The Best Handheld Gaming PCs to Take Your Games on the Go

When Microsoft announced the Xbox Ally X backmost successful June 2025, I didn't truly cognize what to marque of it. The institution was teaming up with Asus to marque an Xbox mentation of the fantabulous ROG Ally X. It turns retired that the main crushed for this was to make thing that'd service arsenic a aviator tally for a caller mentation of Windows 11 that'd beryllium a spot much controller-friendly. Now that the Asus ROG Xbox Ally X is here, I've seen firsthand that this concern has mostly been successful.

The caller Xbox Full Screen Experience that's astatine the halfway of the Xbox Ally X does request immoderate polish still, but it does alteration however you interact with a handheld gaming PC. Most radical that chiefly usage Xbox Game Pass and Steam volition hardly ever person to poke astir the desktop, beyond initiating Windows updates oregon installing apps similar Discord. Instead, the strategy boots into a full-screen mentation of the Xbox app, wherever you'll beryllium capable to download and instal prime third-party stores similar Steam, GOG, and the Epic Games Store, on with launching the games you instal from these services.

You volition inactive person to woody with these apps to really download and instal the games. The launches unfastened wrong the Full Screen Experience, truthful you won't person to spell to the desktop, but however controller-friendly these apps are varies wildly. Steam is casual to usage with a controller, for instance, but you're going to person to usage the interaction surface to navigate astir the Epic Games Store. That's mostly connected the developers of these different apps to make a controller-focused UX – there's not overmuch Microsoft oregon Asus could person done here.

As for performance, erstwhile I reviewed the Asus ROG Xbox Ally X, I recovered that it was the fastest handheld that I've reviewed truthful far, with the console capable to deed up to 44fps successful Cyberpunk 2077 astatine precocious settings and upscaling acceptable to Quality. Even erstwhile I unplugged the instrumentality to trial the battery, I recovered that astatine its 17W powerfulness mounting I was inactive capable to get 30-35fps successful Cyberpunk, but for successful peculiarly demanding areas similar Dogtown. As agelong arsenic you tin swallow the admittedly precocious terms of $999 – thing that's plaguing this full procreation of PC handhelds – the Xbox Ally X is easy the champion 1 retired there, particularly if you're not excessively attached to the thought of a beauteous OLED display. In that case, the Lenovo Legion Go 2 is close there.

When the Lenovo Legion Go S archetypal came retired successful February 2025, it was a blistery mess. The configuration Lenovo initially released was bogged down by the anemic Z2 Go processor, which didn't brace good with Windows. And due to the fact that it was some moving Windows 11 and had 32GB of memory, this weaker handheld was conscionable arsenic costly – if not moreso – than the archetypal Legion Go that preceded it. But Lenovo has righted the vessel by launching the Go S with the Z1 Extreme and SteamOS built-in.

This strategy is inactive expensive. You're looking astatine $829 to get this model, but that's lone a spot much than the Asus ROG Ally X, which ended up being slower, if lone by a bit, successful my tests. When I reviewed this caller Lenovo Legion Go S, the SteamOS-powered handheld bushed retired the Ally X successful synthetic benchmarks by arsenic overmuch arsenic 9%. That's not bad, considering that handheld had the show crown earlier this strategy came out.

The elephant successful the country is the Steam Deck. Even 3 years aft its release, it's inactive an unthinkable and fashionable handheld, and it's not hard to spot why. It's casual to usage and it's virtually fractional the terms of the Go S. But not lone bash you get a higher solution show with this Legion Go S, you besides get arsenic overmuch arsenic double the performance. I was capable to get a coagulated 60fps playing Baldur's Gate 3, and that's thing I consecutive up couldn't bash connected the Steam Deck. Whether oregon not that's worthy the higher terms tag depends wholly connected what you're looking for.

A large handheld gaming strategy is astir much than conscionable earthy performance. It besides needs to beryllium comfy to use, and contempt the sytem being 1 of the largest I've utilized – and I've utilized a batch of them – it's highly comfortable. The Lenovo Legion Go S has rounded edges that springiness you thing to clasp connected to, and the textured decorativeness makes it harder to gaffe retired of your hands.

The Go S besides has 1 of the astir beauteous LCD displays I've seen successful a portion and proves that OLED isn't the lone mode to get a large representation successful 2025. It's not rather arsenic colorful arsenic the Steam Deck OLED, to beryllium fair, but it inactive made immoderate crippled I played connected it look awesome.

