The Ayaneo Air looks like a better portable gaming PC than the Steam Deck

[Twinblade★ 3,925]

15 minutes ago, sugarhigh said:

That's weird. It looks and runs good on Steam Deck, the inferior gaming PC.

 

The Steam Deck is obviously more powerful, there is no debating that.

[TLHBO 2,162]

1 hour ago, Twinblade said:

Days Gone doesn't look or run good on this thing. Im hoping FSR will be supported in more newer games as it seems that it might be a necessity for playing demanding games on this.

Another benefit of Steamdeck is that as its more popular its easier to find videos of people playing the games, so you can get an idea of what to expect before you buy. I checked a few of my favourites before making the purchase.

 

I can see a video of Days gone on the ayaneo pro but not the air. No idea what its meant to perform like.

[Twinblade★ 3,925]

Ok, after messing around with this a bunch today, I don't think its something that I can recommend. There's potential but Ayaneo still has a lot of work ahead of them.

 

Firstly, the price/performance aspect is just not there. I know that putting everything together into such a compact, light weight form factor is naturally going to raise the price and require more work, but its still hard to justify nearly $600 for the SKU I paid for. I don't have a steam deck to compare it with, but based on the benchmarks i've seen The Steam deck performs at least 1.5x-2x better in most games, eventhough the basic model is just $400 and the next one up is $530 (still less expensive). The Air Pro is slightly beefier than the base Air, but it costs a whopping $1200 and the framerate increases you get compared to the base one are in the single digits  

 

Secondly, the screen is actually not at all ideal. Don't get me wrong, it looks amazing but the problem is that 5.5 inches is just too damn small. I didn't even realize it at first but its smaller than my Iphone XR's 6.1 inch screen. I figured it would be ideal for 2D games but I was playing one (the demo for Conscript on steam) and I realized that after a while it actually bothered my eyes, because the pixel art was just detailed enough that It was tough to make out details in the environments. And thats obviously worse for 3D games. Plague Tale (which I posted in this thread) looked great and also ran smoothly, but everything is so small that the whole experience is just really hard on the eyes.

 

There's a thick bevel that surrounds the screen and Im not sure why its there. Even just removing that portion and extending the screen by that amount would have made a big difference I think.

 

And finally, no surprise with this one but Windows 11 as the base OS SUCKS. The on screen keyboard is buggy and doesn't work a bunch of times. And of course sometimes the mouse just decides to disappear. Navigating the GUI with the analogs feels bad, and while using your fingers might seem like a good idea, because the UI elements are so small you're going to often mis-click and make mistakes. Ayaneo is constantly talking about their custom OS thats in the works so this is guaranteed to be an area they'll be able to improve on.

 

So yeah, as someone into tech I enjoyed messing around with this gadget (i've never used any kind of handheld PC) and there's still a lot of good about it. The device looks slick and of course the portability of it can't be underestimated. The ergonomics of holding and using it just feel fantastic, and the fact that they managed to outdo Nintendo in that regard is definitely a impressive feat. I played around with my switch afterwards in handheld mode, and was surprised at just how much worse it felt.

[-GD-X★ 7,746]

9 minutes ago, Twinblade said:

Ok, after messing around with this a bunch today, I don't think its something that I can recommend. There's potential but Ayaneo still has a lot of work ahead of them.

 

Firstly, the price/performance aspect is just not there. I know that putting everything together into such a compact, light weight form factor is naturally going to raise the price and require more work, but its still hard to justify nearly $600 for the SKU I paid for. I don't have a steam deck to compare it with, but based on the benchmarks i've seen The Steam deck performs at least 1.5x-2x better in most games, eventhough the basic model is just $400 and the next one up is $530 (still less expensive). The Air Pro is slightly beefier than the base Air, but it costs a whopping $1200 and the framerate increases you get compared to the base one are in the single digits  

 

Secondly, the screen is actually not at all ideal. Don't get me wrong, it looks amazing but the problem is that 5.5 inches is just too damn small. I didn't even realize it at first but its smaller than my Iphone XR's 6.1 inch screen. I figured it would be ideal for 2D games but I was playing one (the demo for Conscript on steam) and I realized that after a while it actually bothered my eyes, because the pixel art was just detailed enough that It was tough to make out details in the environments. And thats obviously worse for 3D games. Plague Tale (which I posted in this thread) looked great and also ran smoothly, but everything is so small that the whole experience is just really hard on the eyes.

 

There's a thick bevel that surrounds the screen and Im not sure why its there. Even just removing that portion and extending the screen by that amount would have made a big difference I think.

 

And finally, no surprise with this one but Windows 11 as the base OS SUCKS. The on screen keyboard is buggy and doesn't work a bunch of times. And of course sometimes the mouse just decides to disappear. Navigating the GUI with the analogs feels bad, and while using your fingers might seem like a good idea, because the UI elements are so small you're going to often mis-click and make mistakes. Ayaneo is constantly talking about their custom OS thats in the works so this is guaranteed to be an area they'll be able to improve on.

