The ROG Xbox Ally might not be the handheld we want, but it's the portable we need in terms of price

ROG Xbox Ally on green TV unit with hands in forefront holding controllers out of focus.

I haven't been very nice to the white ROG Xbox Ally. On many occasions, I've mocked it for its lower-spec AMD Ryzen Z2 chipset, compared it to the best gaming handheld contenders from a few years ago, and, perhaps justifiably, been a little mean. It's finally time for the Windows gizmo to stick it to me, though, as it's now the affordable portable PC to watch.

Unlike most of its handheld gaming PC counterparts, the base Xbox Ally has managed to weather RAMageddon. Even the once heralded Steam Deck OLED, my previous price-conscious pick, now comes in at just under a grand for the 1TB model, and premium newcomers like the MSI Claw 8 EX AI+ (catchy name, huh?) are closer to $2,000.