Valve’s Steam Deck has been rarer than hen’s teeth ever since the global RAM shortage has made shortages and price hikes of computer hardware a daily headache. I went to bat for y’all. Really, I did. I scoured the internet’s retailers, big and small, well known and borderline sketch, looking for Steam Decks somewhere that were in stock and not being unloaded for twice their price by scalpers.I thought I’d come up with a lead somewhere and provide a heroic headline like, “Trouble Finding a Steam Deck? Here’s Where to Find It.” But nada. Zip, zilch. So I’m doing the next best thing and pointing out that a solid alternative to the Steam Deck, the Asus ROG Xbox Ally, is selling for $500 ($100 off) for Memorial Day. I’ve seen this deal sell out at Amazon already. I’m including it here in case it comes back into stock after we publish this, but make sure to double check that you’re not getting a used one, as that’s all that’s showing up on the page right now.a handheld you can actually get(opens in a new window)AsusROG Xbox Ally(opens in a new window)$499.00 (reg. $599.00) at Best BuyBuy Now(opens in a new window)The Asus ROG Xbox Ally uses Windows 11, rather than Valve’s SteamOS, and so it’s more of a PC on a handheld, rather than the Steam Deck’s more streamlined operating system. But you get access to the full library of Windows PC games, which is extensive. It’s geared toward the Microsoft Xbox Game Pass. Practically every game is available for Windows, so your selection is almost limitless. The Asus also has an IPS LCD-panel, rather than the Steam Deck’s OLED panel, but its 120Hz refresh rate is faster than the Steam Deck’s 90Hz.Valve spoke to IGN about the Steam Deck shortage last month and said they’re aware of how hard it is to find in stock right now. Valve’s spokesperson said they’re working on it, but provided no specifics on when we could expect to see any come back into stock. We could be waiting for a while, it seems.Valve has already provided countless warnings that its upcoming Steam Machine might face the same issues, and it’s not even out yet. And then Sony says the same thing about the PS6. Really, I could just sit here and sling headline after headline at you about this all day. It’s a major worldwide problem.I could extoll the virtues of patience and all that shit, tell you that if you really have your heart set on a Steam Deck to just wait for a restock, but given Valve’s own uncertainty about when that’ll be, I’d say just go ahead and buy the Asus so that you’ll have something in your hands before the next blue moon.The post If You Can’t Find a Steam Deck In Stock, Get This Instead appeared first on VICE.