 

So yeah, as someone into tech I enjoyed messing around with this gadget (i've never used any kind of handheld PC) and there's still a lot of good about it. The device looks slick and of course the portability of it can't be underestimated. The ergonomics of holding and using it just feel fantastic, and the fact that they managed to outdo Nintendo in that regard is definitely a impressive feat. I played around with my switch afterwards in handheld mode, and was surprised at just how much worse it felt.

i'd ask for a refund. say it keeps crashing on you. then get dat deck.

[sugarhigh 519]

24 minutes ago, Twinblade said:

Ok, after messing around with this a bunch today, I don't think its something that I can recommend. There's potential but Ayaneo still has a lot of work ahead of them.

 

Firstly, the price/performance aspect is just not there. I know that putting everything together into such a compact, light weight form factor is naturally going to raise the price and require more work, but its still hard to justify nearly $600 for the SKU I paid for. I don't have a steam deck to compare it with, but based on the benchmarks i've seen The Steam deck performs at least 1.5x-2x better in most games, eventhough the basic model is just $400 and the next one up is $530 (still less expensive). The Air Pro is slightly beefier than the base Air, but it costs a whopping $1200 and the framerate increases you get compared to the base one are in the single digits  

 

Secondly, the screen is actually not at all ideal. Don't get me wrong, it looks amazing but the problem is that 5.5 inches is just too damn small. I didn't even realize it at first but its smaller than my Iphone XR's 6.1 inch screen. I figured it would be ideal for 2D games but I was playing one (the demo for Conscript on steam) and I realized that after a while it actually bothered my eyes, because the pixel art was just detailed enough that It was tough to make out details in the environments. And thats obviously worse for 3D games. Plague Tale (which I posted in this thread) looked great and also ran smoothly, but everything is so small that the whole experience is just really hard on the eyes.

 

There's a thick bevel that surrounds the screen and Im not sure why its there. Even just removing that portion and extending the screen by that amount would have made a big difference I think.

 

And finally, no surprise with this one but Windows 11 as the base OS SUCKS. The on screen keyboard is buggy and doesn't work a bunch of times. And of course sometimes the mouse just decides to disappear. Navigating the GUI with the analogs feels bad, and while using your fingers might seem like a good idea, because the UI elements are so small you're going to often mis-click and make mistakes. Ayaneo is constantly talking about their custom OS thats in the works so this is guaranteed to be an area they'll be able to improve on.

 

So yeah, as someone into tech I enjoyed messing around with this gadget (i've never used any kind of handheld PC) and there's still a lot of good about it. The device looks slick and of course the portability of it can't be underestimated. The ergonomics of holding and using it just feel fantastic, and the fact that they managed to outdo Nintendo in that regard is definitely a impressive feat. I played around with my switch afterwards in handheld mode, and was surprised at just how much worse it felt.

 

 

Damn i didnt even expect it to be this bad. It's a shame you got took for $1200

[TLHBO 2,162]

Twinkie 2 weeks ago - "I don't care about power I only want to play indies"

 

Twinkie when he gets his device - *plays Days Gone*

 

I don't know what happened between here and there but if you were going to be playing some heavy graphics in 3D open world games a Steamdeck or Ayaneo Pro would have been the better choice

 

Ergonomics and screen size are why I like the steamdeck. It's not trying to be portable or fit in your pocket, its trying to be comfortable for around the house. Thats what was good about the Wii U gamepad, it was designed as a controller so it was comfy to hold. Some of these handhelds are not comfortable for long periods of play or their screen is too small because they're so focused on being portable.

 

In regards to the screen size and bezel they're limited with the screen sizes they can have because it depends what they can source. To order custom OLED screens costs too much to be worth it, they mentioned this in an LTT Ayaneo video.

[Remij 4,681]

34 minutes ago, Twinblade said:

Ok, after messing around with this a bunch today, I don't think its something that I can recommend. There's potential but Ayaneo still has a lot of work ahead of them.

 

Firstly, the price/performance aspect is just not there. I know that putting everything together into such a compact, light weight form factor is naturally going to raise the price and require more work, but its still hard to justify nearly $600 for the SKU I paid for. I don't have a steam deck to compare it with, but based on the benchmarks i've seen The Steam deck performs at least 1.5x-2x better in most games, eventhough the basic model is just $400 and the next one up is $530 (still less expensive). The Air Pro is slightly beefier than the base Air, but it costs a whopping $1200 and the framerate increases you get compared to the base one are in the single digits  

 

Secondly, the screen is actually not at all ideal. Don't get me wrong, it looks amazing but the problem is that 5.5 inches is just too damn small. I didn't even realize it at first but its smaller than my Iphone XR's 6.1 inch screen. I figured it would be ideal for 2D games but I was playing one (the demo for Conscript on steam) and I realized that after a while it actually bothered my eyes, because the pixel art was just detailed enough that It was tough to make out details in the environments. And thats obviously worse for 3D games. Plague Tale (which I posted in this thread) looked great and also ran smoothly, but everything is so small that the whole experience is just really hard on the eyes.

