HIGHLIGHTS
* The ASUS ROG Ally will be available for purchase in India via Flipkart.
* As per the Flipkart listing, the device will go on sale on July 7.
* The ROG Ally features a 7-inch Full HD+ 120Hz display, AMD Ryzen Z1 chipset, 16GB of RAM, and 512GB SSD storage.
* Asus ROG Ally was launched in two processor variants in global markets
* The handheld gaming device will also launch in India, Asus has confirmed
* Asus is yet to reveal pricing and availability for the ROG Ally in India.
After a successful global unveil, the highly anticipated gaming device of 2023 – ROG Ally is all set to launch in India next month. This handheld Windows PC console by ASUS ROG- the no.1 gaming brand, aims to revolutionize gaming in India’s esports community.
With its exceptional performance, versatility, and compact design, the ROG Ally promises to be the perfect gaming companion on the go.
Get ready for a gaming sensation that will leave you in awe!
The much-awaited ROG Ally will be exclusively launched on 12th July on ASUS Exclusive Stores, ASUS Eshop & Flipkart.
However, to meet the demand for the gaming community ASUS will be hosting a special Flipkart Flash sale on 7th July 2023.
The Flash Sale would be only open for one day on Flipkart.
In addition to this, the first 200 customers who purchase the ROG Ally from ASUS Eshop or ASUS Stores on July 12th will receive a complimentary ROG Ally Case worth INR 2000.
To redeem this offer, customers can visit asuspromo.in Prepare yourself for an immersive and transformative gaming experience with ROG Ally.
After unveiling its first-ever gaming handheld device recently, Asus teased its arrival in India, stirring much excitement within the handheld gaming space. And now, it has finally been announced in India.
It comes with all the flagship elements like a 120Hz display, a Ryzen Z1 chipset, and much more. Find out more here.
ASUS ROG Ally Sale Date Revealed
As per the Flipkart listing, the ASUS ROG Ally will be available for purchase on Flipkart starting July 7th.
This means that we can expect the device to launch before the sale date. ASUS is yet to share an official launch date of the handheld gaming console.
Asus ROG Ally: Price and Availability
The Asus ROG Ally will be sold in India for Rs 69,990. It will be available via Flipkart, Asus’ e-store, and the Asus retail outlets from July 12, 2023.
Flipkart will also host a Flash Sale on July 7 for those of you who can’t wait to get your hands on the gaming console.
Apart from this, the first 200 customers to purchase the device from Asus’ e-store and offline store, will get gifted with a complimentary case worth Rs 2,000.
| Model | Starting Price (INR) | Platforms |
| ROG Ally | INR 69,990 | Online: ASUS e-shop/ Flipkart
Brand Store: ASUS Exclusive Stores/ ROG Stores |
Asus ROG Ally: Specs and Features
The debut gaming console from Asus offers a 7-inch Full-HD display with a 120Hz refresh rate and 500 nits of brightness. The panel comes with DTX Coating and is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass Victus.
To offer an enhanced gaming experience, there are additional display features like AMD’s FreeSync Premium, wide sRGB 100% color gamut, and 7ms response time.
The ROG Ally is powered by AMD’s latest Ryzen ZI processor paired with AMD Radeon graphics.
It packs 16GB of LPDDR5 RAM and 512GB of PCIe 4.0 NVMe M.2 SSD. ASUS has designed a new Zero Gravity Thermal System mesh design and dual fan system to maintain bearable temperatures.
With this console, you get the full handheld gaming experience, thanks to full-fledged controls galore. It comes with the customary ABXY buttons, a D-pad, L&R Hall Effect, analog triggers, L&R bumpers, 2 assignable grip buttons, and much more.
For long-duration gaming sessions, there is a 40Wh battery with a 65W fast charger bundled within the box. You get 3 months of Xbox Game Pass for free along with Windows 11 out of the box.
Other than that, there is support for Dolby Atmos speakers, Hi-Res audio, AI noise-canceling microphones, Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth version 5.2, ROG XG Mobile Interface, and much more.
