Asus ROG Ally's battery life has also been improved ahead of launch
Asus is claiming significant improvements to the ROG Ally's battery life after recent performance improvements
Asus is claiming it’s improved the ROG Ally’s battery life ahead of the handheld’s launch on June 13.
The company has already rolled out a firmware update that has increased the portable PC’s performance by a significant margin, suggesting some Asus ROG Ally reviews may need to be revisited.
According to The Verge, Asus’s global marketing director Galip Fu said the team has spent more time optimizing the handheld’s battery, such as giving players the ability to turn some of the AMD Z1 Extreme processor’s eight cores off during gameplay.
➡️ The Shortcut Skinny: Asus ROG Ally battery
👀 Asus has claimed it’s improved the ROG Ally’s battery life ahead of launch
🔋 The company says players should get up to 10 to 20% more playtime per charge
😬 According to Asus, around 10% of original buyers backed out after initial reviews
📅 The Asus ROG Ally is out on June 13 for $599 and $699
The changes should result in a 10 to 20% improvement in battery life when buyers receive their Asus ROG Ally orders in June, compared to what reviewers initially sampled back in May.
When asked whether the team could have opted to use a bigger battery, Fu said it wouldn’t have made a substantial difference and would have compromised the overall look and feel of the device.
“We need to keep it as small and compact as possible,” Fu explained. “Adding a slightly bigger battery would improve the battery life by 10 or 15ish percent, but you would drastically increase the overall weight of the device.”
The Asus ROG Ally appears to be constantly evolving before it reaches consumers hands. However, post-launch support will be key to ensuring that any teething issues are sorted out, and to ensure that the portable handheld PC is the very best it can be.
Despite mixed reviews, Asus’s handheld compares favorably when it comes to a direct comparison between the Asus ROG Ally vs Steam Deck. Improvements to performance and battery life will only help matters, and may encourage more people to rethink their purchase if the initial wave of reviews put them off.