 

There's a thick bevel that surrounds the screen and Im not sure why its there. Even just removing that portion and extending the screen by that amount would have made a big difference I think.

 

And finally, no surprise with this one but Windows 11 as the base OS SUCKS. The on screen keyboard is buggy and doesn't work a bunch of times. And of course sometimes the mouse just decides to disappear. Navigating the GUI with the analogs feels bad, and while using your fingers might seem like a good idea, because the UI elements are so small you're going to often mis-click and make mistakes. Ayaneo is constantly talking about their custom OS thats in the works so this is guaranteed to be an area they'll be able to improve on.

 

So yeah, as someone into tech I enjoyed messing around with this gadget (i've never used any kind of handheld PC) and there's still a lot of good about it. The device looks slick and of course the portability of it can't be underestimated. The ergonomics of holding and using it just feel fantastic, and the fact that they managed to outdo Nintendo in that regard is definitely a impressive feat. I played around with my switch afterwards in handheld mode, and was surprised at just how much worse it felt.

Good on you for speaking up about it.  I don't want to be mean or anything, but I knew right when you mentioned that you got this that you'd be disappointed in it.  You had already made up your mind, and I wasn't wanting to put down something you just purchased.

 

Like I even said in my Steam Deck thread... as good as the Steam Deck currently is, and it's far and away the best overall device of this type... there's still a lot of work that needs to be done.  I don't recommend it to everyone currently... but for a certain type of person, it's an amazing device.

 

Hopefully you can refund it, if that's what you plan on doing... and then my advice would be that if you're still set on having a device like this, then grab a Steam Deck, with the understanding that there's certain limitations currently... but that you can also expect the device to continually improve every month.  There's essentially no more queues for waiting.  Or just hold on to your money and see what comes next.

 

Edited October 13, 2022 by Remij

[sugarhigh 519]

This MFer thinks he's gonna play Cyberpunk when Days Gone wasn't good enough.

 

Can we get a thread title change to "I Got Decked By Ayaneo"?

[TLHBO 2,162]

13 minutes ago, Remij said:

Good on you for speaking up about it.  I don't want to be mean or anything, but I knew right when you mentioned that you got this that you'd be disappointed in it.  You had already made up your mind, and I wasn't wanting to put down something you just purchased.

 

Like I even said in my Steam Deck thread... as good as the Steam Deck currently is, and it's far and away the best overall device of this type... there's still a lot of work that needs to be done.  I don't recommend it to everyone currently... but for a certain type of person, it's an amazing device.

 

Hopefully you can refund it, if that's what you plan on doing... and then my advice would be that if you're still set on having a device like this, then grab a Steam Deck, with the understanding that there's certain limitations currently... but that you can also expect the device to continually improve every month.  There's essentially no more queues for waiting.  Or just hold on to your money and see what comes next.

 

Its his own fault, look at this shit.

 

 

"These devices are only for indies" he tells us, then he chooses Days Gone and Cyberpunk as the first games he installs You can't make this shit up two of the best looking huge open world games out there.

 

I think this device would be ok if he stuck to indies as he originally intended. I don't think he would be happy with a Steamdeck either because he predominantly uses EGS and plays a lot of competitive MP games (anticheat).

 

[TLHBO 2,162]

On 2022-09-26 at 3:05 PM, Twinblade said:

 

 

 

If I were to get one of these handheld PCs I would definitely go for this

 

Has WIndows out of the box, so you have access to every single PC game regardless of launcher/client right from the start 

Its much smaller and lighter making it more ideal as a portable device

The 1080p OLED screen absolutely shits all over the Deck's

 

Obviously its not as powerful so performance/visuals will be limited for Triple A games, but if the whole point of these systems is to play Indie games on the go, then this definitely succeeds at that role more than the Deck does

 

 

 

On 2022-09-26 at 3:23 PM, Twinblade said:

 

From the perspective of portability, I would fine with sacrificing some screen size for a much higher quality panel that the average indie game would look better on. Of course that would make it harder to play Triple A games that have a lot going on, but again thats not intended to be the focus of these devices.

I'm sorry twinkie but this thread deserves a bump

[Twinblade★ 3,925]

18 minutes ago, sugarhigh said:

This MFer thinks he's gonna play Cyberpunk when Days Gone wasn't good enough.