It will be available in the white color option.
ASUS ROG Ally Specifications
* Display: 7-inch IPS-level display, up to 120Hz refresh rate, Full HD+ 1920 x 1080 pixels resolution, FreeSync Premium, Dolby Vision, Gorilla Glass Victus protection, 7ms response time, up to 500 nits brightness.
* Processor: AMD Ryzen Z1 4nm Processor with AMD Radeon Graphics, AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme 4nm Processor with AMD Radeon Graphics.
* RAM & Storage: 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD storage, UHS-II microSD card reader.
* Connectivity: ROG XG Mobile Interface and USB Type-C combo port, 3.5mm combo audio jack, Bluetooth v5.2, Wi-Fi 6E.
* Software: Windows 11
* Other Features: Dolby Atmos, Hi-Res certification, Built-in array microphone, 2-speaker system with Smart Amplifier Technology, AI noise-cancelling technology
* Dimensions: 280 x 111 x 21.2 ~ 32.4mm * Weight: 608 grams. * Battery: 40WHr, 65W charger
ASUS ROG Ally Sale Date Revealed By Flipkart Listing
As per the Flipkart listing, the ASUS ROG Ally will go on sale on July 7. This does one way suggest that the ROG Ally will launch in India a few days before the sale date. Maybe we can expect the device to debut in India in the last week of this month or at the beginning of July.
As mentioned above, ASUS is yet to reveal the launch date of the ASUS ROG Ally for the Indian market. Since the company has teased the launch of the device, we can expect it to reveal the ROG Ally India launch date soon.
As far as the specifications are concerned, the ROG Ally flaunts a 7-inch IPS-level display with a Full HD+ resolution and a 120Hz refresh rate. The display panel has up to 500 nits brightness, Dolby Vision support, and Gorilla Glass Victus protection.
The device is powered by AMD’s Ryzen Z1 Extreme processor which is coupled with 16GB of RAM and 512GB of SSD storage.
There’s also a base version which comes with Ryzen Z1 SoC. Furthermore, the device also has a UHS-II microSD card reader support, a 3.5mm audio jack, ROG XG Mobile Interface, and a USB Type-C combo port.
Additionally, the ROG Ally also features a heat pipe and dual fan design with fluid bearings. It packs a 40Whr battery which supports 65W fast charging.
In the global market, the base ROG Ally model is priced at $599 (roughly Rs 49,200), while the variant with the Ryzen Z1 Extreme processor retails for $699 (roughly Rs 57,400).
We shall get to learn the official pricing and availability details of the ROG Ally once it launches in India in the next couple of days.
Can ROG Ally lure customers in India?
Asus’ first handheld gaming console ROG Ally is headed to India months after it debuted in markets such as the US and the UK. In a Twitter announcement, Asus teased the upcoming launch of ROG Ally in India through a poster showing a silhouette of the console. However, the company did not share the exact timeline for the launch.
“Get ready for gaming that never stops.” wrote Asus ROG India on Twitter.
While the details around the launch of ROG Ally are scarce at the moment, the announcement kicks off anticipation in gamers who previously had no other option than the Nintendo Switch Lite in the handheld gaming category.
The toned-down Nintendo Switch was also available through third parties, making it less convincing for buyers. Other popular devices such as Valve Steam Deck never made it to India officially.
As such, the arrival of ROG Ally directly from the company is good news for gamers.
The Asus ROG Ally is already a hit product, having garnered mixed reviews from critics and users.
Most negative feedback came when Ally originally arrived in May, but ever since then, Asus has made dramatic changes to the software.
Earlier this month, Ally received a major update, fixing several bugs and software issues, making Ally a better device.
The Indian units are likely to ship with all those fixes, and if, in a rare case, you run into trouble, Asus will provide official support for ROG Ally — something Nintendo Switch Lite customers missed.
Faqs on Asus Rog Ally
1) What is ROG Ally Specifications ?
