If you're going to be playing a lot of local video games on your ROG Ally, then you need to give yourself more storage space to keep up with your gaming needs. That's because the ROG Ally only comes with 512GB of storage, which you can eat through pretty quickly. The ROG Ally is compatible with the newer (faster) UHS-II microSD cards, but they aren't as common. To help you out, here are the best microSD cards for ROG Ally on the market today.
NOTE: A common ROG Ally overheating issue can make it so microSD cards malfunction inside of the handheld, so you might want to upgrade the internal SSD instead of relying on a microSD card.
Best overall
Anyone who tends to play larger PC games will need a hefty amount of storage space, which is why the microSD card capacity we recommend most is 1TB. You can't go wrong with this SanDisk Extreme UHS-I one. It offers read speeds of up to 190MB/s to keep up with your gaming needs and is also usually much cheaper than contender microSD cards. All this makes it this SanDisk Extreme the best micro SD card for ROG Ally.
Best for doubling storage
The ROG Ally comes with 512GB of internal storage so putting this 512GB microSD card inside effectively doubles that amount of space. This is a UHS-I card that offers fast read speeds of up to 160MB/s and it frequently can be found selling for much less than its competitors, which makes it a great choice for your gaming handheld.
Best UHS-II card
ADATA's 256GB microSD card is actually a UHS-II card that has the ability to reach super-fast read speeds of up to 275MB/s. It doesn't provide the largest amount of space, but UHS-II does provide really fast speeds to help with your overall playing experiences. Remember, the faster the card, the faster your games can load up. So if you specifically want a UHS-II card then this is the best microSD card for ROG Ally.
Best budget UHS-II card
Finding a microSD card with UHS-II support is rather difficult at present, but the Lexar 1000X UHS-II is one of the few out there right now. This card offers 128GB of storage and read speeds of up to 150MB/s. It's perfect for folks looking for a decent amount of storage and a respectable reading speed that won't cost too much.
Best capacity
Once again, this microSD card doesn't support UHS-II as it's a UHS-I card. However, if you're more interested in space then this SanDisk 1.5TB card is a great option. SanDisk is a trusted brand, and this card can reach up to 150MB/s for fast load times which will be helpful while playing the ROG Ally.
Best speed and capacity combo
People looking for high read speeds and large storage capacities will want to go with the SanDisk Extreme PRO 1TB card. It offers speeds up to 200 MB/s and gives you plenty of space to enjoy your large PC gaming collection on ROG Ally. It can often be found selling at a steep discount but will still be costly considering what it offers.
Give yourself more game space
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Be aware that due to an overheating issue, it is possible for an ROG Ally's microSD card slot to cause microSD cards to malfunction. As such, it might be a better idea to install a larger SSD to get more storage space rather than use a microSD card. If you need help with that, check out our guide on how to upgrade the ROG Ally's SSD. You might also want to check out the best ROG Ally accessories to improve your gaming experience.
When you pick out a microSD card for your ROG Ally, you need to consider more than just the amount of storage space it provides, you want to consider read speeds too as this determines game load times. If you're going to be playing a lot of games, I highly recommend getting the SanDisk Extreme 1TB microSD card as it provides good speeds and plenty of storage space. It really is the best micro SD for ROG Ally out right now.
If you're set on getting a UHS-II microSD card, I recommend the ADATA Premier ONE 256GB since it does support the elusive UHS-II while offering a large amount of storage space to work with. Plus, it offers extremely fast read speeds of up to 275MB/s, which is significantly more than any other microSD card on this list.
Now, if storage is really the thing you care about, and UHS-II isn't as important to you then you'll want to go with the SanDisk Ultra 1.5TB microSD card. It offers speeds up to 200MB/s so you can really enjoy your gaming library without having to worry about running out of space.
ROG Ally microSD card FAQ
What microSD cards are compatible with ROG Ally?
The Asus ROG Ally gaming handheld features one microSD card slot that can handle up to a 2TB UHS-I or UHS-II card.
Do I need to get a UHS-11 microSD card for ROG Ally?
You don't have to, but it can be helpful since the Asus ROG Ally gaming handheld utilizes a UHS-II microSD card slot. UHS-II microSD cards can read and write at triple the max transfer speed of the older UHS-I microSD cards. This means that UHS-II microSD cards increase load time fastness by quite a bit on ROG Ally. However, finding a microSD card that supports UHS-II is still somewhat rare, so it's ok to still use the older UHS-I microSD cards.
Is it safe to use a microSD card with ROG Ally?
Yes, but with some caveats. Due to the design of the ROG Ally, the placement of the microSD card slot near the vents can cause inserted microSD cards to overheat and malfunction. This microSD card malfunction issue is more likely to happen if the ROG Ally is plugged-in and charging while being played in Turbo mode. If a microSD card overheats inside of an ROG Ally it might not work again.
Is ROG Ally storage expandable?
Yes. The ROG Ally features a microSD card slot that can hold up to 2TB UHS-I or UHS-II card. It's also possible to upgrade the internal SSD to a larger one to provide more storage space.
Should I install a microSD card or a larger SSD into ROG Ally?
When given the choice, it's better to upgrade the ROG Ally's internal SSD rather than using microSD cards since the gaming handheld does have microSD card overheating issues. The process for installing a new SSD is actually rather easy and doesn't take too long.
