Handheld PC's biggest nightmare: ASUS Rog Ally 

Excellent points made here. This video caught my attention because I have had identical issues. I bought an open box from Best Buy for $450. It didn’t come with a charger or box, but I didn’t care. Was happy I managed to find a Z1 extreme for that price. After I took it home, I noticed LB didn’t work. Like you, I tried to reinstall drivers. Finally decided to test it in the bios. After getting no feedback I coughed up the cash for a brand new unit. It’s been problem free until today when the SD card stopped working. I noticed this only happened when I ran the device at 30W. That definitely seems like a thermal issue…Which sucks because I love the device. Guess it may be time for an OLED steam deck. 😂

Sorry you had such a bad experience. Personally i purchased a open box from Best Buy for $650 and so far so good, no issues to report. I've seen and read the reported issues and tbh it doesn't instill confidence on the longevity of this device, however as a pc building/gamer i figured that's a risk i was willing to take. Asus has lost my confidence with the way they handled the motherboard fiasco but what can one expect from a cooperation that's out to make money. I have a dual boot Steam Deck but i haven't used it since my Ally purchase. Time will tell if i have a lemon or not. Thanks for sharing your experience.

Thats mad, i havent had any issues with mine ive been running it hard everyday managed to finish so many games.

I think ive learned thru all of this that asud could be an amazing company if not for quality control issues. Im a new owner and the device works great. Its either gonna stay this way or explode in my hands Edit: I talked a lot of smack on this until i realized I had to get my switched fixed during COVID as my first switch has an SD card malfunction.

I haven't had a single problem with mine, The fact that you've had issues with two of them is shocking.

Dyam bro you a hater!!! Jk, I completely agree with every point you made. I’m a handheld enthusiast so I really wanted one. Bought one day one, returned two weeks later with multiple issues plus knowing the sd card reader is a lemon. I waited to see what asus would do to address the sd card issue, they came out and put a band aide on it. I still decided to buy a second one because I like it enough. Steam deck is on another level because of valve’s commitment. Asus made a nice handheld and then pooped their pants… to what it’s worth, my second ally feels pretty snappy, it works as expected so far. So their QC is probably a big source of the problem. Anyway, thanks for the review. Potential buyers need to be aware. There are too many fanboys on Reddit.

I agree with you about the micro SD card slot. My first unit had it's reader die. I don't think it's heat, honestly SD cards can withstand a lot of heat. The reader itself is just a generic reader same that is in basically every device out there. It seems like some kind of voltage issue. It seems to pop up for everyone differently but for many it's been trying to read or write large files to the SD card.

Bought as a open box from Best Buy have had zero problems!!! 1TB sd card no problems reading it. I think a lot of people return these devices because it has a high learning curve. Always remember online is not a good measure of how real world devices are doing. People will complain faster than they praise. That's why the online problems appear a lot larger than they probably are in real life. Maybe a 100 out of 10,000 with an issue, but those 100 people are way louder than the 9,900 happy customers.

So far so good with mine but it's always at the back of your mind with the sd card. I only use power mode and never tinker with turbo so fingers crossed my sd won't fry. Asus need to own these issues or repair the device with an ssd upgrade option.

Working on our next video about the ally, and win4 should be out Tuesday!

Agree with all your points.

I had a lemon of a device. My ROG. Didn't launch the games, left speaker would cut in and out, would overheat within minutes the top two buttons didnt work..yeah super pissed bc i really enjoy the ROG. ..mind you I also have the switch oled and s.deck.

Mine is due back tomorrow from the repair centre. SD card failure was due back last week but after replacing the faulty parts it failed again going through testing. I have absolutely no confidence in this product and Asus have the worst customer service on the planet.

Rog Ally was an amazing handheld pc. It has the power, but the sd card is breaking. I had to return it. Steam Deck is way better, and I can not wait for Steam Deck 2.

I agree with you entirely.. Mine lasted 2 weeks.. 2 weeks of struggling with early adopter software glitches (expected).. frequent lock ups and crashes.. controller issues.. and yes... fantastic screen!... at the 2 weeks mark.. the SD card reader was bricking the system, any time that an SD card was in the slot (not hot.. even at start up). It was just a painful, stressful experience.. I literally spent more time monkeying with the hardware, then I ever did playing it. It was a steaming pile of hot garbage.. and such a disappointment. I look forward to when the Steam Deck is availble in Australia, via Steam.. and not some shady 3rd party seller :).. Thanks for your excellent video journaling your experience :).. New Subscriber here :)

Did you pick up a Legion Go? Would love to see a comparison

This all sounds like user error. On your first device you should have used a mouse and keyboard. Your second device just use headphones. Your third device, like you mentioned just upgrade the storage and don't worry about the issues or even bring them up. Did you even do any research before buying it? /s

Your experience its not everyone experience , so take it as what it is. its just your 2 cents on this. i have both and i will sell SD since i no longer see any use to it !

Agree with all points. Excellent presentation. After this I won't ever buy Asus again. Early adopter woes. The future support for this thing from Asus looks and feels extremely grim. Radio silence for over a week now with more and more SDs and readers getting fried everyday as well as returns at an alarming rate.

Those of us who have been following the whole AMD zen 4 CPU-frying fiasco, knew well to steer away from a console made exclusively by ASUS.

nice video , but your audio so low

Did my class action lawsuit comment get deleted because I provided the link? Y'all can Google it it should come up

Ive had 3sd cards in the device none work anymore but all work fine in other products. If i put the sdcard into my dock the ally recognises it and plays as normal. I put a brannd new one in the other day and absolutely nothing. I have one card that does beep every time i put it in the slot but it doesn't show up. Im thinking of buying another steam deck and holding on to this to see if the can sort the issues. Asus have refused to refund my money iveonly had it 23days.

Couldnt disagree with you more, the rog is awesome, by the way asus has been doing good with the updates, they just sold half a million units.