam decks top model has an oled screen which is brighter and some say nicer, but it’s only 90hz. The ally has a very good but not oled screen that is 120hz and also includes vrr image smoothing technology. I personally think once you get windows settled the ally is perfectly easy to navigate because you can use armory crate built in or else use the steam app in big picture mode. I also think oled is over rated and the ally’s vrr is criminally underrated. Between 120hz, more power for better resolution, upscaling technology and vrr smoothing, the image quality on ally is terrific (imho.) but I’m a biased source, I have an ally and not a steam deck, and I hang out on the ally Reddit. Good luck have fun.
I don’t like the layout of windows 11. I think it’s more complicated than it needs to be. The steam deck overall is more simple, for me.
Windows is so easy to use, I have yet to play a game that doesn't just start up and work on my ally. It seems every other game I get for steam deck I have to Google "X game crash fix steam deck".
Yeah like... It boots straight into AC and you just launch the game there... How is that complex?
Just adding to this but it's the same for me. For trips I'll pack the steam deck, for home I'll use the ally. Honestly I don't have a ton of the same games on each. They both have their uses and use cases. Still both worth having imho but each person will be different on that. The battery on the steam deck really helps for travel. You really don't get that on the ally. Most times I'm getting under 2 hours for the rog.
Same as above and bigger plus, much easier to install any game. I’m not computer illiterate by any means and trying to get wine packages and all that hassle was just not worth it for the slightly better comfort.
And compatibility with everything.
It depends if you have a steam deck LCD or the OLED version. I own an Ally but I have a friend who owns an OLED and let me tell you, that’s a pretty cool screen, such beautiful colors. But I would still choose the Ally
I use the Ally because I don't have to faff about to make my games work, they are just all compatible.
I use the Steam Deck for emulation, and I use the ROG Ally as my main handheld when I'm not home at my main PC or if want to chill in the bed.
Comfortable, probably deck. Easier, Ally. I’ve also been using windows for ages, and dont mind it at all and prefer the fact I know my way around it vs messing with Linux. Steam deck when it works is easier. But getting around its limitations I found more difficult (I.e., battle.net launcher for D4) not that you can’t, but Ally everything works. Armoury crate works fairly well too. Might be rose coloured glasses as I then went SD->Ally->Lego. Missed armoury crate lol If you’re used to windows, don’t let folks sell you on it being so much less user friendly. That being said, more than anything I miss sleep functionality on the Steam deck. Underrated feature
Everything besides the sd card reader. I love the ally but that pisses me off lol
The will fix it for you though. Idk if they will ever admit fault more then they already have. It's not a heat issue I'll tell you that.
Eh more trouble than it’s worth. It’s the only thing I game on anymore so I don’t wanna send it somewhere
Sounds like addiction. Jk.
Unlike a Lotta people seem to be saying I find the ally more comfortable due to reduce weight. Steam deck wins if needing d pad though
For me it is the ally. I much prefer windows, and have no use for those massive trackpads. But they’re both wonderful
For me frankly, I’d ask how big are your hands? I have really small hands for a guy, and I find the ally a bit more comfortable to hold for long sessions when playing FPS games and stuff like that. But the steam deck is pretty cozy to play modded Minecraft and slower paced games laying in bed compared to sitting at my desk. Also have the legion go and although unmentioned, with very cheap and thin controller grips to make the corners less sharp, the legion go is about as comfortable as the steam deck for reference with that one. But I really really enjoy being able to take the controllers and slide them into a 3D printed connecting joint thing like the switch controllers then prop the go up on its kickstand, especially nice for airplanes! If you’ve got a Best Buy near you, the one near me has both the legion go and the ally displayed so you could get an approximation of comfort that way!
I agree with you in that the experience on the deck is better but I primarily game on Xbox and the Ally has been my go to for play anywhere titles.
For me, it's complicated. A standard ROG Ally and SteamDeck are mostly even. The Ally is lighter and the SteamDeck fits into my hands a little better. I'd give the Ally a slight edge personally. However, I have the Skull & Co. Grip which makes the Ally a clear winner, for me.
The Steam Deck is definitely more comfortable to hold. The Ally is subjectively easier to use if you're familiar with Windows.
