The ASUS ROG Ally has quickly established itself as a strong competitor to the Steam Deck in the world of PC gaming handhelds. However, its price may be a drawback for those looking to game on the go. To address this, ASUS has released a budget-friendly alternative to the ROG Ally called the ROG Ally Ryzen Z1. Now, ASUS has provided a comparison between the two versions to showcase the performance difference.
The Ryzen Z1 version of the ASUS ROG Ally is not yet on our list of best handheld gaming PCs. However, according to ASUS’ gaming charts, it is more than capable of running some of today’s best PC games.
Starting at $599, the Ryzen Z1 version provides an affordable entry point into the world of PC gaming handhelds. It is $100 cheaper than the Ryzen Z1 Extreme. However, the lower price may be attributed to its slightly lower performance, as tested by ASUS.
ASUS has unveiled benchmark results on its website, comparing the performance of the Ryzen Z1 to that of the Extreme Z1 in games like Elden Ring, Cyberpunk 2077, and Diablo IV. The average FPS while plugged in and using Turbo Mode was tested, and according to ASUS, the Ryzen Z1 was able to run all AAA titles at 30 FPS or higher at 1080p. Games like EA Sports Fifa 23 even reached 57 FPS, and Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 reached over 63 FPS.
Despite the impressive performance of the Ryzen Z1, the Extreme Z1 outperforms it, with an average performance boost of 42% and a peak improvement of 55% when running Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. This is expected, considering the Extreme Z1’s significantly more powerful GPU. The Extreme Z1 version of the ROG Ally handheld features 12 RDNA 3 GPU cores and 8 CPU cores, compared to the Ryzen Z1 version’s 4 RDNA 3 GPU cores and 6 CPU cores. It is noteworthy that the non-Extreme version performs as well as it does despite the GPU specification difference.
In addition to testing at 1080p, ASUS also shared benchmark results of both versions when running games at 720p and upscaled using Radeon Super Resolution (RSR). Once again, the Ryzen Z1 Extreme displayed better performance, though the difference decreased to an average of 34%, suggesting that the GPU is less of a limitation at this resolution.
While the Ryzen Z1 version can handle many popular PC games at a stable 30 FPS, the Ryzen Z1 Extreme version offers significantly better performance. Ultimately, if you are considering adding an ASUS ROG Ally to your PC gaming setup, you will need to consider your budget and whether saving $100 is worth the performance difference.
If you are unsure about switching to PC gaming on the go, check out our ASUS ROG Ally review. Our guide to the best Steam Deck games is also a useful resource to see which titles perform well on the go, although their performance on either version of the ASUS ROG Ally may vary.