Asus rumored to launch Xbox handheld in 2025 — OEM working with Microsoft to 'unify' Windows and Xbox libraries

News
By published

Are we getting an Xbox handheld in time for Christmas 2025?

ROG Ally
(Image credit: Asus)

Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer said late last year that an Xbox gaming handheld was years away. However, that doesn’t mean other OEMs are not working on building one with the approval of the Redmond software giant. According to The Verge’s sources, Microsoft is working to unify Xbox and Windows as a single platform, and Asus is one of its launch partners for this effort. As for the OEM, it’s working on Project Kennan — the codename for a gaming handheld that will likely benefit from Redmond’s efforts with the possibility of launching this year.

Aside from the hardware that Asus is building, Microsoft is also working on Project Bayside, a framework built to standardize the Xbox user interface across different devices. This will run the gaming handheld that Asus is building and is based on Windows but with an Xbox skin on top. Both Kennan and Bayside seem to be a part of Microsoft’s effort to integrate the best of Xbox and Windows.

Jason Ronal, the company’s VP of Xbox gaming devices and ecosystem, mentioned to The Verge earlier this year that the company is focusing on this integration and expects to see results later this year. However, while we hope these rumors are true, we still don’t have an official announcement (or maybe even just an official teaser) from either company.

Valve inspired a renaissance in handheld gaming consoles with the launch of the Steam Deck in 2022. However, Microsoft still currently has an advantage over it in terms of options, as most of the best PC gaming handhelds were and are powered by Windows 11. The tide may be changing with Lenovo announcement of the Legion Go S - Powered by SteamOS, though. You can get the Lenovo Legion Go S with Windows 11 today for $729, but the SteamOS-powered version, which will arrive in May, is expected to be much cheaper at just $499. The company said that it will launch a more affordable version of the Windows-powered Legion Go S around the same month for $599, but the $100 price difference might drive many gamers to the SteamOS version instead.

This development would have caught Microsoft’s attention, especially as one of its largest long-time OEM partners is introducing a rather popular OS substitute this May. It also shows that Valve is starting to face off with Windows with its SteamOS. Microsoft is already struggling to compete with the PlayStation 5 in the gaming console space, so it likely doesn’t want to let Valve and its SteamOS challenge it in handheld consoles. So, if it wants to ensure that it does not lose market share, it has to take steps to ensure that Xbox and Windows would remain the preferred operating system for handheld gaming.

TOPICS
Jowi Morales
Jowi Morales
Contributing Writer

Jowi Morales is a tech enthusiast with years of experience working in the industry. He’s been writing with several tech publications since 2021, where he’s been interested in tech hardware and consumer electronics.

13 Comments Comment from the forums
  • cknobman
    I wouldnt touch this with a 10 foot pole.
    Microsoft has burned people with abandoning products way too many times.
    Windows 11 is garbage.
    Xbox has nothing notable to justify investing in its ecosystem.

    Just no.
    Reply
  • ezst036
    Looks like we have the answer as to official SteamOS support coming from Asus anytime soon.
    Reply
  • TerryLaze
    cknobman said:
    I wouldnt touch this with a 10 foot pole.
    Microsoft has burned people with abandoning products way too many times.
    Windows 11 is garbage.
    Xbox has nothing notable to justify investing in its ecosystem.

    Just no.
    As long as the price is ok what would be the problem?
    It will be a windows capable handheld, even if MS stops the xbox support on it asus will just turn it into a windows or even steamos handheld.
    Reply
  • atomicWAR
    cknobman said:
    I wouldnt touch this with a 10 foot pole.
    Microsoft has burned people with abandoning products way too many times.
    Windows 11 is garbage.
    Xbox has nothing notable to justify investing in its ecosystem.

    Just no.
    I mean fair but the last thing we need is for Sony to be the only player in 'high end' console gaming. I use to love Xbox but sadly MS fumbled after the XB360 and lost what good will they had. ,That said I do hope they can turn things around because a world with only Sony ('high end') and Nintendo (low end) in the console space doesn't sound appealing to me as a gamer. What I see as likely is MS will blur PC/console lines further and this hand held is just the first step. If it goes well I think we'll see the same treatment with their next gen box. Guess it we'll have to wait and see.

