ASUS ROG Ally Deep-Dive Review: Thermals, Gaming, Power, SD Card, & More vs. Steam Deck
Review is quite long (45 min). A highlight:
- Games tested with frame timing: Steam Deck has very consistent frame timing, ROG Ally is only competitive plugged in, otherwise on battery (and the same 1280×720) the low 1% and low 0.1% are far worse than Steam Deck in several tested games, and more akin to AYANEO.
Other things:
- Crazy $2000 for ASUS RTX “4090” eGPU with proprietary connector vs. GPD’s standardized OCuLink
- ASUS with pushy BIOS updates and questionable benefits, sometimes even performance regressions
- Windows 11 touch keyboard appears automatically in text fields, and more comfortable than the Steam desktop mode on-screen keyboard
- Steam Deck with 60 fps V-Sync cap sounds more closely like ROG Ally on “Silent”, without annoying high frequency noise. But once uncapped, sounds like ROG Ally on “Turbo” and with high frequency noise.
- The reviewed ROG Ally also developed a malfunctioning SD card reader, like many reports.
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