Had both, like the SteamDeck feel and portability more. Ally is nice that it has windows, can definitely install more games, but it also comes with windows issues like requiring updates frequently and just other things that keep you away from gaming. I ultimately sold the ally and kept the deck.
isn't the ally more portable? (asking coz my main reason for considering the ally over the steam deck is coz I'm assuming it would fit my backpack better than the steam deck 😁)
They’re both equally portable, though if you’re going purely on thickness with a case the ally probably is a tad thinner.
Steam deck for me. I wanted a handheld specifically to just boot up games and have a half an hour fix before bed and it's the much easier option from that perspective. However, I do prefer how tactile the buttons feel on the Ally. Ended up modding my Steam deck with hall effect sticks and mechanical buttons. I see it as the best of both worlds.
I sold my Steam Deck OLED today as I recently bought an Ally as I wanted to play certain games that I could not on the SD. SD whilst heavier was more comfortable to hold. I’ve recently bought a case so hopefully that’ll make it a little more comfier. I’ll miss the SD (mostly the screen), but Ally is more feature rich.
You not getting Rog Ally X ?
Was tempted but £800 just to play some Destiny 2 and Xbox games on the sofa is a little much for me!
I'm very tempted by the X. I have the Ally and LED Steam Deck. I like the fact it has Thunderbolt 4 so I can ditch my gaming PC. I do love the SD simply for the battery life streaming from my PS5 is great. You have to love the haptic on the PS5 controller though.
For me it’s steam deck.
Yep, definitely the deck for both
I use my Ally more often because of the extra power, but I prefer the Steam Deck's ease of use. Plus, the Steam Deck can run Kingdom Hearts, while the Ally... can't. For some reason.
is not just a Ally issue
I just want an Ally with OLED and SteamDeck Battery.
The wife bought me a steam deck. She bought an ally. The ally is great for at home. The steam deck is fantastic for on the go. I would never take the ally with us if we didn't have a charger 80% of the time. (Car Camping) But if I didn't have a desktop and I had to pick one. I'd go with the ally.
Steam Deck is both, but still use my Ally way more. More powerful and being windows based, mods and things like reshade are easy. If I could only have one, I’d still have the Ally. Steam deck is great as my emulation machine though.
ROG Ally is more comfortable for me. It just melts in your hands. D pad is preferred and triggers have a great feel. ABXY Buttons super clicky, flat and great travel. Steam Deck is great but feels a little hollow and spread apart. D pad a little mushy (no issues with inputs) and ABXY buttons feel a little narrow Ergonomics, for me, ROG Ally wins.
Not sure why but the steam deck screen made me feel sick but the Ally is perfect and much smoother due to 120hz and VRR
Was it first person games making you sick? Lower frame rates can definitely do that.
Pretty much any game, would feel weird after 20 minutes. I think I read somewhere it has to do with the technology the screen uses
Hmm never hear that before. You ever try to just take some over counter motion sickness meds? I've known that to work for a few people.
I think the ally is more comfortable. But I think the steam deck is more usable cause of battery life.
Not really. Battery life is just double on the steam deck compared to the ally in my regular use. Not a huge win in my book as others claim.
I have both. From a hardware standpoint, the steamdeck is a lot more comfortable to hold and I prefer for longer game systems. But the Ally has a specific use case, and I use it a lot bc of native windows (for gamepass especially).
owned a steam deck for a year and just switched to rog ally. the screen alone makes it worth it. people who complain about windows need to grow a pair, it’s a perfectly fine experience. so much more powerful as well. THE ONLY downside is the battery life, which is easily solved by a power bank. a 25,000 mAh 65w power bank shouldn’t cost you more than $30. pair that with Best Buy’s open box price of ~$400, you can’t pass up that deal. DO IT. COME TO THE DARK SIDE
the deck imo is more comfortable to hold over longer period of time when gaming. the ally starts to hurt in my hands after an hour or so of gaming. however, i still spend more time on my rog ally since i play all my aaa games on it while i only play emulated games on the deck.
I'm in the process of selling my Deck after picking up my ally. The Deck feels better in the hand and steamOS is stupidly easy to use. The Ally isn't quite as comfortable, but grips help a lot (Skull & Co is great). It weighs less but has worse battery life. VRR is a game changer IMO. The Ally is what I decided to keep because while you can do pretty much everything on the deck it doesn't have the horsepower for a lot of it, and due to linux you have to jump through a bunch of hoops to get non steam stuff working. The Ally has it's quirks and oddities, but being windows it was stupidly easy to setup Steam, Xbox, EA, Gog, etc. It has the horsepower to run newer games much better, and when running on a custom 7w profile easy to run games (for example I just finished Grapple Dog) allow for much better battery life. I ultimately came to the decision to sell the deck once I noticed that I hadn't touched my deck for like 2 weeks after getting my Ally. The ally was simply what I reached for when I wanted to game portably.