Ans) Asus ROG Ally comes in two configurations, with the higher-end model featuring an AMD 4nm Ryzen Z1 Extreme chipset, 8 cores, and 16 threads, with a boost clock speed up to 5.1GHz, and the base model featuring the AMD Ryzen Z1 chipset. Both models come with a RDNA3-based GPU with 4GB VRAM, 16GB LPDDR5 RAM, and a 512GB PCIe 4.0 NVMe M.2 SSD.
It features a 7-inch IPS panel with a 1080p resolution and 120Hz refresh rate, AMD FreeSync support and Gorilla Glass Victus protection for the display glass. Running on Windows 11, the ROG Ally offers three months of free Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and is compatible with third-party game clients such as Steam and Epic Games.
Being a ROG device, the Ally comes with ROG laptop staples, including the Armory Crate SE app. For ports, it has a 3.5mm headphone jack, USB 3.2 Gen2 Type C port, UHS-II, and a microSD card reader. The device is powered by a 40WHr battery with 65W fast charging support.
2) What is ASUS ROG Ally: Price and Availability in India?
Ans) The ROG Ally will be exclusively available on Flipkart starting from July 7. However, Asus ROG has not disclosed the official price for the Indian market at this time. But, a report claims that the handheld could be price at Rs 71,999 for the Z1 chip variant, and Rs 79,999 for the Z1 Extreme chip.
Internationally, the higher-end variant is priced at $700 (approximately Rs 58,000), while the base model is priced at $600 (around Rs 50,000). If Asus maintains similar pricing for the Indian market—the ROG Ally could present a compelling option—particularly when compared to Valve Steam Deck, which is sold at a similar or higher price point and lacks warranty coverage in India.
3) What is Asus ROG Ally vs Steam Deck: Specs Overview?
Ans) The ROG Ally is built with a custom AMD Ryzen Z1 Series processor, RDNA 3 graphics, a 7-inch 1920×1080-pixel IPS 500-nit display with a 120Hz refresh rate and 7ms response time, 16GB of LPDDR5 RAM, 512GB of PCIe Gen4 SSD storage and an extra open slot.
The ROG Ally also has dual front facing speakers and a “zero gravity thermal system” which ensures it can be rotated 360-degrees without detriment to its performance.
The Steam Deck is built with an AMD Zen 2 processor, RDNA 2 graphics, a 7-inch 1280 x 800-pixel, 400-nit display with a 60Hz refresh rate, 16GB of LPDDR5 RAM and either 64GB of eMMC or 256GB/512GB of NVMe SSD storage.
It’s no shock that the ROG Ally is coming out of the gates with better hardware than the Steam Deck, as the latter is more than a year old now.
Winner: Asus ROG Ally
Asus ROG Ally vs Steam Deck: Graphics
The ROG Ally’s graphical power is set to be superior all-around compared with Steam Deck. RDNA 3 is an undeniable improvement over RDNA 2, with AMD claiming that it offers a 50% performance-per-watt increase.
Even if it doesn’t end up being that much better, we’re confident it will deliver superior performance to the Steam Deck.
DNA 3 features second generation ray tracing and AMD Infinity Cache (enhances VRAM efficiency), alongside new features like Al Acceleration, AMD Radiance Display Engine (12-bit HDR) and chiplet design. We’d frankly be surprised if the ROG Ally wasn’t considerably stronger.
Winner: Asus ROG Ally
Asus ROG Ally vs Steam Deck: Display
The ROG Ally’s display should hold a crushing victory over the Steam Deck, but we can’t say for certain until testing is done. On paper at the very least, the ROG Ally is superior in virtually every metric with its 1920×1080-resolution, advertised 500-nit brightness and 120Hz refresh rate.
Both displays are 7-inch IPS LCD screens, but the Steam Deck falls short with its 1280×800 resolution, advertised 400 nits of brightness and 60Hz refresh rate.