    TerryLaze said:
    As long as the price is ok what would be the problem?
    It will be a windows capable handheld, even if MS stops the xbox support on it asus will just turn it into a windows or even steamos handheld.
    This is exactly where I was heading above. If MS can deliver a good product at a good price, why hate on it when the alternative of a Sony/Nintendo duopoly isn't a good thing for gamers in the long run?
    Reply
  • cknobman
    TerryLaze said:
    As long as the price is ok what would be the problem?
    It will be a windows capable handheld, even if MS stops the xbox support on it asus will just turn it into a windows or even steamos handheld.
    Because there are dozens of existing handhelds already on the market that serve that purpose.
    I would not buy anything with direct ties to Microsoft because you never know what can happen.

    Windows Phone
    Microsoft Band (watch)
    Surface RT
    Skype
    And I could keep going

    I've been burned too many times.

    Your point would have merit if there weren't dozens of alternative consoles that have already accomplished what Microsoft is "experimenting" with.
    Reply
  • salgado18
    atomicWAR said:
    I mean fair but the last thing we need is for Sony to be the only player in 'high end' console gaming. I use to love Xbox but sadly MS fumbled after the XB360 and lost what good will they had. ,That said I do hope they can turn things around because a world with only Sony ('high end') and Nintendo (low end) in the console space doesn't sound appealing to me as a gamer. What I see as likely is MS will blur PC/console lines further and this hand held is just the first step. If it goes well I think we'll see the same treatment with their next gen box. Guess it we'll have to wait and see.


    This is exactly where I was heading above. If MS can deliver a good product at a good price, why hate on it when the alternative of a Sony/Nintendo duopoly isn't a good thing for gamers in the long run?
    Considering that every Xbox game is on Windows, and the PS5 is a console as capable as the Xbox but with exclusives, why would someone buy the Xbox? The PS5 has exclusives, plus the games the Xbox would have, and for everything else the will be PC. Mobile? All the PC-console-mobile things are out there, in every shape and form.

    I believe that's a way of Microsoft saying "we don't know how to push forward, so we'll just follow the market instead of leading it".
    Reply
  • thestryker
    Anything that would be launching this year is invariably just going to be another Windows based handheld. The rumors have indicated this device is likely more of a sponsored type situation so it would have an Xbox button and undoubtedly the same control layout (which the Ally/X already have). Microsoft has supposedly been working to smooth over interface type issues as well so this may be a pilot device for that. If this also means the device is sold at a potentially lower retail price anyone in the market to buy a Windows handheld wins.

    Personally speaking I've been surprised that nobody at Microsoft has sought to leverage the Xbox OS for either a version of Windows or a specific mode. I believe it's been based off of current Windows kernels for years now so it would seem to be an obvious benefit for just gaming and keeping people using Windows.
    Reply
  • DS426
    cknobman said:
    Because there are dozens of existing handhelds already on the market that serve that purpose.
    I would not buy anything with direct ties to Microsoft because you never know what can happen.

    Windows Phone
    Microsoft Band (watch)
    Surface RT
    Skype
    And I could keep going

    I've been burned too many times.

    Your point would have merit if there weren't dozens of alternative consoles that have already accomplished what Microsoft is "experimenting" with.
    You're comparing apples to oranges as we're talking about Microsoft's course for the Xbox's future and as a directly related long-term strategy, how this relates to handhelds; if MS commits to going down this path, they aren't just going to let it drop as it accounts for both Xbox (traditional desktop form factor) and non-PC handhelds ("Xbox" version, granted it sounds like Xbox would just become a slightly modified, reskinned Windows 11). In other words, they aren't really carving out new space in the market like the examples you gave, or some that have essentially evolved or been succeeded under a new name (Teams).
    Reply
  • Notton
    Is this going to run a Ryzen+RDNA3.x based chip?
    If yes, it's cheap, and can be jailbroken, or I can install bazzite/steamOS on it, sure, why not?
    If no, but it's a Windows ARM based, I might still consider it.
    Reply
  • AkroZ
    Since when Microsoft Windows is leading handheld devices ?
    There is Nintendo Switch based on FreeBSD, followed by Valve Steam Deck running on Linux, Asus comes to the party to take market share from Valve with Windows.
    Reply