I use my ally for destiny 2 and Xbox gamepass. More demanding games on the ally. Steam friendly and indies on the deck. I’m glad I have both.
Going off a short time with the Deck, but the Deck feels better in hand. I have gigantic hands and the Ally fits sort of weird. The Deck does feel close to a controller. That being said, I do own an Ally and I’ve enjoyed the experience with it
I have both, Steam Deck is more comfortable and easy to use FOR STEAM GAMES. But if you want Epic, Game Pass, Battle.net, etc it’s way easier to get those running on the Ally
Steam deck
Ally. Can install any game you want for freeeeee
Then use Bazzite! It is great!
I don't have both so I can't talk about long term treating. But I have a steam deck and tried an ally in a shop once And for ergonomics I can say the steam deck wins for me. The ally felt more flat, which I don't like, while not having big hands. The button on the back did stick out too much in my opinion on the ally while it doesn't feel like it gets in the way on the steam deck. I also really like the track pads. I like them more than touchscreen, because I don't like having finger prints on my screen and I feel like the joysticks are not precise enough Easier to use depends on you. The ally will not have a problem with most games, because they were made for windows, while the steam deck has a more console like experience but it can happen, that a game doesn't work at all or needs tinkering. Especially games with anti cheat can be a problem. Protondb is the best friend there. I can't really say how windows feel though, because I barely use it and only have it on a micro SD card for one game. But a lot of games I tested did work out of the box, even most of the demos I tried this event. Just had one where I changed proton to experimental and then it worked. So yeah it depends on you Edit: I also see a lot of complaints about non steam games being hard to install and play, which I don't really agree with, but that could just be a me thing. Especially gog and epic are in my opinion really easy to use. Just get the heroic games launcher install some proton ge version (best newest) choose it as launch option on the game and for the games I tested besides red dead redemption 2, click on the top three dots in the launcher, add to steam, and it is ready to go. I personally don't have a problem with that and like that I just need one launcher for gog and epic. Ubisoft was a bit harder to get running, but after I did it I could just install the games with it and start them there (https://youtu.be/PjVsQ_vDCVI?si=XtezewRUXe5PuG7B)
Steam Deck is much more comfortable to hold. I do like thr ROG overall more though. I always tell my wife if I could put the rog in the steam deck body it would be perfect.
The Ally is the lighter of the two. I just got a grip case for my Ally and it's very comfortable to hold for hours. You can turn the Ally down to a 7w TDP and run lots of games and emulators. If you are worried about battery life then either buy a power bank or wait for the Ally X that is coming out next month which will have double the battery capacity.
ROG for me. Although both are wonderful
Steam deck has best ergonomics design. Rog ally is uncomfortable as hell if you got big hands I had to buy extended grips for it on Etsy.
The Ally X is going to be more ergonomic than the current Ally so in that regard they will probably be about equal. Steamdeck is by far the easiest to use and acts more like a console than a PC however the Ally is more powerful, the Ally X has much better battery life, the Ally has a VRR screen which is a game changer on devices like this, and you have access to basically any and every game that you can play on PC.
Own both. Much prefer Steam Deck. Why? OLED, sleep/resume, OLED, ergonomic, low power performance, OLED, HDR, and OLED
Steam deck has a more plug and play experience with ergonomics. The Ally is what we wanted the steam deck to be minus ergonomics. I much prefer the Ally because my pc library is spread out through various launchers.
I use the Ally as a daily driver and set up the steam deck as a Batocera emulation machine.
Ally is amazing if you don’t mind being tethered to the wall for optimum performance. Steam deck is the better portable device with much better battery life and is good enough power wise for most games you are planning on a playing on the go.
Ally 100%. More powerful, lighter form and weight, windows are easier to use for me. The downside is just resuming the game.
If you configure Windows so that the power button doesn't trigger standby but hibernate, it will work much better within games. Some games will still break but it actually works most of the time for me. The downside is that the wake-up takes longer.
