The 8 Very Best Handheld Consoles

Platform: Windows | Weight: 1.49 pounds | Screen size and resolution: 7-inches; 1920 x 1080 | Screen type: LED | Storage: 256 GB; microSD card slot (1) | Battery life: 1-5 hours | Ports: USB-C (2)

The ASUS ROG Ally X has the best battery life of any Windows-powered handheld I’ve tested (addressing what seems to be the main complaint I’ve seen from users and reviewers about these devices). When playing Baldur’s Gate 3 on stock settings, I managed to get just under three hours of playtime, compared to the original Ally’s two hours. That’s thanks to the Ally X’s 80 Wh battery, which is twice the capacity the original Ally had. Among all the consoles I tested, this one also has the best on-device sound: Audio sounds clear even at full volume, and dialogue is easier to hear than on any other device I tested.

The ROG Ally X, which has slightly improved controls over the original Ally, is more comfortable to hold than the Legion Go (though I’d recommend the latter if you want removable controls like the ones on the Nintendo Switch). The sides rested comfortably in my palms, and the buttons and joysticks were easy to reach without straining my hands. The buttons are responsive, and the joysticks move smoothly, but there isn’t a trackpad on either side, which both the Steam Deck and Legion Go have for more precise movement and cursor control. While I wish the Ally X had removable controllers, I appreciate that ASUS made its handheld light enough to not be taxing on the arms.

The Ally X’s display (which is identical to the one on the previous model) looks bright, crisp, and responsive even in action-focused games. Its LED display doesn’t produce the same vibrant colors as the Steam Deck’s OLED display, but games still look good on it. Games perform well on the Ally X, too: Grand Theft Auto V and Baldur’s Gate 3 played seamlessly, without the console ever getting too hot.

Because Windows wasn’t designed for handheld consoles, many manufacturers have created their own overlays to make navigating their consoles more intuitive. Of those I’ve tested — Lenovo, ASUS, and MSI all have their own versions — ASUS has made the most impressive one. From the main hub, you can launch specific games you’ve installed or a gaming platform such as Xbox Games Pass or Steam. You can also tinker with the Ally X’s settings and customize the actions that appear in the quick settings menu, such as limiting the frame rate, adjusting the resolution, and initiating a screen recording. Compared to Lenovo’s and MSI’s offerings, ASUS’s interface is the snappiest, most intuitive way to navigate a Windows-powered console.

While the original Ally had only one USB-C port and its external GPU support was limited to ASUS’s own products, the Ally X has two ports and works with third-party external GPUs. You can also use that extra port to connect a monitor or TV, as well as a docking station to connect additional peripherals like a wired keyboard or mouse.

Platform: Custom Linux | Weight: 1.47 pounds | Screen size and resolution: 7-inches; 1280 x 800 | Screen type: OLED | Storage: 512 GB | Battery life: 2-5 hours | Ports: USB-C (1)

Valve’s Steam Deck blends the simplicity of the Nintendo Switch with the vast ecosystem of Windows handhelds like the ROG Ally X. It is not quite as versatile as the Ally X, as you can’t install games from outside the Steam store without modifications, but it’s the closest a handheld console that plays PC games gets to feeling as polished as the Nintendo Switch thanks to its custom interface and direct integration into the Steam store. The ROG Ally X and MSI Claw 8, on the other hand, are complicated by running Windows.

The Steam Deck’s operating system is designed to boot straight into your games library, much like a traditional console. You can also easily navigate to the store and buy new games. Conveniently, Steam will tell you if the game is Deck compatible or not. The interface is the most elegant and easy to navigate of any console I’ve tested, and if you’re familiar with the company’s desktop software, you’ll be a whiz at getting around the Deck in no time. Even if you’re not, it won’t take long.

Just like with the ASUS, there are a ton of settings to tinker with and fine-tune your device’s performance; the Deck just has a cleaner interface and more convenient features. For instance, you can set a frame-rate cap on a per-game basis rather than having to fiddle with your settings every time you launch a different game. Games performed well on the Deck, including The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim and Baldur’s Gate 3, but the battery usually lasted just shy of two hours. It lasted longer while playing games such as Stardew Valley and Terraria, and I could get just about five hours of gameplay with similarly resource-light games. You can get the Steam Deck in both 512 GB and 1 TB models, which should provide plenty of storage depending on how many games you download.

Controls on the Deck are comfortable to hold, and the buttons are neither too mushy nor too clicky. Each side of the device has a joystick and a trackpad, a four-button array (directional pad on the left, letter buttons on the right), and two shortcut buttons on each side. The Steam Deck’s OLED screen is more pleasant to look at than the LED display of the Ally X thanks to its brighter colors, but its lower resolution produces fewer details.

Platform: Windows | Weight: 1.75 pounds | Screen size and resolution: 8-inches; 1920 x 1200 | Screen type: LED | Storage: 512 GB; microSD card slot (1) | Battery life: 2-4 hours | Ports: USB-C (2)

If you’re willing to sacrifice some portability to have a big screen to play all your games on, get MSI’s Claw 8. Its screen resolution is higher than that of every other console we recommend, and its performance is on par with what you can get with many others. While playing games like Marvel Rivals and Baldur’s Gate 3, I found the Claw 8’s extra inch of screen real estate made it easier to read small in-game text and allowed me to hold the console further from my face than I could with the Steam Deck or ROG Ally X. Even from that farther distance, images look crisp and vibrant, and the display is responsive in fast-paced environments like online multiplayer games.

