Logitech is moving forward with its handheld gaming console focused on cloud gaming as the company is about to launch its device in Europe. In addition to this release, the company is still actively releasing software updates for the Logitech G Cloud.
The Logitech G Cloud will become available gradually between May 22 and June 22 in the U.K., Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Norway, Denmark, Sweden and Finland for €359 or £329. As a reminder, it costs $349 in the U.S. but it is usually on sale for $299.
European customers will get up to six months of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate (with Xbox Cloud Gaming), one month of Nvidia GeForce Now (Priority subscription tier) and one month of Shadow PC.
When Logitech announced the Logitech G Cloud in September 2022, many people didn’t really understand why people would spend $350 for a portable Android console. Unlike the $299 Switch, you can’t play Zelda on it. Unlike the $399 Steam Deck, you can’t play PC games on the go.
But the answer lies in the name of the device. The Logitech G Cloud has been designed specifically for cloud gaming. By default, the device comes with the Nvidia GeForce Now and Xbox Cloud Gaming apps pre-installed. Logitech even says on its website that its console “requires a cloud subscription service sold separately to work as intended.”
Alternatively, the Logitech G Cloud can be used for remote play. If you already have an Xbox or a PlayStation, you can use the device as a second screen so that you can play outside of your living room. Or it can be used to play PC games streamed from a gaming PC.
Shadow becomes an official partner
The Logitech G Cloud has a familiar design with a touchscreen surrounded by gamepad controls. It has just the right amount of computing power to run cloud gaming services, but nothing extra.
It means the the Logitech G Cloud doesn’t have a powerful APU, a ton of internal storage or a fan to cool the device. Instead, what you get is a nice 1080p 7-inch display, a microSD card slot, a USB-C port, a 3.5mm headphone jack, speakers, microphones and all the buttons that you would expect from a modern gamepad.
Under the hood, the Logitech G Cloud features a mid-range Qualcomm system on a chip (the Snapdragon 720G), 4GB or RAM, 64GB of internal storage, Bluetooth 5.1 and WiFi 5 support — yes, WiFi 6 support would have been nice.
I reviewed the Logitech G Cloud back in October, and it has quickly become my favorite way to play games. In particular, I praised the flexibility of the Logitech G Cloud paired with Shadow PC, a cloud computing service that lets you access a high-end PC in a data center near you.
With this setup, you can install any game on Steam and play them flawlessly while on the couch. The Logitech G Cloud weighs 463g, which is roughly 30% lighter than the Steam Deck. It remains cool and quiet. And the best part is that you don’t have to worry about battery life as all the intensive computing tasks take place on the remote server.
Over the last few months, Logitech has shipped software updates with new features, such as virtual button mapping for touch-based mobile games, customization settings when it comes to sensitivity and dead zones for the analog sticks and L2/R2 triggers, and official support for Shadow PC.
The Shadow PC app will be pre-installed on the Logitech G Cloud in the near future and the built-in controller is now fully supported by Shadow.
Once again, the Logitech G Cloud isn’t for everyone. It works well for people who are already into cloud gaming or who are looking for something designed specifically for this purpose with a large 7-inch display. It’s arguably a niche market, but the Logitech G Cloud fills that gap very well. And now, more people will be able to buy one.
Logitech launches the Logitech G Cloud gaming handheld in Europe by Romain Dillet originally published on TechCrunch
Originally published at techcrunch.com