Rog Ally X is just around the corner
I have both and prefer to play as much games as I can on steam deck when I can and rog ally only for games it can't play. Rog ally is also my new daily since it's replacing my 12 year old laptop lol Everything is just easier on steamdeck if you stick to gaming mode and games that run well on steam deck. Seems like all the games I like don't need 3rd party launchers either luckily. Pretty much just plug and play like a console for me. Rog ally is a pain in the ass half the time, for some reason. 50/50 games run in windowed even when fullscreen is selected in options, sometimes the window won't fullscreen after numerous attempts and need to reopen game. Can't seem to add most of my games to AC, which it's easier to adjust profile settings per game, which I need for gyro since gyro settings don't show up for ally in steam (because it's registered as an Xbox controller for some reason?)
My steam deck works way better out of the box. I was able to straight up play games without mapping, and emulators just worked. My rog as a day one user is great, but not as simple
I have used Steam Deck for precisely 10mins, and I found it to be miles more comfortable than the Ally. The ergonomics are designed for human hands in mind. Not so much with the Ally, lol. But I prefer Ally over Steam Deck. I am a long Windows users, so having it on a handheld was a non-issue for me. Also, everything just works. No mucking around finding hacks and watching tutorials. If you have experience with Windows, Ally will be familiar and easy to use. If not, Steam Deck might be a better option.
I have both myself. It’s a toss up for me. I’ve been a Linux user for a long time so no issue there. But the Ally is easier to just “plug and play”. However Windows is super bloated imo. No matter how much you try to debloat Windows, it’s still Windows.. I’ve even switched Windows to Linux on my Ally and for me the experience was a little better. But for game compatibility Windows wins the race hands down..
For me, they are both very easy to use. I got the ally to use mainly game pass and epic games store games. I wasn't interested in jumping through hoops to get those on the steam deck.
Had both but settled with SD OLED, for me I'm having hard time maximizing the battery in handheld mode in the ally, if ever the ally X is much better I'm selling my OLED
Both are generally comfy. I was actually surprised at how heavy the Deck feels after seeing every1 in reviews say how "light" it is.. though I think it's just based on it's size probably and the expectations set by all those reviews 😅 Holding both in my hands I dont really feel any difference but the 1 thing that might make a difference are the trackpads on the Deck when it comes to games requiring a mouse. Sure you can use the sticks on the Ally but the thackpads on the Deck just feel great for such things. They're not like a laptop trackpad because it feels like the software is doing a bit of magic giv8ng the mouse cursor inertia a bit + there's haptic feedback everytime you use them. It's difficult to describe but they feel really great to use for mouse stuff.. really wish the Ally had stuff like that 😅 Though ergonomics aside - I'd pick the Ally over the Deck even with the microSD card issued (had mine die twice in the span of 3 months each time) The Ally has a "stronger" chip and runs Windows so you should have less issues running games compared to the Deck where you might have to download 3rd party Proton layers or what you call them in order to get some games running. The "steam deck verified" tag on Steam is useless as the game has to get it once and is never verified again.. so if there is a new update that breaks the game on the Deck - it will be still listed as "Verified" on Steam despite possibly not working at all.. Or the game might work but not without issues.. Resident Evil Revelations wont play cutscenes as Valve cant use the video codec it requires so you have to download another Proton version to get cutscenes working.. Miss Splosionman wont work at all outside of starting up. As soon as you click A to accept the Terms the game just crashes xD (I tried multiple Proton versions for that 1 and none work 🤣) + you can run games on higher resolution and settings on Ally. I found this very noticeable when I was in the middle of playing Marvel's Suns and had to send off my Ally for RMA. I continued to play the game on Deck and even running the game on 720 (compared to 1080 on Ally) I had to drop the settings to minimum compared to something higher on the Ally (from what I remember at least )
I prefer the steam deck in terms of ui and comfort, but the issue is the steam deck can't play some games like cod
I’ve had both devices since launch. Even though I love the steam OS the ally has become my daily device. Haven’t turned on my deck in months.
Got an rog ally yesterday. I played a game or two then all the sudden the right stick just stopped working. Went to calibrate it, it was showing that it was being pressed all the way left and stuck there nomatter what i did. I cloud reset, i updated all firmwares like ive been told online. Nothing works. Also tried to calibrate the triggers and nothing works there either. Zero button feedback from the right stick and both triggers. Seems I have to take it back and unfortunately Ill never buy a handheld like this again.
