The Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X, Asus's Xbox-branded gaming handhelds, have recently been released into the wild for Xbox fans to enjoy their favorite titles any time and any place through Xbox Cloud Gaming and Xbox Play Anywhere.
However, you will need to quickly upgrade their storage capacity if you plan on downloading loads of games on them. This is because the standard Xbox Ally's SSD only has 512GB of space, and the Xbox Ally's SSD has 1TB.
Best overall
If you're someone who plays large-scale Xbox and PC titles that require tons of storage space, then having a 1TB microSD is the best way to go, and we don't recommend one higher than the SanDisk Extreme UHS-I.
It features fast reading speeds up to 160MB/s and is often sold at more affordable prices than its competition, making the SanDisk Extreme the best overall microSD to upgrade your Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X with.
Best capacity for storage space
We recommend this UHS-I microSD for those looking to store many games with large file sizes, as it features 1.5TB of storage space.
While it does not have the fastest reading speeds on the market (clocking up to 150MB/s), it will certainly get your Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X the space it needs to fit the biggest, data-demanding Xbox titles possible.
Largest storage space possible
SanDisk's 2TB variant of the Extreme microSD is for those who want the most storage space humanly possible, while offering fast reading speeds up to 240MB/s.
The price can be pretty costly for its advanced specs, but the price to upgrade your Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X with 2TB of storage is worth it if you can afford it.
Best budget UHS-I for doubling storage size
The standard Xbox Ally comes with 512GB worth of internal storage space, which can be doubled with the aid of the SanDisk Extreme 512GB microSD card.
This UHS-I microSD has fast reading speeds that can reach up to 160MB/s and can be purchased at a much lower MSRP than other similarly specced devices, making it a great choice for gamers on a budget looking to install less, spacious-demanding Xbox titles.
Best transfer speeds
While it doesn't feature much storage space (256GB), the the Lexar Professional Gold Micro makes up for it with a superfast transfer speed that can reach up to 280MB/s.
This will allow your Xbox Ally/Xbox Ally X to load up your games in a flash. So, if you're looking for a UHS-II microSD to get the best performance out of your games while being more affordable than the competition, this microSD is for you.
Best budget UHS-II card
If you like the fast reading speeds of Lexar's Professional Gold microSD but don't have the budget to afford the 258GB version, then there's a 128GB version available for a much cheaper price.
With a reading of 280MB/s and a modest storage space of 128GB, this is simply the best budget UHS-II microSD you can buy for your Xbox Ally/Xbox Ally X.
Upgrade your Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X with more space
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MicroSD cards are often the best, cheapest, and most convenient method of upgrading an Xbox Ally or Xbox Ally X's storage unit.
Compared to the complicated procedure of replacing a ROG Ally/ROG Ally X's internal SSD, replacing microSDs is much simpler, as you only need to insert a card into a gaming handheld's microSD card slot.
However, microSD cards aren't only for improving a device's storage space. Some microSD cards trade storage space for a higher transfer speed to quicken a game's loading time and increase their framerate performance, so it feels smoother to play.
The best overall microSD card we can find that balances transfer speed and storage is the SanDisk Extreme microSD. It comes with a high transfer speed of 160MB/s and is available with either 512GB or 1TB storage space.
For those who don't care about storage and want the best performance out of your games, the USH-II Lexar Professional Gold microSD Card is for you. It boasts a lightning-fast transfer speed of 280MB/s and is available to buy with either 128GB or 256GB of storage space.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, we recommend the 1.5GB SanDisk Ultra microSD and the 2TB SanDisk Extreme microSD for players looking to add as much space as possible for their Xbox Ally.
So, with these options available (including SanDisk's own line-up of Xbox Ally-branded microSDs), you will be able to enjoy installing games into your Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally without fearing their install space being devoured in mere weeks or days.
Also, be sure to be on the lookout during Black Friday and Cyber Monday, as many microSDs you see here could get massive discounts by or even before then.
Xbox Ally microSD FAQ
What microSD cards are compatible with the Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X?
Asus' ROG Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X gaming handhelds include a microSD card slot, which is compatible with UHS-I and UHS-II cards that reach up to 2TB of storage space.
Do I need to get a UHS-II microSD card for ROG Ally?
You don't need to, as the Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X can use USH-I cards just fine. However, we highly recommend using UHS-II microSD cards as they feature triple the maximum transfer and reading speeds of their UHS-I predecessors.
With UHS-II microSDs, they can quicken the load times of games played on your Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X, making them smoother and more fun to play.
Granted UHS-II microSDs are rare to find online, so it's perfectly okay to fall back on UHS-I microSDs, as they will still get the job of adding more storage space to your handhelds done.
What are the main features I should look in a microSD for the Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X?
When choosing the right microSD for your Xbox Ally or Xbox Ally X gaming handheld, you will need to research their size capacity, standard type, and transfer speed.
The capacity size determines how much data, like games and media files, can be stored on the device. The higher the capacity of a microSD, the games you can install and play on it.
A microSD's standard type means if it's a UHS-I or UHS-II card. UHS-II microSDs feature faster transfer speeds than UHS-I microSDs, but are rarer to find as of yet as they are relatively new.
Transfer speeds are a microSD's capability to process data written into them. The faster a microSD card's transfer speed is, the quicker it will be able to read and write games so they will have higher performances, less in-game lag, and faster loading screen times.
Can a Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X have their internal storage expanded?
Yes. It is possible to switch out the internal SSD of an Xbox Ally and an Xbox Ally X with a different one with a larger data capacity and faster reading speeds if you wish.
Should I install a microSD card or a larger SSD into the Xbox Ally?
It depends on your personal preference. If you wish to have an internal storage unit with faster transfer speeds, then upgrading your Xbox Ally or Xbox Ally X's internal SSD is the best option for you.
It's a somewhat difficult procedure, however, so we have written a guide on how to upgrade on how to upgrade a ROG Ally's internal SSD to assist you its internal workings are similar to an Xbox Ally's.
On the other hand, if you don't want to deal with the complicated process of switching out internal SSDs and want an easy and quick way of adding extra space, then consider getting a microSD.
Is it safe to use a microSD card with ROG Ally or ROG Ally X?
Yes. The Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X are equipped with special measures addressed to mitigate and avoid the microSD safety issues the regular ROG Ally had.
These issues in question are that the ROG Ally's microSD card slots were placed near the ROG Ally's vents, which caused the cards to overheat and malfunction (especially its being used while charging or played in turbo-mode).
The Rog Ally X had an updated design, which fixed this by placing the microSD card slots away from the vent. The Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X feature this improved design while sporting improved cooling components to prevent the microSD from overheating and having its circuits fried.
Is it possible to run non-Xbox games from the microSD card?
Yes. The Xbox Ally handhelds are compatible with Windows 11, which will allow you to install and play games from many PC launchers like Steam, Epic Games Store, and Blizzard Entertainment's Battle.net directly from the microSD card.
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