The Bottom Line This entry-level version of the Asus ROG Ally costs $100 less than the Z1 Extreme launch edition, thanks to its lower-power processor, but the clear drop in frame rates won't be worth the savings for most gamers. PCMag editors select and review products independently.

The Ally Z1 Extreme delivers more bang for your buck. It's up to 50% faster in games, which can mean the difference between struggling to crack 30 frames per second (fps) and an enjoyable framerate in the mid-40s.

The AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme is a fast high-end laptop processor of the Phoenix series and fastest model of the U-series. It offers 8 cores (octa core) based on the Zen 4 architecture that supports SMT (hyperthreading , 16 threads). The cores clock from 3.3 (base) up to 5.1 GHz (single core boost).

Best ASUS Motherboards for Gaming in 2024 In eligible areas, the Open-Box ROG Ally with Ryzen Z1 APU can be bought for $299. During its September 2023 launch, the Ally was priced at $599. Later, a $100 price drop was issued, and its regular price became $499 before this new deal.