7 Months Later: My Experience With the ASUS ROG Xbox Ally X

Handheld gaming has always had a special place in my heart. My first gaming device was a Game Boy I got for my seventh birthday, and ever since then I’ve always loved the idea of taking games with me wherever I go. Over the years, handheld gaming evolved a lot. From Nintendo handhelds to cloud gaming setups and portable accessories, but the core appeal always stayed the same for me: convenience, comfort, and gaming fitting naturally into everyday life.

That’s where the ASUS ROG Xbox Ally X comes in.

After roughly seven months with it, this device has become a much bigger part of my gaming routine than I expected. Not because it replaced everything else I own, but because it fits so naturally into the Xbox ecosystem I’ve already spent over 20 years in.

One of the biggest surprises with the XAX is how familiar it felt almost immediately.

Yes, it’s Windows-based. Yes, you still occasionally run into PC-style quirks. But the fullscreen Xbox experience, and now Xbox Mode, immediately felt comfortable to me as someone who has spent decades inside the Xbox ecosystem.

That matters more than specs ever will.

I didn’t buy this device because I suddenly wanted to become a hardcore PC gamer. I bought it because I wanted something flexible that still felt connected to Xbox, Game Pass, my library, my saves, my achievements, and the way I already play games.

And for the most part, that’s exactly what this became.

Game Pass on a handheld still feels kind of wild sometimes. Being able to install or stream modern games from the couch, in bed, while traveling, or during short breaks in the day fits naturally into how I game now. Xbox Play Anywhere deserves even more credit than it gets because that feature alone completely changed how often I move between devices.

Before the XAX, I used to split gaming time between my Series X, my Series S with the xScreen setup, and cloud gaming through a Backbone Pro and later the OhSnap MCON. That setup already gave me flexibility, but the XAX consolidated so much of that into one device.

Now I’d honestly say around 75% of my gaming happens on the XAX itself, with the remaining 25% split between the Series X and Series S. At this point, my Series S almost feels more like a streaming server attached to another TV than my primary way to play.

That’s not something I expected when I bought this thing.

One thing I’ve realized after seven months is that convenience matters more than ever once gaming has to coexist with work, responsibilities, and adult life in general.

As much as I still enjoy sitting down in front of a TV for a big cinematic experience, there are a lot of nights where I simply don’t feel like parking myself in one spot for hours. The XAX thrives in those moments.

Playing on the couch while something is on TV in the background. Laying in bed for an hour before sleep. Sneaking in a quick session during downtime. Traveling without feeling like you’re leaving modern gaming behind entirely. Those moments add up fast.

And some games genuinely feel better handheld.

Side scrollers especially feel perfect on this thing. RPGs and backlog games also work incredibly well because handheld gaming somehow makes long games feel easier to chip away at consistently.

Cyberpunk 2077 became another great example of that. I own the game on console, but I ended up putting around 50 hours into it through Xbox Cloud Gaming on the XAX because cloud streaming has quietly become really good. Sitting there playing Cyberpunk handheld while relaxing on the couch still feels slightly ridiculous in the best way possible.

I also ended up enjoying the tinkering side of the device more than I expected. I’m the kind of person who doesn’t mind messing with settings, updates, launchers, and software, so the occasional Windows handheld quirks never really bothered me much. I even went all-in with EmuDeck and emulation setups. Huge shoutout to Pete Talks Tech for some incredibly helpful walkthroughs there.

Ironically, the XAX also got me more interested in PC storefronts like Steam for the first time, which has honestly been nice. But even with that, I still find myself buying most games in the Xbox ecosystem because Xbox Play Anywhere is just too convenient. Being able to move between console and handheld seamlessly without rebuying games or worrying about saves is one of the biggest strengths of the entire experience.

That said, the XAX definitely still has moments where it reminds you it’s fundamentally a PC. Updates can occasionally behave strangely, Game Bar features sometimes roll out inconsistently, and you still deal with the occasional Windows-style weirdness. Thankfully, Xbox Mode collecting all installed games into one library regardless of launcher helps the experience feel much cleaner and more console-like overall.

But none of those things have been dealbreakers for me because the overall experience continues to outweigh the annoyances.

In fact, one of the more encouraging parts of owning the XAX has been watching the support continue improving the device over time. Xbox Mode keeps evolving, updates continue refining the experience, and it genuinely feels like Xbox is learning in real time what handheld gaming could look like inside its ecosystem.

Would I love a true first-party Xbox handheld someday? Absolutely.

But in 2026, this honestly feels like the closest thing we have.

And after seven months, the XAX hasn’t become a novelty device sitting on a shelf somewhere. It became one of my primary ways to play games.

That’s probably the highest compliment I can give it.