Budget nostalgia or premium power: R36S and ROG Ally face off

Display

The ASUS ROG Ally wins decisively here. Its 7-inch Full HD 1920x1080 IPS touchscreen runs at 120Hz and reaches 500 nits, which means sharper text, smoother motion, better responsiveness, and much better visibility in brighter rooms. The R36S has a 3.5-inch IPS display, which is fine for retro sprites and simple menus, but it is small by modern standards and far less immersive. For Game Boy, SNES, and PS1-style games, the R36S screen is serviceable; for anything more demanding, the Ally’s larger, higher-resolution, high-refresh panel is in another league.

Winner: ASUS ROG Ally

Performance

This is not a close contest. The ROG Ally’s AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme processor, 16GB of RAM, 512GB PCIe SSD, and AMD Radeon graphics make it capable of running modern PC games, indie titles, emulators, and Windows software with real headroom. The R36S runs an open-source Linux system and is designed around retro emulation, not modern gaming power. That means it is excellent for classic 8-bit through some 3D-era libraries, but it cannot compete with the Ally for demanding emulation, multitasking, or current AAA games. If performance matters at all beyond retro use, the Ally wins by a huge margin.

Winner: ASUS ROG Ally

Build quality and design

The ASUS ROG Ally feels like a premium device: larger grips, a modern control layout, a touchscreen interface, and a design intended for long-term daily use. It is built to support a serious gaming workflow, including Windows navigation and more complex game libraries. The R36S is compact and pocketable, which is a genuine advantage if you want something tiny and simple. But at £40.99, it is clearly a budget product, and that shows in its overall fit, finish, and feature set. If you value sturdiness, comfort, and premium hardware, the Ally is the better-built machine.

Winner: ASUS ROG Ally

Battery life

This category depends on how you use them, but the R36S likely has the edge for light retro play. Its simpler hardware and lower-power Linux-based setup should generally stretch battery life better than a Ryzen Z1 Extreme handheld running Windows 11 and a 120Hz display. The Ally can last well enough for shorter sessions, but its power-hungry components and high-performance screen mean battery drain will be much faster under real gaming loads. If your priority is long, casual sessions of older games, the R36S is the more efficient choice.

Winner: R36S Retro Handheld Game Console

Price and value for money

The R36S is the clear value winner on upfront cost. At £40.99, it is dramatically cheaper than the ROG Ally, and for that money you get a portable retro handheld with 64/128GB storage, a 3.5-inch IPS screen, and a large library claim of 21,000+ classic games. That is an easy entry point for anyone who wants cheap nostalgia. However, value is not just about price; it is about what you get for the money. The ROG Ally is far more expensive, but it also delivers a vastly more capable system that can replace a small gaming PC for many users. If you only want retro gaming, the R36S is the better bargain. If you want a true premium handheld, the Ally justifies its higher cost.

Winner: R36S Retro Handheld Game Console

Game library and features

The R36S wins for instant retro convenience. Its big selling point is the preloaded classic game library and open-source Linux environment, which makes it attractive for users who want a simple, self-contained retro box with minimal setup. The downside is that those game bundles can be inconsistent in quality and legality depending on the seller and region, and the system is focused almost entirely on emulation. The ROG Ally has no built-in giant retro library, but it supports Windows 11, Xbox Game Pass for 3 months, Steam, Epic Games, emulators, and practically any PC launcher or storefront. That flexibility makes it the more future-proof and versatile platform by far.

Winner: ASUS ROG Ally

Overall user experience

The R36S is the better plug-and-play retro toy: cheap, small, simple, and good for quick nostalgia sessions. Its limited power and small screen are acceptable because the target use case is narrow. The ROG Ally, however, offers a much better overall experience for anyone who wants one handheld to do everything. It has a better screen, vastly better performance, more storage, a premium control scheme, and access to the full Windows gaming ecosystem. The only real advantage the R36S has is price and retro simplicity. Everything else that matters to most buyers favors the Ally.

Overall summary: Buy the ROG Ally if you want the best handheld gaming device here by a wide margin. Buy the R36S only if your budget is extremely tight and your goal is specifically cheap retro emulation, not modern gaming or premium hardware.