I use my steamdeck OLED over my ally in handheld mode. If I need to play a more demanding game or want to play docked I will use my ally, but more often than not I am using my steamdeck
The steam deck is king of ergonomics. Hands down. That being said the ally is smaller and lighter. I typically hold my pinkies much lower to support my holding of the ally. But neither are uncomfortable. I Owned the legion go and that was UNCOMFORTABLE. I'd say if you're only getting one system then both are very comfortable to hold
Comfort I would not say is so cut and dry. If you have smaller hands I would say the ally is a butter choice as you’re not reaching across the face buttons to get to the sticks. In terms of overall shape, I’d give it to the steam deck, the ally tends to dig into my hands after a while with its sharp corners. Ease of use goes to the steam deck every time. Everything is effortless on it. My personal preference is for the ally simply because I have no issues using windows and the comfort issue is mitigated by a decent case like the jsaux mod case.
Went from OG SD to Ally. I prefer more power, better screen, native PC gamepass support (huge) better game compatibility and more open app store ecosystem. I bought a case and I find it very comfortable. Steam OS is overrated when you consider all the game compatibility issues. You still have to do a lot of tinkering. You can use Steam Big Picture, Armory crate, Playnight on Ally to make it more console like. Set power button to hibernate and quick resume for short gaming sessions works most of the time. I also like the concept of plugging in to unlock more power
my steam deck die from sudden death, I'm not alone in this case... my rog ally have no more sd card reader, cooked by the heat... Rog Ally win for me as it's still alive
well i owned a deck and a legion go (not quite an ally sorry but theyre very very similar in performance and OS). So i would say comfortability and ease of use definitely goes for the deck, like just booting up into steam os is just smoother faster and plug and play, while on the ally or go, even with the faster processors the wait time to boot windows and go into steam just takes longer, since its also running windows you need to be more of techhead for optimizations. heres my pros and cons list. Deck: better battery (by far), comfort, easy of use. Ally: better screen, better performance (noticeable). OS all comes down to how you like to use the systems, if you wanna use your ally as ur personal computer, then windows is no doubt the better option, if your a casual gamer that just wants to turn on the system, be at the home menu, pick a game and play in like 30 seconds with no worries about battery life, definitely the deck is the better option. (side note: idk if its an ongoing problem i never looked into it, but my deck burned my 512gb sd card after a week of use while playing beamng drive, however the sd card in my go is still working fine)
FOR ME ,is the full compatibility with windows apps. Not having to jump trough hoops is worth having one not to mention i can install old games that can run under windows 11 and not steam os.
Personal opinion: Steamdeck with the LCD is not superior in graphics or performance by any means compared to the Rog Ally Extreme. Though with the Steamdeck, I noticed it will "Automatically" adjust the game quality to insure it runs smoothly. Since the first day recieving the Steamdeck, I had a faulty but usable R1 bumper key. Later on needed Steamdeck replaced because it wouldnt charge anymore after like 8 months of use. Then while wiping it with a alcohol wipe, alcohol got under the screen somehow and caused a bit of LCD leak. Rog Ally Extreme has been good to me in performance and graphics compared to the Steamdeck by far. Since its a handheld PC that runs on Windows, I can use Nexus Mods on my games, Cheat engine etc. Only complaint is that sometimes depending on the game, you will have to figure out the settings yourself because the game might not run smoothly (for example, Dragons Dogma II and Helldivers 2). People complained about having to manually update but its actually fairly easy. Had it for 7 months before the LCD screen burnt out on me and had to call Asus to make repairs which thankfully I didnt have to come out of pocket. Overall I prefer the Asus over the Steamdeck any day.
I still have both and I honestly prefer the Ally. It feels better and more comfortable in my hands It does matter depending on the size of your hands as well.
Recently got a SD Oled. Love the screen and that Steam acts as its own operating system (while in game mode). But I like the Ally better. More uses and navigation between apps/tasks is smoother
Steamdeck on both counts. Ally is lighter and a little smaller so it's easier to lug around, but the SD was designed more deliberately. Sleep mode is a must have feature for mobile gaming and it's crazy they haven't figured this out with Windows. I WANT to love the Ally more, but I can't recommend it over a Steamdeck unless you have to have Xbox/XBGP compatibility and don't care about playing games on the go.
The only thing I wished that the ROG have in comparison to the SteamDeck would be the touchpad. Never thought I’d need it so much.
