The market for portable PC gaming handhelds has seen significant growth recently, starting with Valve’s Steam Deck and followed by Windows-based devices like ASUS’s ROG Ally. Ahead of Computex 2024, ZOTAC fully unveiled their ZOTAC ZONE, a sleek handheld with a vibrant 7-inch AMOLED display.
Key features of the ZOTAC ZONE include a 120 Hz, 800-nits brightness OLED screen, and it is powered by the AMD Ryzen 7 8840U processor with integrated Radeon 780M graphics. This processor, along with the 7840U, has spurred the development of several new Windows gaming handhelds. Additional specifications for the ZOTAC ZONE include 16GB of LPDDR5X memory and a full-sized M.2 2280 PCIe 4.0 SSD slot with at least 512GB of storage.
Running on Windows 11, the ZOTAC ZONE has a 48.5 Wh battery, which, although not as large as the new ASUS ROG Ally X, promises similar longevity to the original model. The price is expected to be around $799 USD, with a launch planned for September 2024.
In terms of design, ZOTAC has crafted an ergonomic handheld that is comfortable to hold, with adjustable triggers similar to those on the Xbox Elite controller. The device includes Hall effect joysticks to prevent drift, Steam Deck-like trackpads, a Windows Hello camera, programmable dials, and USB-4 ports on both the top and bottom.
Interestingly, the joystick layout is modeled after the PlayStation design, differing from the Xbox layout familiar to many PC gamers. However, the OLED display has one minor drawback: it does not support Variable Refresh Rates (VRR).