ASUS ROG Xbox Ally X RC73XA 2025, Ryzen AI Z2 Extreme, 24GB, 1TB SSD, Black

The ASUS ROG Xbox Ally X RC73XA is a handheld gaming PC with a Ryzen AI Z2 Extreme processor, 24GB of RAM, and a 1TB SSD. It handles 1080p gaming well and has a bigger battery than most handhelds. Screen quality and port selection are average, and AI performance is weak, but for portable gaming it's a solid choice at $1,179 USD.

The Ryzen AI Z2 Extreme is the star of the show. Eight cores, sixteen threads, 2.0 GHz base with a 5.0 GHz turbo, and 24MB of smart cache. In our database, the CPU sits at the 71st percentile for this category, which is solid but not chart-topping. The Radeon integrated graphics land at the 70th percentile, so you're getting capable 1080p gaming performance, but don't expect desktop GPU frame rates. The 24GB of LPDDR5 RAM is a nice touch, especially since many handhelds ship with 16GB and struggle with multitasking.

The 1TB PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD is a real strength. Storage lands at the 80th percentile, and boot times plus game load times are fast. The 7 inch FHD IPS panel runs at 120Hz, which makes fast-paced games feel smooth. Screen quality is middle of the pack at the 53rd percentile, so colors and brightness are fine but not exceptional. The weakest area by far is AI and LLM workloads at 28.9 out of 100, so if you're planning to run local AI models, this isn't the device for that.

Compared to the Apple MacBook Pro M4 Max, the Ally X is a completely different animal. The MacBook is a productivity and creative work powerhouse with a much better screen and far stronger CPU performance, but it's not a gaming handheld and it costs significantly more. The Lenovo ThinkPad P14s Gen 6 is a business workhorse with better port selection and reliability, but it's heavier and not built for gaming on the go. The HP OMEN Transcend 14 is probably the closest competitor in spirit, a compact gaming laptop with a dedicated GPU, but it's still a laptop, not a handheld.

The MSI Prestige and Samsung Galaxy Book5 Pro are thin-and-light productivity machines. They'll beat the Ally X on screen quality and portability for office work, but they can't match the gaming focus or the handheld form factor. If you want a handheld specifically, the Ally X's main competition is other handhelds like the Steam Deck or Lenovo Legion Go, though those aren't in our direct comparison set here. The Ally X's 24GB RAM and 1TB SSD give it an edge over many of those alternatives.

At $1,179 USD, the Ally X RC73XA is priced like a decent gaming laptop, which makes the value proposition tricky. You're paying for portability and the handheld form factor. If you don't need a device you can hold in your hands, a traditional gaming laptop at this price will give you a bigger screen and better cooling. But if you want a handheld that can run Windows games natively, the 24GB of RAM and 1TB SSD make this a more complete package than cheaper handhelds that skimp on memory and storage. The 80Wh battery also means you won't be tethered to a wall outlet as often.

The ASUS ROG Xbox Ally X RC73XA is a handheld gaming PC that sits in a weird but interesting spot. It's got the guts of a compact gaming laptop squeezed into a 0.72kg body with a 7 inch 120Hz touchscreen. At $1,179 USD, it's priced like a mid-range gaming laptop but plays like something you can actually hold in your hands. The Ryzen AI Z2 Extreme chip is the headline here, an 8-core part that boosts up to 5.0 GHz, paired with 24GB of LPDDR5 RAM and a 1TB NVMe SSD.

People searching for a handheld gaming PC usually want to know two things: can it run real games, and will the battery survive a commute. The short answer is yes and mostly. The 80Wh battery is bigger than what you'd find in most handhelds, and the 24GB of RAM means you won't be closing Chrome just to launch a game. Windows 11 Home is the OS, so you get full PC game compatibility, not a locked-down console store.

It's worth being clear about what this is. It's not a laptop replacement for productivity work, and it's not trying to be a MacBook. It's a gaming-first device with a touchscreen, Thunderbolt connectivity, and enough storage to hold a decent Steam library. The compact score in our database lands at the 85th percentile, which means it's genuinely one of the better options for portable gaming right now.

Skip this if you don't need a handheld. A gaming laptop at the same $1,179 USD price will give you a bigger screen, better cooling, and likely a dedicated GPU. Also skip it if you care about screen quality, the display is average at best, or if you need lots of ports, since port selection is a weak spot at the 33rd percentile. And if you're planning to run local AI models or LLM workloads, look elsewhere. The AI performance score of 28.9 out of 100 is one of the weakest we've seen in this category. For productivity work, a thin-and-light like the Samsung Galaxy Book5 Pro or MSI Prestige will serve you better.

Should you buy the ASUS ROG Xbox Ally X RC73XA? If you want a handheld gaming PC with enough RAM and storage to actually use it as a daily driver, yes. The 24GB of LPDDR5 RAM and 1TB NVMe SSD solve the two biggest complaints people have about handhelds, running out of memory and running out of space. The Ryzen AI Z2 Extreme handles 1080p gaming at 120Hz without breaking a sweat, and the 80Wh battery means you can actually play for a while away from an outlet.

But if you don't specifically need the handheld form factor, a gaming laptop at this price will give you more performance per dollar. And if you care about screen quality or port selection, this device is average at best. The AI performance is also a weak spot, so don't buy this expecting to run local language models. For pure gaming on the go, though, it's a strong pick.