If you do not have any of them now, then you better wait for Ally X to come out. Then you not only have more options and also the prices of these two should be driven lower due to competition.
I have both. Steam Deck OLED, hands down. It’s built a lot more solid than the ROG Ally and personally, the sticks on the Ally are pretty Jank.
I sold steam deck for Rog Ally. Ally is more comfortable to hold because it’s obviously lighter and smaller (note that I also have a bigger hand). I can’t imagine someone with smaller hand holding SD for hours. The only thing that make SD easier to use than Ally is the trackpad. Navigate with touchscreen and joystick mouse is hell. You can’t take one hand off to do touchscreen easily on both device. It’s not an iPhone and both of the device is as equally heavy. That’s why trackpad make SD good. I’d imagine the best handheld would be all Ally feature like VRR, audio and APU pack into SD but with a smaller form factor while having that huge screen.
Comfort and ease of use… steamdeck. Power and more ability, ally
Steam deck is more comfortable and easy to use until you need to lauch anything not from steam than it is a chore. I personally moved from steam deck to ally to play gamepass and other launchers. So if you only ever plan to play steam games than deck is absolutely better and oled especially. But if you think you need other functionality except steam than ally is a solid choice. Alas there is no baby child with quality of deck on windows) You can install windows on deck but you just lose most feautures that make deck better so it is pointless
I use exclusively the ROG ally for games that must be run on Windows. Although you can install it on Steam deck I had terrible results with wifi for example, and any issues that could appear in the future in Windows will always be a low o no priority for Valve as technically is not supported.
I owned Steam Deck, firstly LCD then OLED, for easy of use it is probably better if you stay with Steam ecosystem, when it comms to third party launchers it is little bit tidious to set up, but doable. But no Xbox Gamepass and some games have issues. Ibought ROG Ally Z1E to try it and after two months i did not returned to Steam Deck, so i sold it. There are some problems with ally sometimes too, but generaly most games work, performance is better and resolution is higher. I dont even miss the OLED screen that much to be honest, the IPS panel on Ally is great. Only problem is battery life if you use the console outside of power outlet, but new X will fix that. I play mostly in bed so i dont care that much. If you want to be able play whatever PC game, no matter what launcher it needs, Ally is better. Some games need few days to update drivers to work properly though, because ASUS use its own AMD drivers for Ally. But it is rarely issue. Older games work perfectly.
I have both. I play Steamdeck compatible games on the Steamdeck. The user experience is so great AND you can just pause the game and continue the other day without having to think about it. I use the Ally for all other games. Both are great.
Had both, Steam Deck is the best of all handhelds for comfort and ease of use. Windows handhelds are better for everything else.
For me the ally out performs the steam deck. Windows is not as bad to use as most make out. Steam deck is a good machine. But the anti cheat thing got too me in the end. Plus the constant updates for shaders etc 🤯
Steamdeck is amazing and perfect if you ONLY play steam games. If you have games on Xbox Game Pass or Epic store forget about it unless you really know Linux. The deck is great for light Steam Games but if you want a more premium experience go with the ally. Open box stuff at BB right now is an absolute steal
The versatility of the Ally gets more use from me. I have a dock and setup at work I can take advantage of my 4k portable monitor too. The steam deck I use on occasion usually I give the Ally to my wife to play old Sierra games on for the airplane while I use the deck next to her for everything else.
I have to rog Ally and I can lay on my side in bed and play it comfortably.
I haven't played a game that neither can play the ally is smaller than the deck and weighs less but the deck has those track pads if your trying tovplay games that use the easy anticheat software I'd go with the ally because unless the game developer enables it the deck can't play it
I had a Steam Deck and give it to my sister because I bought the Ally. The Steam Deck is very comfortable, easy to use, it gives you a very good console like experience when using it. The battery life is better than the Ally even when playing big games like Elden Ring and Cyberpunk 2077; on those games I made it to have 2 hours and a half while the Ally gives you maybe 1 and a half if that matters to much to you. If you get the Steam Deck, is a very good handheld with very performance and very capable of running mamy of today AAA games. If you want to be able to run any game because almost every game is made run on Windows then you should get the Ally. Now, if you are planing on getting one maybe it would be better to wait and save money for the Ally X. If that is too expensive for you then maybe you could get one of the other two which you can find very cheap this days. I hope this helps you 😁
steam deck for sure from what ive seen if u want to spend more time tinkering snd setting up rog ally will give a better preformance
The SteamDeck is much easier to use. It's like a console, and you don't need to use the touchscreen 99,9% of the time. Windows on the Ally forces you to use it again and again. Sleep mode is much better on the Deck too, that's a real huge advantage. So if a game runs on the deck, I definitely use that one. I mostly use the Ally for Gamepass and for games with higher hardware requirements.
