The landscape of affordable handheld gaming PCs is relatively small. Up to this point, Valve’s popular Steam Deck was solo in this space. But not anymore! A new contender has arrived, and it’s called the AyaNeo Air Plus. Not only does it look fantastic, but it also undercuts Steam Deck in price. So can it be the perfect Steam Deck alternative? Well, let’s find out!
Design
When it comes to the design of AyaNeo Air Plus, it reminds us of the Nintendo Wii-U. It is white in color, has a rectangular shape, and comes with analog sticks and Xbox-style face buttons. In addition, there is a D-pad on the left, and beneath it could be the volume rocker button. Finally, you have the start and select buttons on the right side.
Specification
Only a few details about AyaNeo Air Plus are available. According to Toms Hardware, inside, it is equipped with AMD’s new Mendocino APU, a fusion of Zen 2 CPU and RDNA 2 Graphics designed especially for thin and light laptops. Aside from that, this APU is built on TSMC’s 6nm node and features a 4-core, 8-thread CPU.
Furthermore, it’s also confirmed that this handheld gaming console will feature a 6-inch Full HD OLED display. In terms of storage, there will be a removable M.2 2280 SSD alongside a Micro SD card reader. However, the total amount of RAM is still unknown.
AyaNeo Air Plus vs Steam Deck
Now the big question is how will it perform in relation to Valve’s Steam Deck? Unfortunately, we do not have that answer yet since we can’t test these devices side by side. But one thing is sure, in terms of CPU Performance, they will be the same as both share the same number of CPU cores.
However, when it comes to graphical output, Steam Deck will have a clear advantage because it is paired with eight RDNA 2 GPU cores, while the upcoming Mendocino is rumored to have only two.
Still, being a mainstream SOC rather than custom-made, Mendocino APUs give AyaNeo a way to undercut pricing. At $289, it’s one of the most affordable handheld consoles out there. Additionally, AyaNeo will offer an early bird special where it will be up for grabs at just $199.
