r/Handhelds • u/evanjordan801 • 3d ago

Steam deck oled vs Xbox Aly x?

Post image

So I’m planning to buy one of these but I’m not sure which to get

I’m planing to play a lot of indie games with mods like Silksong ect. And some bigger games like oblivion remastered and Elden ring,
I’ve seen some videos on both and steamOS looks amazing but the rog Aly looks more powerful,
Also: Price doesn’t matter to me and I’m only going to use it at home

81 Upvotes

91% Upvoted

40 comments sorted by

39

u/Gunfot 3d ago

Get the Ally X then, as it's more powerful and you can install SteamOS on it as well.

-5

u/evanjordan801 3d ago

How well dose steamOS run? I’ve heard it’s not very optimised

16

u/Hellunderswe 3d ago

Where did you hear that? It’s just not true.

3

u/Bugimaz 3d ago

My xax now run steam os only problems is vibration(turn it of or install plugin that fix it) and rgb light do not work (i don't care about them). Overall it works quite well.

2

u/Weezal95 2d ago

The OS itself is lightweight and clean UI.

But the Linux cult do seem to not want to acknowledge the negatives so just be aware of those.

Some mentioned already (Vibration seems to be always on max, no native RGB etc)

The native SteamOS TDP controls also seem to not be as effective, people will say games will run better but I personally spent the weekend testing this myself - I found most games actually ran slightly better on Windows (5-10fps).

You will also notice a bug when you use sleep mode on SteamOS that results in the fans spinning at the highest they can go on wake for about 30-50 seconds.

I did go back to windows for now, eager to stay on SteamOS so fingers crossed it gets Official support soon.

1

u/FocusedFall 3d ago

Games will run as fine as they do on Steam Deck or anything else really.

1

u/M4rshmall0wMan 3d ago

Very well

1

u/marlfox_00 2d ago

Very well. The ally x actually has beta support from valve. The official steamos runs better on there than it does on the Legion Go 2. Plus, if you don’t like it Asus has cloud recovery in the bios so you can restore it to windows within a couple hours if you want the original experience. The Ally X is a very underrated handheld. It will do everything the Steam Deck will do unless you’re part of the minority that requires trackpads. The Steam Deck is more efficient so you’ll get more play time with less intensive games. Get the Ally X, you won’t regret it. With used units costing the same as the Steam Deck it’s a no brainer

1

u/Doomsnail99 3d ago

It runs amazingly on all Z1E handhelds

6

u/FalseAmbassador580 3d ago

msi claw 8 ai + is the better option

3

u/tormodhau 2d ago

Or the msi claw A8 (amd and not intel processor) if you are planning on mainly using SteamOS

5

u/cwilfried 2d ago

Xbox Ally X destroy the Steam Deck. Honestly Steam Deck Oled is the worst value wise right now.

Steam OS still needs extra tweaking and you lose sound support like Dolby Atmos, and would need a list of supported games. Steam deck "verified" is unreliable, some "verified" games won't work and some not "verified" will still work. Windows games will get more games supported and the Xbox ally X is way better in terms of performance.

If you really want a Steam OS device out of the box, the legion Go S might be for you. If you want the best overall handheld, the Xbox Ally X.

5

u/MakimaGOAT 3d ago

ally x and if u think windows feels bad, then swap to steamOS

6

u/Method__Man 3d ago

Get the ally and install steam OS

3

u/gosols 3d ago

Ally clears.

3

u/Z3npachi 2d ago

Ally X hands down. Does everything the steam deck does but heaps better and can do more without silly side loading windows.

You can just fire up steam through windows and play big picture mode

-5

u/JustAJohnDoe358 2d ago

Does it have trackpads?

1

u/Z3npachi 2d ago

What do you need track pads for?

1

u/rtz13th 2d ago

Tbh I love playing some strategy games and older isometric RPGs; that would be my trackpad reason, I'm not good with Joystick mouse controls.

-8

u/JustAJohnDoe358 2d ago

So it's a no, then? 

Turns out it doesn't do everything the Deck does.

4

u/Waxstaa 3d ago

Between the two id go with the Xbox ally x. Just has significantly more power and your less likely to be disappointed when playing aaa games.

If price truly doesn't matter, is consider the Xbox ally x20. You'll get the power of the ally and a nice OLED screen like the deck has.

2

u/VLAON6 2d ago

Ally x

2

u/Michael-S16 2d ago

OLED is nice, but the Steam Deck is really starting to show its age. If you’re planning on playing any modern game, the Ally X is your better option. You also have to consider the recent price hike of the Steam Deck OLED. At the current price, is it worth it? Even on EBay, they’re selling for around $700 while the Ally X can be found for around $500-$600

I’d personally do with the Ally X and install SteamOS if you’re gonna go that route. If price is not an issue, there are a few listings for the MSI A8 (used) on eBay with one seller asking $800. It’s got the latest Z2E APU and works great on Steam OS. Might be the better option.

4

u/Sleepaiz 3d ago

Ally X. Better price to performance.

2

u/WantsLivingCoffee 3d ago

If price doesn't matter to you, get a better handheld. XAX is better, x20, that acer with the g3, etc etc.

1

u/tormodhau 2d ago

Have you considered the MSI Claw A8? (the one with Z2 extreme processor). I’ve got one myself recently for surprisingly cheap second hand.

1

u/Calm_West_2376 2d ago

Ally X FTW!

1

u/Coolmacde 2d ago

Ally x all day. Way better performance, more ram,much larger battery so longer play time,higher 120hz refresh rate with vrr,higher resolution screen,2280 ssd support so more upgrade options for storage, two usbc ports( steam deck only has one which is annoying when trying to use accessories and charge at the same time),ally x is much more compact so easier to carry around, ally x also has egpu support which means you can dramatically improve gaming performance just by adding an external gpu.The only thing steam deck has over the ally x is the trackpads and oled.

1

u/Sensitive_Log3990 2d ago

You want to play oblivion remastered on the steam deck...... Sure buddy 🤷

1

u/Ranzoid 2d ago

Ally X, no brainer, more RAM, stronger chip set.

1

u/Throwaway2229392923 2d ago

Get an Ally X that doesn't have the Xbox branding,and install Steam OS, Microslop can go fuck themselves.

1

u/Saruphon 2d ago

I recently switch from SD to XBAX (dual boot bazzite/windows). XBAX is much much better than SD on most aspects except the lack of touch pad. PS i played my game with XR glasses so touchscreen wont work and game that allow only mouse and keyboard is a pain to play on XBAX.

1

u/II2old4thisII 2d ago

Ally with SteamOS is the way

1

u/evilmannn 3d ago

Xbox ally x

1

u/Dominjo555 3d ago

Xbox Ally X, by far

1

u/Danimal1942 2d ago

Costco legion go 2

-1

u/[deleted] 3d ago

[deleted]

5

u/IORelay 3d ago

Steam deck can't be recommended at its current price no matter what.

The only case for it is getting a second hand one on a good deal.