What has Microsoft Done to Improve the HTC 3DS Experience? How PC Launchers and Apps can interact in a full-screen handheld experience

You will still be able to interact with Windows apps and other launchers freely in this full-screen handheld experience, even if the updated Xbox app works as a PC game launcher. Microsoft is working with leading storefronts to have them improve their full screen experience to make it easier for everyone to play PC games, such as Steam, according to Sones.

The device that galvanized the teams was the one we are excited to put into the hands of the players, says Roanne Sones.

You can still exit this full-screen mode and launch the full version of the Windows desktop, but by default it will by hidden away. “We’ve reduced many notifications and pop-ups, and we will continue to listen to feedback from players to make continued improvements,” says Sones.

The Xbox PC app and Game Bar has been made more handheld-friendly by Microsoft with the ability to log in via the Windows lockscreen with your controller, no taps required. You will be able to easily launch apps from the Game Bar, and even adjust settings without having to fiddle with the game screen, with this handheld interface. You can read about the changes in Windows in my deep dive into this new experience.

During the last year, we have made a lot of improvements to Game Bar and really it was driving towards this device. You can access device settings like the command center interface, the wi-fi network and even the gaming copilot via the Game Bar interface, after a short press on the xbox button. If you press on the button, you will get a task switcher, which will allow you to play games on the controller and apps on the handheld.

I will have to try this interface for myself to really get a feel for how the Windows changes will change. Microsoft is promising that this is not just lipstick on top of Windows. Potvin says that significant improvements have been made. The components we turned off in Windows helped us get 2 gigabytes of memory back into the games while we ran in the full screen experience.

“If you’re booting your device into the full-screen experience and you’re putting it down and it’s going to sleep, it draws one third of the idle power draw than if it was booting the same device into the [Windows] desktop experience,” claims Potvin. The focus of Microsoft is on battery life and power efficiency and it is possible we will see more improvements before devices ship later this year. Microsoft has also made improvements to the Windows lockscreen, so you can now use a controller to log in using a PIN code, or navigate around in this part of Windows.

Microsoft and Asus announce two Xbox Ally handhelds with new Windows full-screen experience: a perspective from the XBOX Ally project

You will soon be able to see all of your Steam games within the Xbox app on any PC, because Sones says the gaming library will be available for all Windows 11 devices.

The Xbox Ally uses a new type of processor, the recently-unreleased Ryzen Z2. A chip, combined with 16GB of LPDDR5X-6400 RAM and 512GB of M.2 2280 SSD storage. The chip on the XBOX Ally X is upgraded to the AMD’s Ryzen AIZ2 Extreme processor, 24 hours of memory and 1 Terabyte of storage.

“We know that to take this handheld experience to the next level, we cannot do this alone,” says Shawn Yen, vice president of consumer at Asus, in a briefing with The Verge, admitting that some gamers have found it “frustrating and confusing” to navigate Windows with joysticks and button until now.

The idea is that you should be able to seamlessly launch any game you own, whether it’s actually installed on your handheld, streaming from your Xbox Series X over home Wi-Fi, or streaming from the cloud, though we have yet to try that ourselves.

These two Xbox Ally devices also have Xbox-like contoured grips. It’s as if Microsoft and Asus have taken an Xbox controller and squeezed a screen between the grips, similar to what Sony did with its PlayStation Portal. The grips are designed such that it is easier to wrap your hands around the entire controls, so you can access all the buttons.

Source: Microsoft and Asus announce two Xbox Ally handhelds with new Xbox full-screen experience

The Z2 Extreme, the Z2 A, and the Axiom: A comparison of two powerful and efficient handheld processors

“For this generation the most important thing to us is efficiency. Efficiency is our new superpower,” says Yen. “The games will be able to play cooler and quieter, and at the same time offer you a longer battery life for gameplay.” In January, we were told that the Z2 Extreme was the most powerful and efficient handheld chip yet, and the Z2 A was based on the less powerful but more battery-sipping Van Gogh chip.