Asus looks increasingly tipped to be a hardware partner for the Xbox handheld, but I’d want more than just a rebranded ROG Ally.

It's been known for quite a while that Xbox is working on its own gaming handheld, it even admitted as much at CES 2025 in January. But now we've found out much more about it, and its release could be sooner than expected.

The Asus ROG Ally, along with its premium sibling, the Asus ROG Ally X, stand among the best handheld gaming consoles you can get, so Microsoft would do well to partner up with the company for a new handheld device — especially if it comes with an all-new OS platform that caters to Xbox.

There's been plenty of speculation on when Microsoft was going to enter the handheld gaming fray. The Xbox maker appears to have something in the works that may be further along than expected. Microsoft is working with an unknown manufacturer to make its own Xbox-branded gaming handheld,

A new report from Windows Central claims that “Xbox’s new hardware plans begin with a gaming handheld set for later this year, with full next-gen consoles targeting 2027” and that Microsoft is working on a “Project Keenan” handheld in partnership with an unnamed OEM.

According to a new report from Windows Central, Xbox will reportedly release a new gaming handheld as soon as this year.

Credit: Future and Microsoft Microsoft is prepping a new handheld version of its Xbox console that could be launched later this year. Meanwhile, plans are afoot to replace the existing Xbox Series S and X consoles in 2027.

It's being reported that Microsoft is making a gaming handheld with Xbox branding and similar to the Steam Deck. It's a great move.

According to Windows Central, Microsoft is working on a portable Xbox console that could be released by the end of the year to rival the Nintendo Switch 2 as well as other handhelds like the Steam Deck.