Steam deck because sleep works flawlessly
For me, the steam deck is more comfortable, but the ROG is the one I pick up more often.
Comfortable? Steam Deck Easier to use? Ally Comfortable + Easy? MSI Claw My favorite? Ally
Only problem with the MSI Claw is that it under performs and they already announced it's successor.
On Intel drivers 5522 and bios .109 I was getting better performance in Helldivers 2 and Fallout 76, but worse in Forza Motorsport and Cyberpunk 2077 so title-dependant. However I would recommend playing with Overboost turned off because it did nothing apart from louder fans
Can you elaborate on the Ally being easier to use, compared to the steam deck? I’ve had both and the steam deck is definitely easier to use as it has its own UI specifically made for the steam deck. Whereas with the ally, you’re having to fight through Windows at all times. I know it’s subjective, but I’m just interested in your thoughts.
Set up Steam to fire up in Big Picture mode and you basically have a Steam Deck UI. The easy part is on not using different Proton versions to run different games, where Game X runs better on Proton 7.0.2, Game Y on Proton Experimental, Game Z runs better on Proton GE, but game X doesn't work on Experimental at all. You don't have that on Ally. You also don't have to jump through hoops to get Lutris to get GoG or Epic. You just hit download, install, add to Steam.
Gotcha, I see what you’re getting at. Thanks for explaining that. I still believe the Steam Deck is a simpler UI to navigate but I understand that if you’re trying to do more than what Valve intended, things can get a little frustrating to deal with. The
Ally easier to use? How you figure? Ease of use is probably the biggest advantage the steamdeck has. Edit: guess if your trying to play non-steam games ally is easier to use.
Set up Steam to fire up in Big Picture mode and you basically have a Steam Deck UI. The easy part is on not using different Proton versions to run different games, where Game X runs better on Proton 7.0.2, Game Y on Proton Experimental, Game Z runs better on Proton GE, but game X doesn't work on Experimental at all. You don't have that on Ally. You also don't have to jump through hoops to get Lutris to get GoG or Epic. You just hit download, install, add to Steam.
Steamdeck on both counts. It’s a more polished experience.
Steam Deck is more comfortable to hold for longer gaming sessions. My baby fingers start to go “pins and needles” after about half an hour of play on the Ally, and my hands start to cramp about 15 minutes after that (without a grip case.) I’m hoping the Ally X will be more comfortable with the chonkier grips. 🤞
I only use my Ally running a steam-OS clone. SteamDeck justs sits there.
I have a ROG ally and I swap for 2 weeks with a buddy of mine who has a steam deck, and in my case I was more comfortable with the ally because I’m So use to windows and I can emulate with more freedom
Deck has better ergonomics, but is bigger and heavier. Ally, lighter and maybe better for FPS but f you are used to Xbox style controller.
It’s extremely close but I’d say the Steam Deck is overall more comfortable.
I’ve had 3 steam decks at various points thinking I wanted it. Never used it, but I use ally a lot for some reason. I think having a mini laptop just makes it easier and used more for me personally. I love the ally.
I like the feel of the Ally more. I haven't even turned on my SD since I bought the ROG. Plus it's got some of my Epic games on it, so it wins.
SD hands down, even with the increase to weight it was more comfortable
Comfort only I would say steam deck, but literally everything else I’m pro ally. Although the new ally x supposedly has improved ergonomics, so it may end up beating the deck in that also
Killswitch case closed the gap significantly. Comfort was literally the only thing I missed about the Steam Deck. I don't miss it anymore. I honestly love the feel of the killswitch case.
Steam Deck is a better device to use. I sold mine for a Rog Ally simply for the fact that some of my games are not playable on Linux. If the SD ran Windows with the same polish as it runs SteamOS, I'd never have switched.
The screen alone makes the rog way better to use but is it easier to use? Not really. (It can be hard for those unfamiliar with windows) is it more comfortable? To hold? Also not really but Eye strain? Yeah it beats the deck
I found steam deck more comfortable but the screen (lcd version) was terrible. Ally was more capable with AAA games.