 

Can we get a thread title change to "I Got Decked By Ayaneo"?

 
i was getting like 15 fps in cyperpunk even with FSR on  

[Remij 4,681]

8 minutes ago, TLHBO said:

Its his own fault, look at this shit.

 

 

"These devices are only for indies" he tells us, then he chooses Days Gone and Cyberpunk as the first games he installs You can't make this shit up two of the best looking huge open world games out there.

 

I think this device would be ok if he stuck to indies as he originally intended. I don't think he would be happy with a Steamdeck either because he predominantly uses EGS and plays a lot of competitive MP games (anticheat).

 

I already called him out for doing that.. lol

[Twinblade★ 3,925]

20 minutes ago, TLHBO said:

Its his own fault, look at this shit.

 

 

"These devices are only for indies" he tells us, then he chooses Days Gone and Cyberpunk as the first games he installs You can't make this shit up two of the best looking huge open world games out there.

 

I think this device would be ok if he stuck to indies as he originally intended. I don't think he would be happy with a Steamdeck either because he predominantly uses EGS and plays a lot of competitive MP games (anticheat).

 

i wanted to push it to see what it was capable of  and like I said in my review, even for indies it would leave something to be desired because the screen is too small for longer gaming sessions.

[Twinblade★ 3,925]

Valve should make a steamdeck slim that’s smaller and weighs less, but still retains the same size screen (maybe upgrade it to a OLED). Less power would be a ok trade off if the device focused on true portability.

[Twinblade★ 3,925]

The Ayaneo 2 is their true Steam Deck competitor it seems, and it looks smaller as well. However, its going to be sold for $1100 which is egregiously expensive. I realize this a startup that doesn't have Valve's resources or their ability to sell a new product without immediately needing to make a profit but still, they need to work on their pricing

 

 

[TLHBO 2,162]

32 minutes ago, Twinblade said:

i wanted to push it to see what it was capable of  and like I said in my review, even for indies it would leave something to be desired because the screen is too small for longer gaming sessions.

A normal person would have watched the digital foundry video to see what it was capable of being buying it Well your options now Twinkadink are to learn to love it or find some sucker who is willing to trade a steamdeck for it.

 

You're complaining about screensize but also you want Deck to be smaller lol there is going to be cuts made somewhere. I like the Deck because its a tablet experience - its something comfy that you will carry around your home, not something tiny that suffers in screensize and comfort for the sake of portability.

[TLHBO 2,162]

7 minutes ago, Twinblade said:

The Ayaneo 2 is their true Steam Deck competitor it seems, and it looks smaller as well. However, its going to be sold for $1100 which is egregiously expensive. I realize this a startup that doesn't have Valve's resources or their ability to sell a new product without immediately needing to make a profit but still, they need to work on their pricing

 

 

Theres no perfect device, just a wide range and you pick the one thats best for you.

 

I like Deck because its large, great value, and an attempt to get us out of this Windows dependency hell.

 

If someone wants smaller thats the Ayaneo Air, if they want the most powerful hardware they can pay out the ass for Ayaneo's premium product.

 

Research them well and make your choice. That's your role as the consumer.

[Twinblade★ 3,925]

5 minutes ago, TLHBO said:

A normal person would have watched the digital foundry video to see what it was capable of being buying it Well your options now Twinkadink are to learn to love it or find some sucker who is willing to trade a steamdeck for it.

 

You're complaining about screensize but also you want Deck to be smaller lol there is going to be cuts made somewhere. I like the Deck because its a tablet experience - its something comfy that you will carry around your home, not something tiny that suffers in screensize and comfort for the sake of portability.

 
I’ve heard nothing but bad things about the deck’s ergonomics. It’s big, heavy, and clumsy to use for longer periods of time. I would question anyone who calls it comfortable 

[Remij 4,681]

1 minute ago, Twinblade said:

 
I’ve heard nothing but bad things about the deck’s ergonomics. It’s big, heavy, and clumsy to use for longer periods of time. I would question anyone who calls it comfortable 

Heavy my ass  

 

And how long exactly are you playing?  2-3 hours?  Shit, even in bed or on the couch you're resting it on your body.

 

It's got WAYYYYYY better ergonomics than the Switch.. and is way more comfortable to hold for longer sessions IMO.

 

[TLHBO 2,162]

1 minute ago, Twinblade said:

 
I’ve heard nothing but bad things about the deck’s ergonomics. It’s big, heavy, and clumsy to use for longer periods of time. I would question anyone who calls it comfortable 

Where did you hear that? The Nintendo forums? I've never heard anyone have an issue with it - outside of bitter sheep who have never touched one.

 

As I said before its like going from a phone to a tablet. The large grips on the side make it great to hold you dont have to cramp your hands around it like with most handhelds. The buttons and sticks are spaced adequately apart. Nothing feels cramped which is how most handhelds feel. Valve used the space well.