Asus ROG Ally prototypes leak but it’s missing a key Steam Deck feature

New leaks showcase prototypes of the Asus ROG Ally, but Asus has seemingly never tested trackpads, which are prominently featured on the Steam Deck.

The Asus ROG Ally console is set to make a grand entrance into the gaming world, promising an unparalleled experience for gaming enthusiasts. As new photographs emerge from Engadget (via Videocardz), there are some intriguing omissions, considering the console’s features and capabilities.

The design process of the Asus ROG Ally console saw various iterations, from different shapes and screen sizes to considering detachable gamepads. Asus, however, steered clear of incorporating trackpads, a popular feature found in the Steam Deck. It’s important to note that other competitors, such as the Ayaneo 2, also omit the Steam Deck’s trackpads, too.

This could mean that the ROG Ally might be slightly more limited when it comes to the types of games that you can play on the system while out and about, such as RTS titles which may not have native controller support. It will be interesting to see how the company manages to handle custom gaming profiles when the device finally launches.

ROG Ally PCB pictured

The final design, showcased in the images, confirms that the device will be using the AMD Ryzen Z1 CPU, which could bear a striking similarity to the Ryzen 7840U. Adorned in red, the PCB also showcases the cooling capabilities of the device, too.

Bearing a dual-fan setup, this is something we’ve not yet seen in this form factor from competitor products, meaning that the chip could be cooler, and the device might have less fan noise, too. Though we still remain tentative about the overall performance and heat generated by the chip. In order to get a better understanding of the thermal performance, we’re just going to have to get our hands on the ROG Ally ourselves, since it also boasts compatibility with external GPUs up to an RTX 4090 via a proprietary Asus solution, instead of a standard Thunderbolt 4 port.

With the recent emergence of new photographs from an exclusive ASUS event, the launch might be sooner than we think. We anticipate that the ROG Ally will make its debut within the next few months, as the console is now being showcased behind closed doors.