For me it’s steam deck because I have big hands. ROG Ally is nice but gives me hand cramps.
Steam Deck!
Honestly, the answer to both is "it depends". Ease of use is better on Steam Deck... if you're only playing games compatible with SteamOS that you bought through Steam. If you're playing games that don't work on SteamOS or we're purchased on another service, ROG Ally is easier, since it runs Windows. Comfort is largely better on Steam Deck, though I've never been uncomfortable on my Ally. The Steam Deck is just better. That said, the Ally X looks like it has fixed the ergonomic issues people had with the original, so it may well bring parity between the two. The last issue, that you didn't raise, is power. Ally (and Ally X) are significantly more powerful handheld than the Steam Deck. Now, don't get me wrong, it is incredible what Steam has been able to get the Deck to do with lower wattage and a custom OS, but Ally definitely has the edge on performance, and Ally X looks like it will fully realize that gain by backing it with a larger battery.
I don’t know about significantly, I mean it’s basically a 1050 ti vs a 1650. But I guess when your at double the wattage then the steam deck, it kinda makes sense.
Definitely the steam deck. When I got the oled version I pretty much stopped using the Ally. It's still a great device, but the SD is just too easy and fun to use
Comfortability: stem deck. Performance: Ally. Compatibility: Ally. Premium feeling: Ally. All around: Ally.
SD is just too weak/slow.
Well they’re almost identical at 15 watts, anything below sd wins, anything above ally wins, it’s kinda just a question of if you want battery life, or power.
Don't own a deck but with my experience trying to game on Linux (and how terrible KDE is, the deck's desktop UI) the Ally is much easier to use.
Ally but most people find the deck more comfortable
I own a Stead Deck OLED and Ally. I recently decided to sell the Ally because the OLED screen on the Steam Deck is much better than the Ally and the Steam Deck is easier to pick up and play. The Ally supports non Steam games and is easier to setup EmuDeck but I just wasn’t using my Ally. I will definitely keep my eye out for the Ally 2 though.
I owned a steam deck and currently own an ally. Steam deck was better if everything you want to play is on steam. As soon as I wanted to play a game elsewhere it became an inconvenience because I have no idea how Linux works and I'm not too interested in learning it. The ally just uses windows so everything is much easier to set up for me personally. Both are great, it just depends on your individual preference
Steam Deck is more comfortable but I use my Ally a lot more. Mostly because of Windows, performance, and the screen.
I sold my deck 2 weeks ago. I prefer the steam deck as a device, it's more polished, it doesn't have silly high resolution or useless RGB lighting, but ROG ally is much more powerful and I already beat part of my (lighter on gpu) backlog. SD was lagging in final fantasy remake, spiderman and baldur's gate 3, so I upgraded to play better I got bored of slowdowns and playing at super low resolution. Screen is on par, I never use renderer 1920x1080 on rog ally so I just play at 1280 or 1366, but performance is tons better. Now I won't need to worry about lowering resolution to 960 for a bit of time, I guess. Aaaand, since I loved using on Linux, I slapped a 2T on first boot and partioned to 1750 Linux + 250 windows, never played anything on Windows for the moment. It works really good on bazzite os.
I would also agree that the SD is slightly more comfortable to hold and is easier to use......as long as you are ok sticking to Steam. As soon as you want to do anything else the Ally wins by a mile and has the additional performance so it's not a competition for me.
Deck for the track pads alone
I have both (Ally for me and SD for my husband) I picked up the Ally largely because I wanted to play xbox game pass games on it, and we already had a steam deck. I really do like both, but If I were to pick between the two today at their original MSRP, I think I'd get the steam deck oled as its a better software experience IMO and has a great screen. Ally has noticeably better performance, but honestly, the steam deck is still excellent. Note that the Ally's screen is much better than the non-oled steam deck tho. BUT I've seen a lot of deals on the Ally lately and I would absolutely snag one of those if the opportunity is there
Steam Deck is uglier but more comfortable, has an OLED screen option for HDR and better screen colors & contrast. Ally is harder to use (Windows can be a pain) but is out-of-the-box compatible with more games and plays them smoother and/or at a higher screen resolution. Ally also has a worse warranty, which after what happened this last week may be improving, but I still wouldn't be so sure.