GoKawiilTL;DR ASUS had previously announced a version of its ROG Xbox Ally handheld that comes with an OLED display as part of a bundle with the ROG XREAL R1 Edition 20 AR glasses.
An ASUS spokesperson has now confirmed that the handheld will eventually be available on its own.
Pricing and availability aren’t yet known.
Last month, ASUS announced a new and improved variant of its ROG Xbox Ally handheld. The ROG Xbox Ally X20 comes with a handful of improvements over previous models, including a larger, brighter, OLED display — a big get coming from the LCD panels used in previous iterations. At the time, it seemed that model was exclusive to a bundle that also came with a pair of XREAL AR glasses. Now, though, ASUS has confirmed the refreshed handheld will eventually be available on its own.
An ASUS spokesperson confirmed to The Verge‘s Sean Hollister that the company is in the process of working out when exactly customers will be able to buy an Ally X20 on its own. We still don’t know how much it’ll cost, but it’s safe to assume it’ll be pricey: the current top-end ROG Xbox Ally handheld, the Ally X, goes for a cool $1,000.
Hollister reports that he got to play around with the Xbox Ally X20 for a couple of hours and came away impressed. Its screen is a 7.4″ OLED rather than the 7″ IPS LCD panel both lesser Xbox Ally handhelds come with. The new panel is still 1080p, but it comes with a much higher peak brightness of 1,400 nits and is predictably much better suited for play in bright environments.
The controls are also evidently quite nice. Hollister reports that the Ally X20’s face buttons in particular are some of the best he’s experienced on any gaming handheld. The X20 also comes with an adjustable D-pad that can mechanically switch between four-way and eight-way configurations — a unique little perk that ASUS reportedly pulled off quite well.
We still don’t know when the ASUS ROG Xbox Ally X20 will be available or how much it’ll cost, but it’s good to know you won’t have to pay for a pair of ROG XREAL R1 Edition 20 AR glasses to get one — at least eventually.
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