In late March, images and videos of retro handheld manufacturer Anbernic's rumoured handheld gaming PC surfaced. Back then, a source close to Anbernic confirmed to GBAtemp about the existence of this device and that it could potentially run on SteamOS. Today, Anbernic officially unveiled the system, named win600, and shared a video of the device running on Windows 10 and SteamOS:

​

This marks the first official statement from the company about the Anbernic win600. While not much else has been revealed regarding a price range, specs and launch window, this move could have been precipitated following online rumours that the device was cancelled. Today's news squashes those rumours flat but it could also be motivated by the fact that AYANEO also plans to reveal its own smaller handheld gaming PC, the AYANEO AIR, later this week. Depending on the price and specs, these two could be direct competitors.

Based on the description, the win600 is said to offer a "dual system gaming experience". While details aren't available at this time, it might mean that the device could support dual boot for Windows 10 and SteamOS, somewhat akin to what Anbernic's RG522 device did with LinuxOS and Android through different microSD cards. But this detail has to be confirmed.

What appears to be more certain is that, from the video shared above, the Anbernic win600 appears to pack a smaller, more pocketable form factor than other handheld gaming PCs on the market. And depending on the official dimensions, it could be the smallest such device to date and this could be a key leverage for the marketing of this device as it is targeted for older games and indie titles. Clearing your backlog and playing bouts of indie PC games on-the-go on a device that actually fits one's pocket might entice a certain subset of gamers. And if the price is more affordable than the $300+ counterparts on the market, the Anbernic win600 might open up handheld gaming PCs to a whole new market of gamers. But these are all speculations at this point and we will have to wait for more official announcements. Hopefully, we won't have to wait long for these; but it's encouraging to see more options becoming available for gamers.

SOURCE

 

[anhminh]

Look at that, a Steam Deck killer.

 

[Taleweaver]

Not to be nitpicky (and I'm sure the OP doesn't know either), but does it really run steamOS, or just on holoISO? The difference really isn't that high (the point of that OS is...kind of a placeholder until valve officially releases it)...but it's pretty much patched up from released and open source sources.

Meaning there's two possibilities:
1) anbernic has access to valve and has unreleased support for steamos (not as schemy as it sounds, as valve has no reason to hide steamos from the public)
2) they just plucked an open source iso from the net, installed it on their device, tested it for a couple days (?) and then used it in their promo campaign.

While I won't cancel my valve reservation ticket over this, I gotta say I'm interested how they'll do sales-wise. Are they going to price the things differently because license wise steamos costs less than windows? And how many will at least try out steamos instead of windows?
EDIT: misread things in the OP a bit, but my questions still stand. But then regarding official statements rather than speculation...

 

[SommaCruz]

Looks like that Steam Deck wiil have heavy competition.

 

[cracker]

I think I'll wait until Retroid gets in the game. Anbernic seems to be cutting corners on their hardware lately.

 

[Veho]

ETA Prime got his hands on a pre-launch version, here's an overview:



Price is still unknown.


EDIT: Retro Game Corps too:




It all hinges on the price.

 

[Deleted member 194275]

ETA Prime got his hands on a pre-launch version, here's an overview:



Price is still unknown.


EDIT: Retro Game Corps too:




It all hinges on the price.

so far so good. I was expecting it would perform much worse, as anbernic do cheap out on chipset department. As you said, price will be everything, but for a batocera freak like me, if the price is right, this device is a winner.

 

[Veho]

Running SteamOS:

 

[Deleted member 194275]

the price is 299, my location do have free shipping, I guess bigger countries will have too.
The aliexpress link is inside the spoiler box. If posting this link is against the temp's rules, please forgive me. I found this info relevant, that's why I'm sharing.

Spoiler: aliexpress link

https://pt.aliexpress.com/item/1005...c3d&afSmartRedirect=y&gatewayAdapt=4itemAdapt

EDIT: AYN Loki Zero was unveiled for $199. Competition on low spec is building up fast.

 

[Raku3702]

View attachment 309589​

In late March, images and videos of retro handheld manufacturer Anbernic's rumoured handheld gaming PC surfaced. Back then, a source close to Anbernic confirmed to GBAtemp about the existence of this device and that it could potentially run on SteamOS. Today, Anbernic officially unveiled the system, named win600, and shared a video of the device running on Windows 10 and SteamOS:

​

This marks the first official statement from the company about the Anbernic win600. While not much else has been revealed regarding a price range, specs and launch window, this move could have been precipitated following online rumours that the device was cancelled. Today's news squashes those rumours flat but it could also be motivated by the fact that AYANEO also plans to reveal its own smaller handheld gaming PC, the AYANEO AIR, later this week. Depending on the price and specs, these two could be direct competitors.

Based on the description, the win600 is said to offer a "dual system gaming experience". While details aren't available at this time, it might mean that the device could support dual boot for Windows 10 and SteamOS, somewhat akin to what Anbernic's RG522 device did with LinuxOS and Android through different microSD cards. But this detail has to be confirmed.

What appears to be more certain is that, from the video shared above, the Anbernic win600 appears to pack a smaller, more pocketable form factor than other handheld gaming PCs on the market. And depending on the official dimensions, it could be the smallest such device to date and this could be a key leverage for the marketing of this device as it is targeted for older games and indie titles. Clearing your backlog and playing bouts of indie PC games on-the-go on a device that actually fits one's pocket might entice a certain subset of gamers. And if the price is more affordable than the $300+ counterparts on the market, the Anbernic win600 might open up handheld gaming PCs to a whole new market of gamers. But these are all speculations at this point and we will have to wait for more official announcements. Hopefully, we won't have to wait long for these; but it's encouraging to see more options becoming available for gamers.

SOURCE

That's too small! Get a steam deck!