Asus ROG Xbox Ally X20 Review: OLED Beauty at a Steep Price

Ever wondered what happens when you take a solid handheld and slap a gorgeous OLED screen on it? That's basically the Asus ROG Xbox Ally X20 in a nutshell. It's the 20th-anniversary edition of Asus' handheld line, and while it brings some welcome upgrades, it also comes with a price tag that'll make your wallet weep.

Let's start with the good stuff. The X20 swaps the standard Ally X's 7-inch IPS panel for a 7.4-inch OLED display that's brighter (1400 nits vs 500 nits) and boasts a snappy 0.2 ms response time. It's a beauty, with DisplayHDR True Black 1400 certification that makes colors pop and blacks deep. You also get TMR thumbsticks, refined triggers, a new cooling system, and a slightly tweaked design with adjustable D-pad corners and grooved face buttons. It all feels more thoughtful and refined than the original.

But here's the kicker: under the hood, it's identical to the Xbox Ally X. Same AMD Ryzen Z2 Extreme chip, same 24 GB LPDDR5X RAM, same 1 TB SSD. So performance is basically the same as last year's model. You're paying $1,300 (or £1,300 in the UK) for the OLED and the refinements, which is $300 more than the standard Ally X. That's a tough pill to swallow, especially when the memory crisis has skewed prices across the board.

The X20 runs Windows 11 with Asus' Armoury Crate software, and switching between Xbox and Windows modes is smooth, though it still doesn't feel like a true console experience. Battery life is rated at 80 Wh, same as before, and it weighs a bit more at 756 g due to the bigger screen. One quirk: no charger in the box, so you'll need a fast one to get full 35 W performance when plugged in.

So, should you buy it? If you're a sucker for OLED and want a premium handheld for big-budget games like Cyberpunk 2077 and Horizon, the X20 is arguably the best ROG Ally yet. But if you're fine with IPS or you live in the UK where the MSI Claw with G3 is only £100 more, you might want to think twice. The standard Ally X is £400 less and offers the same performance.

At the end of the day, the X20 is a luxury upgrade for those who value screen quality above all else. It's the best ROG Ally on the market, but it's not the best value. Will you be picking one up, or is the price too steep for you? Let us know in the comments!