This morning, AYANEO held an event stream, with CEO Arthur Zhang taking the stage to fully debut the AYANEO AIR Plus. This is a major update to the previous AIR model, bringing not just a new level of power to a small, pocket-friendly handheld PC, but a whole slew of options meant to capture several handheld gamer demographics. Pricing and specs were detailed across multiple models and configurations, along with release windows and details on software updates coming to the whole AYANEO hardware line.
Related: AYANEO 2 is the Hardcore Steam Deck Alternative for Gamers With Deep Pockets
With the AYANEO AIR Plus, three different core options will be available. Each one will provide different power ceilings, which come with different pricing and storage options as well. The idea here seems to be appealing to different kinds of players interested in handheld gaming, from the more casual to those interested in cloud gaming or simply having a handheld device capable of hanging with modern TV consoles. It’s a lot of information to sift through, but here are the options and prices to help whittle things down.
Intel Alder Lake i3 1215U (Pricing: Pre-order/Final Retail)
- 8G (RAM) + 128G (Capacity) – $599/$649
- 16G + 512G – $699/$749
AMD Mendocino Ryzen 3 7320U
- 8G + 128G $549/$599
- 16G + 512G $599/$649
AMD Mendocino Ryzen 5 7520U
- 16G + 512 G 649/699
The above units are currently scheduled for global shipping around late May 2023. The Ryzen 7 units will be shipping a little earlier, targeting April.
AMD Ryzen 7 6800U
- 16G + 512G $889/$979
- 16G + 1T $969/$1049
- 32G + 1T $1089/$1219
- 32G + 2T $1289/$1399
In total, there will be three color schemes: Glacier Blue, Starlight Black, and Classic Grey. The cheapest two units (the Intel and Mendocino 8G models) will only come in Glacier Blue. Meanwhile, the Classic Grey will only be available as the top shelf Ryzen 7 model, the 2T storage version.
Alongside the pricing configurations, software updates were announced as well. The AYASpace software will get a new version, and new apps will also be made available for more detailed tweaking. New apps include the Agile Mouse app, which allows the virtual mouse to be customized. There will also be the Virtual Controller and Advanced Buttons apps, which aim to add further customization to the already robust Master Controller software suite.
All of the above is crammed into a handheld that is smaller than a Nintendo Switch and significantly smaller than a Steam Deck. The AYANEO AIR Plus does drop the OLED screen the original model had, but in exchange for much stronger battery life and a larger display, hitting the six-inch sweet spot. A lot of the changes in general on the hardware side are apparently responses to player feedback, so there’s a good chance the AYANEO AIR Plus will be as close to the ideal version of the AYANEO mission to date. We’ll see how it all goes down when these handhelds start shipping later in the spring and summer.
Published: Feb 28, 2023 05:21 pm