Four reasons why it's a surprisingly bad time to buy a gaming handheld

I love modern handheld gaming, and I recommend it to anyone and everyone. Just maybe not today? If you decided today was the day to finally drop hundreds of dollars on your first handheld, I might advise you to wait.
Four reasons:
The best handhelds are sold out
The second-best handhelds just got more expensive
Third-tier handhelds are riddled with compromises
The entire state of gaming handhelds will improve if you wait
The best handhelds are sold out
If you're reading this story, I suspect you've been on the fence about handheld gaming machines — until the Nintendo Switch 2, the fastest-selling game console of all time, caught your attention. Perhaps you liked the idea of bigger Mario Kart or smoother Fortnite and Pokémon; perhaps you liked the idea of taking graphically intensive games like Cyberpunk 2077 on the go.
Unfortunately, the $450 Nintendo Switch 2 is sold out everywhere as of this writing, and its alternatives may not offer the experience you'd hope.
The $550 Steam Deck OLED is the best, most Switch-like handheld you can buy thanks to its pick-up-and-play SteamOS operating system, its similarly decent battery life, and an eye-popping HDR OLED screen. You might even be happier with a Deck OLED than a Switch 2 if you prefer the freedom of PC gaming to Nintendo's first-party games. But the Steam Deck OLED, too, is entirely out of stock in the US and Canada. You'd have to wait.
The second-best handhelds just got more expensive
If I were buying today and couldn't get a Switch 2 or Deck OLED, what would I buy instead? A few months ago, the choice seemed clear: I would personally spend a bit more money for the $800 Asus ROG Ally X, the best Windows gaming handheld yet — and arguably the best PC gaming handheld period once you replace Windows with the SteamOS-like Bazzite.
If I couldn't afford that, I would have waited for the $500 Lenovo Legion Go S, the first true Steam Deck competitor authorized to use SteamOS.
But both of those prices no longer apply. Ahead of the Nintendo Switch 2's launch on June 5th, Asus and Lenovo's handhelds suddenly cost $100 more than promised in the US. So does their rival the MSI Claw, with both 7- and 8-inch models $100 pricier than originally communicated. It's possible these increases are tied to China tariffs and could go down again, but neither company would tell us so.
Third-tier handhelds are riddled with compromises
If money were burning a hole in my pocket, the next thing I'd probably do is talk myself into buying a first-gen handheld PC. I'd (correctly!) point out that the original $650 Asus ROG Ally and original Lenovo Legion Go have the same AMD Z1 Extreme chips as the newer Ally X and Legion Go S. But I'd be tricking myself into buying dramatically shorter battery life and a less comfortable experience.
Both the Ally X and the Legion Go S are better than the originals, with slightly better performance and far longer playtime from the Ally X's doubled battery pack. Asus and Lenovo have made their cooling systems quieter and more efficient, the Legion's speakers and charging are improved, and its lower-res variable-refresh-rate screen can sometimes make games run smoothly that'd be choppy on its predecessor.
In some cases ignorance is bliss; some power users would be perfectly happy if they found a good deal on the original Ally or Legion Go. But for a new buyer, the totality of these changes could be profound — the difference between 'I don't know why anybody would want a PC gaming handheld' and 'where has this been all my life?'
The entire state of gaming handhelds will improve if you wait
But the most profound change, for many gamers, would be having a potent portable game system that just works. The original Nintendo Switch offered portability and ease of use, but it's never been a powerhouse; almost all of today's Windows handhelds are more powerful than a Switch 2 or a Steam Deck, but I can't rely on them to wake and sleep and launch games reliably.
Excitingly, both Valve and Microsoft finally appear poised to fix that.
Valve is finally bringing its pick-up-and-play SteamOS to other handhelds beyond the Steam Deck, including official support for the Legion Go S and unofficial support for the Legion Go and Asus ROG Ally line. (But as I'll explain, you might not want to rush out and download Valve's recovery image just yet.)
Meanwhile, Microsoft has announced a stripped-down version of Windows for gaming handhelds, one that ditches the desktop in favor of an 'Xbox full-screen experience' that will come to various handhelds next year, including the existing Ally and Ally X. It promises to improve sleep, wake, performance, and battery life while making non-Steam storefronts into first-class citizens.
Presumably, any major PC handheld will soon let you choose between Windows and Steam. But that's not a reason to buy them today.
For one, it seems that both Microsoft and Valve are prioritizing their partners' flashiest hardware launches first. The new Xbox-ified Windows will first arrive on a pair of 'Xbox Ally' handhelds co-developed with Asus this holiday season, which could suck all the air out of the room for rival Windows machines, particularly if Microsoft decides this is the moment to compete with Valve's Steam Deck on price.
