Last month, Microsoft and Asus launched the ROG Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X, premium handheld gaming PCs that run on the former’s Windows OS and the latter’s hardware infrastructure. While reception to the devices was overall solid, criticism was levied at their price tag, with the Xbox Ally costing $800 and the Xbox Ally X costing $1,300.
And yet, the steep price apparently hasn’t hindered the devices so far. During a recent investor presentation, Asus said demand for both handhelds has actually exceeded expectations, leaving them in short supply.
“Since [the Xbox Ally range] launch, we see the market response for it has been extremely positive, particularly, there has been an appetite for the premium higher-end models, exceeding our expectations. These high-ended variants are currently in short supply,” said Asus. “We are working closely with key component suppliers to ramp up production and fill the demand gap that exists. Our goal with the ROG Ally is for it to remain a core pillar within the Asus gaming portfolio.”
As a result of the better-than-expected launch, Asus anticipates the Xbox Ally devices to generate between US$96 million (C$134.4 million) and US$160 million (C$224 million) in revenue this quarter, with future quarters bringing in between US$130 million (C$182 million) and US$160 million (C$224 million). That said, Asus didn’t confirm how many units of the devices have been sold.
Either way, it’s interesting to hear about the high demand. Besides the devices being quite expensive, there is now a lot of competition in the gaming handheld space. After Valve kicked off the trend with the Steam Deck in 2022, we’ve seen handheld gaming PCs like the Asus ROG Ally line and the Lenovo Legion Go. (And next year, Valve will further blur the lines between consoles and PC with the recently announced Steam Machine.) And outside of handheld gaming PC, there is the $629 Nintendo Switch 2, which is outpacing its predecessor.
Microsoft, meanwhile, has teased that its partnership with Asus is part of a larger initiative to marry “the best of Xbox and Windows” into a single device. To that point, Xbox president Sarah Bond recently teased that the company is working on a “very premium” console that will take cues from the Xbox Ally devices, presumably with respect to its PC-like functionality.
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