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The First Images Of Microsoft's Rumored Xbox Handheld Have Leaked, But It's Not The Portable Xbox I Was Hoping For
- The first images for the Asus Xbox handheld have been leaked
- Asus is developing two versions of the ROG Ally 2 that will come in white and black
- The black Xbox edition will sport a dedicated Xbox button
Images of Microsoft's long-rumored Xbox handheld made by Asus have leaked online, offering the first look at the partnered device.
As reported by VideoCardz, the photos were mistakenly leaked by the United States FCC, which inadvertently revealed two versions of the ROG Ally 2, including the Xbox-branded device codenamed "Project Kennan".
One model is white, but the other, Project Kennan, is all-black and features what appears to be a dedicated Xbox button in the top left of the device.
It's said that Microsoft will officially reveal Project Kennan in the coming months, likely before the end of 2025, which means we could see an announcement during its annual summer showcase in June or July.
Both models offer a large screen, analogue sticks, D pad, and X, Y, B, and A buttons. Notably, they also sport handles that are fashioned after a controller, offering what looks like a more chunky grip.
They look a lot like the first ROG Ally handheld PC, which, to be honest, is quite underwhelming. Focusing just on the Xbox version, I expected a lot more in the design department aside from a barely visible branded button; nothing about it screams "Xbox gaming handheld" to me.
Project Keenan was leaked in March and was reported to be a partner device with some sort of Xbox branding, green highlights, and an Xbox Guide Button. The latest images do seem to corroborate these newly leaked images, but they are clearly a work in progress, so hopefully the design will get updated before its release.
It also appears that this new partnered device is not the Xbox handheld that Microsoft's gaming CEO Phil Spencer said is years away from release. In November 2024, Spencer confirmed that the company is working on handheld prototypes and said that he had asked his team to look at the current market to develop its vision of a handheld based on what it learns.