And while you can indeed install Valve's big SteamOS update on rival Windows handhelds with AMD chips, it only fully supports the SteamOS version of the Lenovo Legion Go S at this point. When I tried installing it on an Asus ROG Ally or even the Windows version of the Legion Go S, it was missing necessary power modes to keep it from unnecessarily draining its own battery and had some bugs as well.
Here's Valve's Lawrence Yang to The Verge on the rollout plans:
Currently, the SteamOS model of Legion Go S (dark purple model) is the only officially supported non-Steam Deck device with SteamOS. We are continuing to improve compatibility with more devices, starting with other AMD powered handhelds like the ROG Ally. Features like RGB controls and power management for the Ally are in the pipe, and will be noted in patch notes as we ship updates.
We're looking at support across AMD powered handhelds, including Legion Go, Legion Go S + Windows, and ROG Ally models.
Even the SteamOS version of the Legion Go S didn't launch 100 percent baked: I keep seeing the tiny trackpad stop working properly (Valve tells me it's investigating), and there's no official way to control the RGB lighting.
Speaking of fully baked, it seems even Nintendo launched its Switch 2 with notable issues. We've heard reports of crashes and freezes, an issue that has its own Nintendo support page, and some (including me) have found intermittent issues getting a system to stay connected to wired ethernet. Many are having trouble getting content to display properly on a TV without washing out or oversaturating.
It's not clear when the biggest issues facing today's gaming handhelds will get fixed, or how evenly distributed the fixes might be. I'm not saying that's a reason to stay away for long — nobody's expecting a Steam Deck 2 or a Switch 2 OLED anytime soon, so I don't fear that particular flavor of buyer's remorse.
But knowing what I know today, I wouldn't rush to buy a handheld now. I'd wait a month or three until Switch 2 and Steam Deck OLED supplies return — or at least until the future of Windows and SteamOS get a little less fuzzy.

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Normally it's on the third screen, but here it's been moved to the second screen. Screenshots by Jeff Carlson/CNET To remove controls, tap the – (minus) button that appears. You can also add other controls: Tap Add a Control and scroll through the available options ranging from starting a Screen Recording to a host of accessibility options. Read more: All the new controls you can add to Control Center Lock or hide any of your sensitive apps Our phones carry some of our most sensitive data and yet it's not uncommon to hand a phone to a friend to view photos or look up something online. That doesn't mean they're going to snoop but it doesn't not mean they might be more curious than you're comfortable with. For data you want to ensure stays out of sight or to add a layer of protection in front of sensitive information, iOS 18 adds the ability to lock and hide apps. For example, let's say you keep an ongoing set of lists of gift ideas for family members in the Notes app. You can lock individual notes, but that requires a separate step. Maybe a few ideas were made as individual quick notes or drawings. Instead of micromanaging access, you can lock the entire Notes app by doing the following: Touch and hold the app icon you want to lock and choose Require Face ID or Require Touch ID (or Require Passcode if Face ID or Touch ID are not enabled) from the menu that appears. Confirm your choice by tapping Require Face ID (or similar) in the next dialog. Lock individual apps. Screenshots by Jeff Carlson/CNET To remove the authentication step, touch and hold the app and choose Don't Require Face ID (or similar). Nothing outwardly indicates that an app is locked -- you'll find out when you try to open it. There's one more level of app security available, which is to hide apps in a special locked folder. 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In iOS 18, when you're in the Month view in portrait orientation, pinch with two fingers to view more or fewer details. As you "zoom in," individual events appear as colored bars and then as labeled events with times, all while keeping the monthly grid of days and weeks. In the Calendar app's Month view, pinch to zoom in and see more details. Screenshots by Jeff Carlson/CNET The Day view, which breaks down your day hour by hour, now has a new Multi Day view that shows two consecutive days to give you context for what's coming without turning the phone into landscape orientation and viewing the Week view. Tap the View button at the top of the Single Day view and choose Multi Day from the popup menu. The new Multi Day view in the Calendar shows two days at once (right). Screenshots by Jeff Carlson/CNET Improve movie and TV show dialogue in the TV app Trouble hearing dialogue in movies and television shows isn't a new problem -- for example, the Apple TV has had a feature for a while where you can ask Siri, "What did she say?" and it will automatically back up a few seconds, turn on subtitles and replay that section of the video. You can even buy soundbars that can overcome muffled TV speech. There are a lot of reasons it's harder to hear dialogue but the TV app in iOS 18 includes a high-tech workaround to make dialog easier to discern. While you're watching a video in the TV app, tap the More (…) button and then expand the Audio heading in the menu that appears; if the phone is in horizontal orientation, tap the Audio Adjustments button. Tap Enhance Dialogue and choose Enhance or Boost. They each dampen background noise and raise the dialogue's audio. Turn on Enhance Dialogue in the TV app to discern characters' speech better in noisy scenes. Screenshot by Jeff Carlson/CNET These are just a few new features and changes in iOS 18. Check out our broader coverage of Apple Intelligence, more impressions of the system after using it for months and how these all work together with the iPhone 16 models.

