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5. Live updates
Black Friday weekend has arrived the handheld gaming PC deals are live. If you're after a good deal on a handheld gaming PC, you're in good company. These compact computers are all the rage right now, and for very good reason: we've finally reached a time when they're actually any good.
Interest in handheld gaming PCs grew exponentially with the Steam Deck, but I've had my mitts on them since the days of Project UFO and the original GPD models. If you remember those, well done, you are also old. Over that time, I've become learned in the ways of what's hot and what's not.
👉We're curating all the best Black Friday PC gaming deals right now👈
Guided by the breadth of our handheld reviews and our guide to the best handheld gaming PC in 2024, I'm sniffing out the genuinely good deals this Black Friday. There are already a few available now, even before the big day arrives.
My experience goes back to the pre-Steam Deck days of handheld gaming, including trying the Project UFO prototype from Alienware back at CES and the original GPD machines. I've reviewed a few of them, too, including the Legion Go, Ayaneo Air 1S, and Ayaneo Flip DS. I am also the proud owner of a Steam Deck, and currently I'm getting to grips with emulation across Android powered handheld devices.
What does 'price watch' mean?
We've added a new "price watch" qualifier to all our individual deals, making it easy to see whether a price has gone up 🔼 or down 🔽 since we last checked it out. It's important to note that any deal in this guide (even if it's slightly risen in price) is still one of our top picks, as we only show you deals that are actually worth buying.
Black Friday handheld gaming PC deals — quick links
- Amazon: All the Amazon Black Friday handheld deals
- Best Buy: Every Black Friday handheld deal on Best Buy
- Newegg: The full Newegg Black Friday handheld deal list
- ROG Ally X: $699.99 @ Best Buy
- Lenovo Legion Go: $473 @ Amazon
- Steam Deck LCD: $337 at Steam
Handheld gaming PC deals
Handheld gaming PC accessory deals
Handheld gaming PC deals — UK
- Amazon UK: All the Amazon Black Friday handheld deals
- Currys: Every Black Friday handheld deal at Currys
- Argos: Every Argos Black Friday handheld deal
- ROG Ally: £399 @ Amazon
- Lenovo Legion Go: £479 @ Amazon
Live
Hey, Jacob Ridley here. I cover all things hardware here at PC Gamer, and I'm the guy that likes to talk about handhelds a lot. So, without further ado, let's talk about some handhelds.
First off, the battery life is great. That's thanks to an 80 Whr battery that really makes a difference to the longevity of this device. That's really important for taking this thing on a long plane journey—you can get some good hours of gaming in without worrying about finding an outlet.
The screen is still a 1080p, 7-inch IPS—there's no OLED model. Don't expect to be making the most out of its 120 Hz refresh rate too often, either, though it does help keep the desktop sufficiently smooth.
Replacing a handheld's SSD — it can be done
I've got a few handy videos to outline the process, depending on which handheld you've got.
Just note, you'll likely need to clone your existing drive using an SSD clone tool like Macrium Reflect to get your handheld working as intended. This is a lot easier to do if you have access to a Windows PC with a spare NVMe slot to run the application and clone the drive.
Steam Deck — SSD replacement guidance
Here are some written step-by-step Steam Deck SSD upgrade instructions covering what needs to be done. If you're a visual learner, here's a video instead:
ROG Ally — SSD replacement guidance
Asus has put together a decent step-by-step guide on how to replace your ROG Ally SSD. You can read it here.
The teardown video below also shows the general job of getting the handheld open to access the NVMe.
