Gaming Laptops Are a Better Deal Than The Xbox Ally X

We’re caller disconnected the merchandise of the Xbox Ally X, and it doesn’t look similar handheld gaming PCs are going anyplace anytime soon. At slightest for me, handhelds person go my go-to mode of playing my Steam – among different PC crippled stores – room erstwhile I’m not astatine my desk. In a batch of ways, these small devices person replaced overmuch of what I utilized gaming laptops for, particularly during a commute oregon a abbreviated trip.

This makes maine wonder: wherefore would you bargain a gaming laptop successful 2025 erstwhile PC gaming handhelds are getting much almighty and portable twelvemonth aft year? If each you’re looking for is an alternate instrumentality to play your games connected the go, the prospects for gaming laptops look to beryllium thinning. However, present that handheld gaming PCs are getting much expensive, it’s erstwhile again getting harder to gully a wide line.

Handheld Gaming PCs Have Come a Long Way

Handheld gaming PCs aren’t a caller thing. Depending connected who you ask, you tin hint the signifier origin backmost to 2010 with the Pandora – a Linux based handheld that wasn’t overmuch larger than the Nintendo DS – but the Steam Deck is liable for the detonation successful much mainstream handheld PC devices these days. After all, it was affordable, and had a idiosyncratic acquisition that didn’t necessitate you to beryllium an adept to navigate.

In the astir 3 years since the Steam Deck launched, it seems similar each large machine shaper has jumped astatine the accidental to trade its ain handheld gaming machines. But due to the fact that a institution similar Lenovo can’t subsidize its hardware costs with bundle income similar Valve can, these different devices person been much costly than the Deck.

Regardless of which modern handheld you prime up, though, you tin inactive play beauteous overmuch immoderate crippled connected it, arsenic agelong arsenic you temper your expectations erstwhile it comes to graphics quality. You don’t request to lug astir a dense gaming laptop conscionable to get immoderate clip successful Path of Exile 2 connected the road.

The Pricing Problem

But gaming laptops aren’t conscionable much unwieldy than a handheld PC – they’re mostly much expensive, too. Even if devices similar the Xbox Ally X and the Legion Go 2 are balked astatine due to the fact that of their precocious prices, gaming laptops person ever been benignant of expensive. Even entry-level devices, similar the Acer Nitro V commencement astatine astir $900 close now, with an RTX 5050 and a Core i7 processor. And that’s the low-end. High-end gaming laptops tin get much, overmuch much expensive.

Our favourite gaming laptop close present is the Razer Blade 16, which is simply a premium instrumentality that looks similar an edgy MacBook Pro. But that svelte plan comes with a precocious price, starting astatine $1,899 with an RTX 5060 – overmuch much costly than adjacent the Legion Go 2. You tin besides upgrade that laptop to an RTX 5090 if you privation to walk $4,499. To beryllium fair, that’ll beryllium overmuch much almighty than immoderate handheld instrumentality connected the marketplace close now, and astir apt for years to come.

Handhelds, connected the different hand, were initially expected to beryllium these secondary devices we utilized successful summation to our gaming PCs oregon laptops – that’s however I usage mine. That was a overmuch easier merchantability with the Steam Deck. I bought the Steam Deck astatine motorboat for $529, which came with a 256GB SSD. Is it arsenic almighty arsenic my PC? Hell no, but I chiefly usage it to play Ball x Pit successful furniture portion I perceive to a podcast. You tin substitute immoderate caller gaming PC successful that equation, too, and I’m astir apt utilizing it successful the aforesaid way. But arsenic overmuch arsenic I emotion galore of the handhelds I’ve utilized successful the past mates years, I don’t cognize if I would person ever got into them if the Steam Deck outgo a 1000 bucks.

Gaming laptops are meant to beryllium your superior computer, and they’re almighty capable to play astir games astatine a higher solution and with amended ocular prime than a handheld. And they’re besides capable to bash a batch much than conscionable play your games.

Gaming Laptops Aren’t Going Anywhere

I walk a batch of clip connected a handheld – I’ve reviewed a batch of them present – but I’m ever returning to my PC, due to the fact that it lets maine play my games, and besides get worldly done. There’s conscionable thing bully astir a instrumentality that lets you play thing similar World of Warcraft betwixt Adobe Premiere sessions. And, really, that’s what gaming laptops connection and thing handheld PCs proceed to conflict with, adjacent arsenic they commencement to person laptop-like terms tags.

Because portion a batch of handhelds are launching with a full-fat mentation of Windows moving connected them, they person a agelong mode to spell earlier they tin genuinely regenerate gaming laptops. Arguably, they adjacent person a agelong mode to spell earlier they’re casual to usage for just gaming. The Xbox Full Screen Experience did a batch to code the idiosyncratic acquisition broadside of things, giving Windows a controller-friendly UI wherever you tin motorboat games oregon unfastened Edge, but it won’t fto you bash overmuch beyond that.

If you privation to get immoderate enactment done connected the Xbox Ally X, that’s surely possible, but you person to get into the desktop and apt link a keyboard and a rodent to adjacent beryllium capable to usage astir productivity apps. And you’ll astir apt privation to link it to an outer display, too. It’s surely imaginable to usage a handheld similar you would immoderate different PC, but it requires truthful galore other steps that it’s astir apt not really worthy it.

Instead, for astir radical that lone request 1 PC, a gaming laptop simply makes much sense, particularly arsenic the terms delta betwixt them continues to narrow. You’ll beryllium capable to play games better, portion besides being capable to bash each the regular tasks we each have without having to plug 2 oregon much accessories into a USB dongle to bash it.

Handheld gaming PCs are amended arsenic companions to your main gaming rig, particularly if you already person a ample Steam room to pat into. I’m not definite what the suits implicit astatine Lenovo and Asus are thinking, but it seems similar a atrocious thought to person a secondary instrumentality beryllium arsenic costly arsenic a gaming laptop.

Jackie Thomas is the Hardware and Buying Guides Editor astatine IGN and the PC components queen. You tin travel her @Jackiecobra