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Undervalued and Profitable: 2 Artificial Intelligence (AI) Stocks for Long-Term Portfolios

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Marvell's revenue for fiscal Q1 (which ended on May 3) shot up a remarkable 63% year over year to $1.89 billion. The company reported a GAAP net income of $0.20 per share as compared to a loss of $0.25 per share in the year-ago period. AI played a central role in driving this terrific turnaround as the demand for Marvell's custom AI processors increased dramatically, leading to a 76% year-over-year increase in its data center revenue to $1.44 billion. CEO Matt Murphy remarked on Marvell's May earnings conference call, "These strong results, along with our second-quarter guidance, are being driven by the rapid scaling of our custom AI silicon programs to high-volume production, along with robust shipments of our electro-optics products for AI and cloud applications." Importantly, Marvell expects its robust data center momentum to continue in the current and the next fiscal year, as well as in the long run. The company points out that it is deeply engaged with its AI customers for developing custom chips, and the good part is that they are working with Marvell to develop the next generation of custom AI processors as well. This explains why the company is confident it can sustain its AI-powered growth in the long run. Moreover, Marvell's focus on pushing the envelope on the product development front is expected to help it land a bigger share of the fast-growing custom AI processor market. The company pointed out last year that its AI-focused addressable market could grow to $75 billion in 2028 from $21 billion in 2023. It controlled 10% of this market at the end of 2023, according to its own estimates. However, third-party estimates suggest that Marvell's share of custom AI chips increased to 15% last year. Looking ahead, the company is aiming to capture more than 20% of this market. That could bring its AI revenue to more than $7.5 billion in the next three fiscal years (based on the $75 billion end-market estimate), which would be a major improvement over its fiscal 2025 AI revenue of over $1.5 billion. So, AI is set to move the needle in a big way for Marvell Technology going forward, allowing it to maintain healthy earnings growth levels. Marvell stock trades at just 22 times earnings right now. It makes sense to buy this semiconductor stock hand over fist since it is available at a solid discount to the tech-laden Nasdaq-100 index's earnings multiple of 31. The long-term opportunity in the custom AI chip market could help the chipmaker maintain elevated growth levels for a long time to come. Micron Technology made its name by supplying compute and storage memory chips that are used in computers and smartphones. The company got a serious boost recently from the deployment of some of its products in AI data centers. The high-bandwidth memory (HBM) manufactured by Micron plays a key role in AI accelerators such as graphics processing units (GPUs) and custom processors as it can transfer data at high speeds while keeping power consumption in check when compared to traditional memory. HBM ensures that a lot of data can be transferred quickly at low latency so that AI workloads can run smoothly. Not surprisingly, the size of the HBM that's being packed by AI chip designers into their accelerators is increasing. AMD, for instance, has increased the HBM capacity of its latest MI350 series of AI accelerators to 288 gigabytes (GB) from 256 GB on the previous MI325 series processors. The company plans to equip its next generation of MI400 accelerators with a whopping 432 GB of HBM next year. Even custom AI chip manufacturers such as Marvell and Broadcom are equipping their chips with HBM to speed up AI workloads and improve power efficiency. Not surprisingly, the HBM market's revenue is expected to soar to $86 billion in 2030 from just $1.8 billion in 2023, clocking a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 68%. Meanwhile, the adoption of AI in the smartphone and PC markets is going to be another tailwind for Micron, driving both volume and unit growth for the company. That's because AI-capable smartphones and PCs are equipped with more compute and storage memories, which should expand Micron's addressable market at a nice pace in the future. The good part is that the AI-driven growth of the memory market has already supercharged Micron's growth. Its revenue in the first six months of the current fiscal year has increased by 59% from the year-ago period. Moreover, Micron has swung to a GAAP profit of $3.08 per share in the first half of the fiscal year from a loss of $0.40 per share in the year-ago period. Consensus estimates expect Micron to deliver an impressive 439% jump in adjusted earnings this year to $7 per share, followed by a 58% increase next year. Micron stock trades at just 11 times forward earnings right now. So, buying this AI stock looks like a no-brainer as the bright prospects of the memory market could help it sustain healthy earnings growth levels in the long run as well, paving the way for more upside. Before you buy stock in Micron Technology, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and Micron Technology wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $659,171!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $891,722!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 995% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 172% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join . See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of June 9, 2025 Harsh Chauhan has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Advanced Micro Devices. The Motley Fool recommends Broadcom and Marvell Technology. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Undervalued and Profitable: 2 Artificial Intelligence (AI) Stocks for Long-Term Portfolios was originally published by The Motley Fool Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data