To give you a brief overview of the differences between this and the newer ROG Ally X, here's a table:
| Header Cell - Column 0 | Asus ROG Ally X | Asus ROG Ally |
|---|---|---|
| Processor | AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme | AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme |
| CPU architecture | Zen 4 | Zen 4 |
| Core / threads | 8 / 16 | 8 / 16 |
| CPU boost clock | 5.1 GHz | 5.1 GHz |
| GPU architecture | RDNA 3 | RDNA 3 |
| Shader count | 768 | 768 |
| GPU boost clock | 2.7 GHz | 2.7 GHz |
| VRAM | 8 GB (shared, adjustable) | 8 GB (shared, adjustable) |
| Memory | 24 GB LPDDR5-6500 | 16 GB LPDDR5-6500 |
| Screen | 7-inch IPS LCD display | 7-inch IPS LCD display |
| Resolution / Refresh rate | 1920 x 1080 / 120 Hz | 1920 x 1080 / 120 Hz |
| Peak brightness | 500 nits | 500 nits |
| Storage | 1 TB PCIe 4.0 NVMe M.2 2280 SSD | 512 GB PCIe 4.0 NVMe M.2 2230 SSD |
| Connectivity | 1x USB4 Type-C, 1x USB 3.2 Gen Type-C, 1x 3.5 mm audio, 1x UHS-II microSD reader | 1x ROG XG Mobile, 1x USB 3.2 Gen Type-C, 1x 3.5 mm audio, 1x UHS-II microSD reader |
| Dimensions | 280 x 111 x 24.7-36.9 mm (11.02 x 4.37 x 0.97-1.45 inches) | 280 x 111 x 21.2-32.4 cm (11.02 x 4.37 x 0.83-1.28 inches) |
| Weight | 678 g (1.49 lbs) | 608 g (1.34 lbs) |
| Price | $800/£799 | $650/£599 |
Ayaneo Flip DS
I can't claim to have found a deal on the Ayaneo Flip DS, though I wanted to highlight it as my favourite handheld I've used to date.
You might not think much of this unsuspecting Nintendo DS-looking thing, but it has the most adept controls of any handheld gaming PC around. It has clever trigger mouse cursor controls, a touch-responsive nubbin for mouse control, and two touchscreens. The bottom one even works as a trackpad or keyboard. That makes cruising around the desktop to install a launcher or game and entering your details into heaps of login screens super easy.
It's also still packing a 7-inch screen within that clamshell exterior. A clamshell that lets you stuff this handheld in your bag without a second thought for scratching the screen.
With AMD's Ryzen 7 8840U, alongside up to 32 GB of RAM and a 2 TB SSD, it's as powerful as the rest of them. Though the version I reviewed only came with 16 GB and 512 GB, and that's been plenty enough. I mean, I'm only playing Balatro and Vampire Survivors on this thing nowadays.
What is a handheld gaming PC good for?
I get asked this a lot, mostly by PC gamers with a desktop and no desire to expand into other form factors. But let me explain in just one word:
Or two words:
Yes, Balatro and Vampire Survivors are the two games I play most of all on my handheld gaming PC. Mostly from the comfort of my bed on a Saturday or Sunday morning. For this sort of ultimate lazy-day gaming, not even a laptop can compete with the trusty handheld PC.
Similarly, I find handheld PCs offer me more time to play games where I otherwise simply wouldn't. I'm not always by my PC, or simply sometimes I don't have the time to sink a couple hours into Frostpunk 2. With my handheld on my person, whether I'm travelling or sat in the office, I can switch it on and be playing Balatro, Vampire Survivors, Lorelei & the Laser Eyes, or Thank Goodness you're Here! within minutes.
And if I only play for 10 minutes or more, so be it... I've still got some gaming time in when I otherwise would just doomscroll TikTok or doomscroll the news. I'm chipping away at my Steam library, 10 minutes at a time.
Travel tips, with James Bentley
- Get yourself a mega-sized battery pack
- Grab a pair of earbuds for undercover gaming on-the-go
- A compact mouse and keyboard are actually great for playing more PC-centric games at a cafe
UK price reduction!
I don't have much to say to folks in the US, the prices are pretty stagnant today. Though there's good news for any Brits hoping for a handheld bargain.
The Lenovo Legion Go is down to a new low price at Ebuyer at £480. That's a box-fresh new handheld, and cheaper than some used models over at Amazon.
Steam Deck price drop!
Yes, you read that right. Valve has dropped the price of the Steam Deck down to a lovely low of $337. That sure beats whatever the heck this machine is for the same money—seriously, a Steam Deck is much better than that.
Sadly, no such luck on price reductions in the UK.
