Microsoft's stripped-back PC gaming UI is slowing getting more stable.

The other readily accessible option would be to get a used model. Best Buy offers open box units starting at $919.99 for "Good" condition and $949.99 for "Excellent" condition. Mind you these are pre-owned, but they are Geek Squad verified and the better graded units sometimes still have all of some of their original warranty.

Hardware-wise, the ROG Xbox Ally is well-equipped for modern gaming. It includes 16GB of dual-channel RAM and a 512GB PCIe Gen4 M.2 SSD, offering fast load times and smooth multitasking. For players with large libraries, the internal storage can be upgraded as your collection of games grows.

The Xbox Full Screen Experience (or FSE) debuted late last year on the pricey Asus ROG Xbox Ally X, steadily trickling out to other Windows-based handheld gaming PCs and more traditional gaming desktops over the following months.

The Xbox Ally is a recently released model (October 2025) featuring the new AMD Ryzen Z2 A CPU, 16GB of LPDDR5 RAM, and a 512GB SSD. The Asus ROG Xbox Ally (non-X) model is equipped with a newer generation Ryzen Z2 A processor,