Games run as well on the Claw 8 as on every other console I’ve tested. You won’t get top-notch performance out of the Claw 8, but it can run games on medium settings without any issues. Newer games likely won’t perform well at the highest performance settings and 60 frames per second, but most games run fine at 30 fps without any lag. Battery life is a tad lower than the Ally X — you can get anywhere from two to four hours depending on the type of game and performance settings.

MSI’s software center, unlike ASUS’s, is clunky and tedious to use. Its icons are overly large, which feels like a waste given the Claw 8’s extra screen space, and the software lags whenever you move the cursor to select an onscreen element. Additionally, it isn’t nearly as easy to customize the quick settings panel, so you’re stuck with the arrangement MSI came up with. It works fine, but because Windows games are so reliant on performance settings, I wish they were easier to access and toggle on the Claw 8.

I love the Claw 8’s large display, but it does make the console less portable than other handhelds I’ve tested. It’s just over half-an-inch taller and wider than the ROG Ally X, but roughly the same thickness. It’s also 0.25 pounds heavier, and although the weight is evenly distributed, its extra weight will make it harder to hold the Claw 8 for long periods of time. This could be helped by sufficiently ergonomic grips, but the Claw 8’s grips aren’t as easy to hold onto as the Steam Deck’s or the ROG Ally X’s.

Editor’s note: The MSI Claw 8 is currently out of stock, but we expect it to be available again soon.

Platform: Android | Weight: 1.02 pounds | Screen size and resolution: 7-inches; 1920 x 1080 | Screen type: OLED | Storage: 64 GB | Battery life: 10 hours | Ports: USB-C (1)

For those who prefer to stream their games instead of downloading and playing locally, there’s no better option than Logitech’s G Cloud. The G Cloud doesn’t have the power of the Ally X or Steam Deck, but because all the games are running on a server, it doesn’t need it. Instead, the G Cloud runs a custom version of Android that lets you sign into cloud-gaming services like Xbox Game Pass or Nvidia Cloud Gaming. That means you’ll need to be online in order for this device to play games usually restricted to more powerful consoles. But because it runs Android, you can also install games from the Google Play Store for offline play, like Stardew Valley, and you can pop in an SD card to store more media than the onboard 64GB can hold.

You won’t be able to see as many details on the G Cloud’s 1080p screen as you would on the Ally X, but this console’s resolution is higher than that of the rest of the consoles I’ve tested, and even playing games over the web, it looked great as long as my connection remained stable.

My favorite thing about using cloud-gaming services is that, unlike when playing games from a store like Steam, you don’t have to wait for things to download. That, of course, means you’ll need an internet connection whenever you want to play, but it’s nice being able to launch a game for the first time without having to wait two hours for a 60 GB file to download over Wi-Fi.

Battery life on the G Cloud lasts hours longer than that of any other non-Switch console I tested, maxing out at about ten hours.

Removable controllers aren’t necessary for a portable console, but the G Cloud is one I do wish had them. Since it runs Android, it could be used as an Android tablet, and you can install apps like Netflix or the Kindle app, but because the controls are fixed in place, the G Cloud is hard to hold when doing anything other than gaming.

If you’re looking for a large-screen device that’ll let you stream games from the cloud, no device does that in a more straightforward way than the G Cloud. You can access the same cloud services from handhelds like the Ally X, but they’re more expensive and their batteries won’t last as long performing the same activities. The G Cloud will also work with any emulators that are on the Google Play Store, and since it’s lighter than the Steam Deck and Ally X, it’ll serve as a better emulation machine than any of them.

Platform: iOS, Android | Weight: 0.3 pounds | Screen size and resolution: N/A | Screen type: N/A | Storage: N/A | Battery life: 40 hours | Ports: N/A

Dedicated consoles are the best way to play games, but if you need something lightweight and don’t want to add another device to your bag, the Backbone Pro can turn any iPhone or Android phone into a Switch-esque gaming device. The controller slides out, so you can dock your phone into it (the Backbone Pro has a USB-C input, but you can also get the older Backbone if you have an iPhone with a Lightning port), and it stays securely in place until you remove it. This controller doesn’t have any batteries — all the controls are powered by the phone — and there’s no pairing necessary, just dock and play.

The Backbone Pro introduced the ability to use the attachment as a full-blown controller for consoles and PCs. It’s comfortable to hold and the controls are as good as the Switch (it even has a couple extra buttons for added functionality in games), and it’s convenient, but I wouldn’t use it to replace a dedicated controller like the Switch Pro or PlayStation 5 controllers. That said, I’ve been loving it for pairing with my iPad over Bluetooth to use it with emulators.

Like with the G Cloud, using your phone will allow you to access any games on the App Store or Google Play Store, all while taking up less space. If you’re using an iOS phone, though, cloud gaming is a bit trickier as you can’t install an app for any of the cloud-gaming services directly onto your device. Instead, you’ll have to access and play the games through Safari. It works, but it’s not as nice of an experience.

Mobile gaming won’t give you access to the same level of games as a true console, but there are plenty of games on iOS and Android that are just as good as some games you can find on Steam, Xbox, or Playstation. (The iOSgaming sub-Reddit has some particularly thorough roundups if you need some guidance.) You can also install an emulator like Delta for iOS or RetroArch for Android to play the same games as on the Anbernic, though you’ll have to find downloads of the games yourself.