We’re back again with more gaming news, although this is going to be a lot more hardware-focused seeing as how CES 2024 just happened recently and there’s a few interesting things I’d like to get into.

MSI, a computer part manufacturer, unveiled the MSI Claw. For those familiar with things like the ROG Ally or the Steam Deck, it’s pretty much just the same thing but very pricey. Some people may ask why that’s the case, and that’s essentially because of some better internals. The main difference between this and the still-popular Steam Deck, however, is that this runs Windows instead of Linux. This, for the uninitiated, means that everything runs directly as it would on a normal computer rather than having the digital equivalent of black magic behind the scenes. As for the better option, in my opinion, just go with a Steam Deck. It’s cheaper and it flawlessly plays just about any game you want with very minor exceptions.

While not directly gaming related, I feel like Xreal’s Air 2 glasses can be an interesting monitor alternative. Unlike things like Meta’s Quest 2 and other VR glasses, the Air 2 are made to look like sunglasses with retina-sized displays in each lens. They can be connected to phones to make calls and what-have-you; however, they can also be connected to PCs with a type-c cable. It isn’t really a large use case for these types of devices and much less for mixed reality as a whole, but out of what I’ve seen these are definitely the most interesting.

The last story is about the Asus ROG NUC, and the irony of not having much gaming-related tech is mirrored in the fact that this is a tiny desktop PC. In all honesty, there aren’t many interesting details, only the fact that it’s a gaming-centered mini PC. Most mini PCs made by big parts manufacturers are all for general use cases. The second most interesting thing about the NUC is how there’s different prebuilt configurations for different prices, all of them generally being good.