this post was submitted on 09 Jun 2025
-14 points (36.0% liked)

PC Gaming

11380 readers
253 users here now

For PC gaming news and discussion. PCGamingWiki

Rules:

  1. Be Respectful.
  2. No Spam or Porn.
  3. No Advertising.
  4. No Memes.
  5. No Tech Support.
  6. No questions about buying/building computers.
  7. No game suggestions, friend requests, surveys, or begging.
  8. No Let's Plays, streams, highlight reels/montages, random videos or shorts.
  9. No off-topic posts/comments, within reason.
  10. Use the original source, no clickbait titles, no duplicates. (Submissions should be from the original source if possible, unless from paywalled or non-english sources. If the title is clickbait or lacks context you may lightly edit the title.)

founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
EXiLExJD@lemmy.ca
UncleBadTouch@lemmy.ca
KairuByte@lemmy.dbzer0.com
-14
The official Xbox Ally handheld is so exciting. (lemmy.world)
submitted 4 days ago by atomicpoet@lemmy.world to c/pcgaming@lemmy.ca
24 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

It’s everything I want in an Xbox handheld.

It runs Windows. But it’s not stock Windows but an optimized version for gaming. And you have access to Steam, GOG, EGS, itch.io–and of course, Xbox Game Pass.

The Zen 2 Extreme chip is a giant step up in terms of mobile APUs, and offers a 30% gain on the Zen 1 in terms of graphical performance.

Apparently, people who’ve tried it say it feels like an Xbox controller. Which is good. I like the Xbox controller.

Now am I going to buy it?

Unlikely. My household already has two handhelds, and they each fit our needs very well.

But you know what? I’m glad Microsoft is taking the handheld market seriously. Both Nintendo and Valve should feel pressure to perform.

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[–] NGnius@lemmy.ca 5 points 4 days ago (3 children)

It's mostly an iteration on existing handhelds with extra Microsoft changes on top. It's exciting if you don't want to leave the comfort of Windows. Unfortunately, it's just as much of a nightmare for privacy and other ethical reasons as other Windows handhelds. It also seems like it's going to be power hungry and not aimed at directly competing with the Steam Deck, which is still the industry standard right now. Handhelds need more efficiency, not more performance.

Also it's Z2 Extreme, not Zen 2 Extreme. The Steam Deck's APU is based on Zen 2, the Z2 is based on Zen 5.

[–] dlove67 2 points 4 days ago (1 children)

The Steam Deck’s APU is based on Zen 2, the Z2 is based on Zen 5.

Well, "Z2 Extreme" is, as you noted, Zen 5 based.

"Z2", though, is anything from zen2 to zen5, depending on the specific SKU

[–] NGnius@lemmy.ca 1 points 4 days ago

Good point (I shouldn't drop words). The Z2 A, which is in the lower-end Xbox Ally X, is basically the Steam Deck's chip. AMD naming is so strange.

load more comments (1 replies)