As If The ROG Xbox Ally Wasn’t Already Expensive Enough, It Could Get A Price Hike Soon
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If you thought we were leaving the term “price hike” behind in 2025, then think again. Not even three days into 2026, and it looks like we may have our first official price increase, this one coming to ASUS products, including, potentially, the already-expensive ROG Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X handhelds that were released last year.
What’s more, those hikes could come as soon as Monday, Jan. 5, or roughly 48 hours from now.
As first spotted by Pure Xbox, via a memo ASUS sent to partners that was obtained and translated by VideoCardz, the company notes that global demand, largely driven by AI, remains strong but that “volatility” in the global supply chain is putting pressure on component costs.
However, the challenges presented by allocation and investment costs have put the company at an impasse.
“After carefully reviewing market conditions, supply stability, and our commitments to product quality, and while continuing to invest in R D, ASUS plans to implement strategic price adjustments for certain product combinations starting January 5, 2026,” the note reads in part.
“This adjustment is a necessary decision after absorbing and responding to cost pressure over an extended period.”
The memo doesn’t explicitly mention the ROG Ally X, but seeing as ASUS has a multitude of gaming-related products, it’s reasonable to speculate that those price hikes could impact the line. And given the mass amount of price increases in gaming to this point, it wouldn’t be unprecedented, either.
Gaming Was Hit Hard With Price Hikes In 2025, And Things Likely Won t End There
In mid-April, Sony announced that the PlayStation 5 would see a price increase in Europe, Australia and New Zealand, taking the five-year-old console from a Recommended Retail Price (RRP) of €399.99 to €499.99. That increase came after Sony separately announced that PlayStation Plus was getting a price hike.
Eventually, PS5 prices in the United States followed suit in late August.
On the other side of the aisle, Xbox increased the price of its consoles by at least $100, before ultimately also increasing the cost of Game Pass in a separate move. At one point, Microsoft even toyed with the idea of releasing the second modern $80 game, though it punted at the last minute.
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