However, until we know for certain how well it scores in our DCI-P3 tests and brightness tests, the Steam Deck could still come back. Resolution and refresh rate aren’t the end all be all of displays, and if we see Valve’s handheld pull ahead in those other categories, deciding the victor won’t be so easy.
Winner: Asus ROG Ally
Asus ROG Ally vs Steam Deck: Storage and RAM
The ROG Ally features a PCIe 4.0 SSD, while the Steam Deck is stuck with PCIe 3.0. While this isn’t necessarily the end of the world, the former is faster than the latter.
However, Steam Deck benefits from more storage options anywhere from 64GB to 512GB, although the eMMC isn’t anywhere near as speedy as the SSD options.
Both devices feature 16GB of LPDDR5 RAM and an additional microSD card slot for additional expansion. While the ROG Ally is likely a little faster in SSD speed, we think the Steam Deck’s additional options make this race close.
Winner: Draw
Asus ROG Ally vs Steam Deck: Size and Weight
The ROG Ally (1.33 pounds, 11 x 4.4 x 1.5 inches) is both lighter and smaller than the Steam Deck (1.47 pounds, 11.7 x 4.6 x 1.9 inches), meaning it’ll be more convenient to bring with you on the go. This isn’t at a detriment to screen size either, as both handhelds feature a 7-inch display.
Smaller isn’t a definitively positive trait, as some might prefer the slightly longer or wider handheld, but it’s hard to deny that thinner and lighter should be in the ROG Ally’s favor for a handheld gaming PC.
Winner: Asus ROG Ally
Asus ROG Ally vs Steam Deck: Software
The Ally runs Windows 11 and is fully compatible with Steam, the EA App, Epic Games, Xbox Game Pass, Ubisoft Connect, Battle.net and “more” straight out of the box.
This is huge when compared to the Steam Deck, which operates based on SteamOS and runs Steam exclusively. After all, it is a Steam machine, but it does have a bit more potential within.
As SteamOS is based on Linux architecture, some fiddling around can allow the system to download tons of different applications besides Steam, but that extra tinkering can be inconvenient.
Xbox Game Pass games can be played through Steam Deck by using Xbox Cloud Gaming, but it’s not built-in automatically. With the ROG Ally, this capability is available right out of the box.
It’s hard to deny that the ROG Ally having Epic Games, the EA App, Xbox Game Pass, Ubisoft Connect, and Battle.net over the Steam Deck is an enormous boon.
It’s a far more convenient machine to use out of the box for this reason, especially for subscribers of Game Pass or those with tons of unplayed titles on Epic Games (I fulfill both of these criteria).
It’s also hard not to let my creativity run wild here, as the inclusion of Battle.net makes me wonder if I can play a bit of WoW through it.
However, we’re still uncertain how deeply some tech savvy users can customize the ROG Ally.
Linux architecture is more malleable than a Windows 11 operating system, so if you’re someone who likes to mess around with software and modify your handheld device to be capable of new things, hold out until we have more knowledge on what the ROG Ally can do.
The ROG Ally also features Armoury Crate, which offers key binding customization, performance profiles and a control panel overlay. You can also map through gamepad, keyboard/mouse and desktop modes.
While these features aren’t enough of a dealbreaker to completely destroy Steam Deck, it is convenient to have. It also features Windows Hello for fingerprint unlocking.
The ROG Ally is shaping up to be the Steam Deck killer with the final nail in Valve’s coffin being price point.
If Asus will sell the 512GB model of its upcoming handheld for less than or exactly $649, it will be directly competing with Valve’s pricing. Considering the superior specifications, there would be an easy winner in this race.
But if the ROG Ally is more expensive, Steam Deck will reign as the budget pick. That’s a fine alternative too, as the leaked pricing wouldn’t be surprising considering what we’ve seen of the ROG Ally thus far: It is certainly the more powerful handheld, alongside its broader software support. Overall the Asus ROG Ally wins this matchup as the current champion handheld gaming PC.
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