Steam Deck and Beyond: The Best Handheld Gaming Devices for 2024 (2024)

The Steam Deck is still the handheld gaming PC to beat, and Valve has made it even more attractive with a refreshed model. Games look their best thanks to a dazzling 720p OLED display (7.4 inches) that makes colors pop. Other stealth improvements include enhanced battery life that delivers one to four extra hours of juice compared with the original model, and two to three times faster downloads thanks to Wi-Fi 6E.

Anyone looking to dabble in PC gaming. The Linux-based SteamOS is a wonderfully approachable interface that pushes the Steam store and its rich library to the forefront. Get Valve’s official Steam Deck Dock for more perks such as easier firmware updates and the ability to output to a screen without a power supply.

The original Steam Deck is still an impressive machine, with specs virtually identical to the newer OLED model. The 7-inch LCD screen has the same 1,280-by-800 pixel resolution as the OLED, though you lose Wi-Fi 6E download speeds and anywhere from one to four hours of battery life, depending on the game. The real hook is the price, which is significantly less than the OLED version.

The original Steam Deck is now only available as a base-level model, so it's suitable for anyone looking to dabble in this category. And it now offers 256GB of internal storage (up from 64GB before the OLED model's introduction), giving you more bang for the buck.

The Asus ROG Ally is a premium Windows 11-powered portable that features a beautiful 7-inch, 1080p/120Hz screen and beefy specs designed to handle that high resolution. That power comes with a cost, though, to the tune of just one hour of Cyberpunk 2077 gaming when unplugged.

People familiar with Windows gaming. However, a full desktop interface isn't always the easiest to navigate while on the go. As a result, Asus includes the optional Armoury Crate interface that consolidates your games in a single, tight menu. Regardless of your preferred interface, the Ally offers portable, full HD access to the broadest array of PC gaming marketplaces.

The Asus ROG Ally Z1 is a less powerful (and less expensive) version of the Ally that'll save you quite a bit of money. This model has the chops to run fairly demanding games, and it retains appealing features like a 7-inch, 1080p screen and the full Windows 11 operating system. PC gamers are used to having multiple hardware tiers at different price points to suit their unique needs, so it's good to see that in the handheld space.

Gamers interested in a more affordable Ally and who don't mind sacrificing power to get one. In our tests, Assassin's Creed Valhalla ran at 29 frames per second on the ROG Ally Z1 (1080p, medium settings) compared with 43fps (same settings) on the more powerful model. That's not a bad trade-off if you want to save money.

The Lenovo Legion Go stands out from the pack with its supersized form factor that features an 8.8-inch QHD screen. It also features detachable Nintendo Switch-style controllers and an FPS mode that turns the right controller into an ergonomic mouse.

Gamers who value innovation. The hefty Lenovo Legion Go has more creativity than we've seen from other handheld gaming PCs. All of its flashy features don't always gel in practice, but experimentation is how innovation happens.