Streaming Gaming Handhelds Would Make Sense if They Had been Really Good

If you’ll be able to’t afford your subsequent gaming console, is cheaper and even free ad-based Xbox cloud streaming actually the long run? If so, then we’d be higher off with a slim, moveable machine devoted solely to streaming. The downside is no person desires to make the one streaming handheld we’d truly wish to use.

On Tuesday, The Verge printed an interview with Logitech G’s new head honcho, Robin Piispanen, that explicitly mentions that the G Cloud streaming handheld isn’t getting a sequel anytime quickly. The cause why is obvious: Players didn’t truly just like the machine all that a lot. Back in 2022 and 2023, you possibly can purchase a Steam Deck for $50 extra and play your individual PC video games with out a lot fuss.

The Logitech G Cloud was not going to work three years in the past, however how about now, when handheld costs are untenable for many? Piispanen says Asus—which makes the ROG Xbox Ally X—and different handheld makers function on “slim margins” that require them to accomplice with firms, like Nintendo or Valve, with direct entry to gaming content material. But is it actually only a case of margins, or can anyone show there’s an actual demand for streaming-only units?

The solely cause we’re even speaking about streaming handhelds is as a result of element costs have grow to be obscene. A Steam Deck OLED now begins at $790 for 512GB of storage. Lenovo’s Legion Go S and Legion Go 2 handhelds demand tons of of {dollars} greater than they did at launch. A contemporary, high-powered on-the-go machine just like the MSI Claw 8 EX AI+ begins at $1,800. Let’s not even contemplate much more highly effective moveable gaming units that value $5,000 or extra.

The solely strategy to bypass immediately’s handheld pricing issues is to successfully run probably the most pared-down handheld attainable. My first interplay with that terrible future was Acer’s upcoming Nitro Blaze Link. The machine runs on solely 1GB of RAM and holds a measly 8GB of storage. All that system reminiscence is geared to the Linux-based OS and nothing extra.

I spent a naked jiffy making an attempt to play that machine on the Computex 2026 present flooring. I can’t emphasize the phrase “trying” arduous sufficient. The machine felt low-cost, from the skinny plastic shell to the thin-feeling joysticks. The analog triggers had a clicky sensation à la the Nintendo Switch Lite, which made it a horrible system to try to stream a sport like Forza Horizon 6. The greater downside was how, in such a crowded corridor, the sign to the hand held was so poor the sport was a laggy, unplayable mess.

That’s solely a primary impression for a tool that’s but to see the sunshine of day. Acer hasn’t but provided a value level for its upcoming handhelds.

You don’t must go far to search out one firm that has reportedly seen success with a streaming machine. Sony’s $250 PlayStation Portal—primarily a DualSense controller with a display screen shoved in between—connects to PlayStation Network for cloud streaming. The distant participant reportedly has a comparatively high attachment rate for PS5 homeowners, close to 7% as of final 12 months, in response to Circana’s lead online game trade analyst Mat Piscatella. Sony might have a Portal with a prettier OLED show within the works, however the refreshed machine hasn’t surfaced because the preliminary rumors again in January.

Why did the PlayStation Portal succeed the place the Logitech G Cloud failed? Like Piispanen mentioned, PlayStation followers with a ton of video games tied to their accounts need extra locations to play their video games when away from their TV. Ignoring the entire bodily video games fiasco, Sony could make the case for streaming-only {hardware}. If anyone must be taking notes, it must be Xbox.