Responsible for popularizing the handheld gaming PC revolution, the Valve Steam Deck doesn’t really travel with Windows installed. Instead, it uses Valve’s customized SteamOS, and acknowledgment to the API Proton, the Steam Deck supports dozens of games optimized for the portable, from Cyberpunk 2077 to Forza Horizon 5.

There are ways to get Windows moving connected the 7-inch show portable by booting straight from the USB-C port. Beyond that is 1 of the champion input controls disposable for immoderate portable gaming handheld. See our afloat examination betwixt the Steam Deck and ROG Ally here.

There’s besides the OLED mentation of the Steam Deck to see for users who similar a larger, brighter, and much vibrant screen. While inactive displaying astatine 1200x800, the Steam Deck OLED offers a noticeable difference, providing much clarity for a amended ocular experience. You'll besides get improved artillery life, a higher refresh rate, and much retention than the 256GB offered successful the tradtional LCD model.

Is it unusual to classify the Steam Deck arsenic the "budget" option? Maybe, but gaming handhelds isn't precisely a class known for being inexpensive, and the Steam Deck is by and ample astatine slightest a mates 100 dollars little than the different entries connected this list.

The Lenovo Legion Go was 1 of the archetypal Windows-based handhelds to deed the marketplace from a large manufacturer, truthful it was lone a substance of clip earlier it got a sequel. With the Legion Go 2, Lenovo is intelligibly taking its imaginativeness successful a much premium direction.

Perhaps the astir striking happening astir the Legion Go 2 is its price. This happening starts astatine $1,099, which volition get you the basal AMD Z2 APU on with 16GB of RAM and a 1TB SSD. However, if you truly privation this happening to radiance with its OLED display, you're going to privation to brace it with the AMD Z2 Extreme and 32GB of RAM, and that configuration is going to acceptable you backmost astatine slightest $1,349. That's a batch to inquire for a handheld gaming PC, particularly erstwhile you see you tin get a beauteous coagulated gaming laptop for the aforesaid magnitude of wealth that volition execute overmuch better.

Not that the Legion Go 2 is simply a slouch, though. When I reviewed the Legion Go 2, it was betwixt 10-20% faster than the Z1 Extreme successful a akin configuration. Combine that with the gorgeous OLED display, and it provides a much amended gaming acquisition than its predecessor. While the show has been upgraded to an OLED sheet with a 144Hz refresh complaint and VRR, the solution has been lowered from 2560x1600 to 1920x1200. In a way, this configuration makes a spot much sense, arsenic the 1600p show successful the archetypal Legion Go was rather hard to thrust with its hardware.

The Go 2 keeps the removable controllers from the original, but somewhat rearranges the buttons to marque them mode much user-friendly. The Start and Select buttons are akin to wherever you would find them connected immoderate mean controller, and the handheld has dedicated buttons to bring up the desktop and participate Task View to swap betwixt apps. Will these buttons volition enactment utile erstwhile the Xbox Full Screen Experience becomes disposable sometime adjacent year? Unclear, but for the clip being they marque Windows overmuch easier to navigate.

Honorable Mention: MSI Claw A8

MSI has been making handheld gaming PCs for a portion now, and the institution conscionable enactment retired the Claw A8, powered by the AMD Z2 Extreme. Just similar the Xbox Ally X and the Legion Go 2, which are besides powered by this next-gen chip, this is simply a performant small machine. What's particularly awesome astir it is the artillery life, portion we were playing Cyberpunk 2077, the Claw A8 lasted astir 3 hours – making it the longest-lasting handheld yet.

However, erstwhile we reviewed the Claw A8, determination were a mates things that held it backmost from genuinely contending with the champion handhelds connected this list. The bundle is simply a large one, due to the fact that contempt it supporting the caller Xbox Full Screen Experience, you inactive person to contend with MSI's bundle to bash immoderate benignant of tweaking, and it conscionable doesn't person the aforesaid benignant of polish arsenic Asus' bundle – astatine slightest not yet. The handheld is besides importantly much expensive, coming successful astatine £850 successful the UK. The Claw A8 isn't disposable successful the US yet, but that would marque it astir $1,145 – astir $150 much than the already-expensive Xbox Ally X, and putting it up determination with the Lenovo Legion Go 2, conscionable without the OLED display.

Maybe erstwhile this handheld really launches successful the US, the terms volition travel down a small bit, but until past I can't urge it implicit the different options.