The age of a new generation of gaming consoles is upon us. This holiday season, the PS5 and Xbox Series X will be available to consumers worldwide. However, with Microsoft’s decision to delay its anticipated launch title Halo Infinite to 2021, many might have to rethink which console to get. Others might even think of staying on PCs. If you are among the latter demographic, how about a gaming PC that you can take on-the-go and which allows you to play the latest games?

There’s already a market for such devices which has been filled by the likes of GPD’s portable PCs and the MIA Smach Z. There’s now a new competitor on this niche market which claims to be the “most powerful handheld gaming device”. Enter the AYA-NEO:

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Above is the first video of an early prototype of the device in action; and it was such an early prototype that it was literally held by LEGO bricks. It is currently still in prototype, but has significantly evolved on the design aspect. It sports a Nintendo Switch-like form factor, complete with a touchscreen tablet and detachable controllers. Think of it like Alienware’s concept UFO handheld, but far from being a concept, the AYA-NEO aims to hit the consumer market within 2020 at a reported price tag in the range of $700.

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Yes, if all goes well, this handheld gaming PC will be another option for your console purchase this holiday season along with the PS5 and Xbox Series X; although availability might be limited for the international market as compared to the Chinese one where the device originates. While the AYA-NEO cannot compare hardware-wise with those next-gen consoles, it’s still a PC with the official backing of AMD (according to the official announcement above) and with the entire Steam catalogue at its disposal. For its size, it also sports decent specs (as of writing) as follows:

• SoC: AMD 4500U
• RAM: 16GB DDR4-4266 LPDDR4X
• Storage: 512GB NVMe
• Display: 7-inch 1280x800 IPS screen
• Battery: 47 watt-hour
• Wi-Fi 6
• Detachable joysticks

In the last couple of days, the AYA team has been quite active online with new footage of their device running games such as Death Stranding, The Witcher III, Red Dead Redemption II and Monster Hunter: World, some with the resolution settings set to high and hitting around 40 fps:

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While these are only prototypes, the performance seems impressive considering the sheer size and portability of this device. Sure, one could argue about building a PC with that money but the AYA-NEO is decidedly a niche device aimed at those who want to decently play the latest PC games on-the-go without being too fussy about the need for Ultra visual settings or 60+ fps.

So what are your thoughts on the AYA-NEO from what you’ve seen so far? If it piqued your attention, it might be worth keeping an eye out for the AYA-NEO on its official social media channels linked below from where I sourced the specs and details.

Official AYA-NEO Social Media Channels: Discord, Facebook Group, Reddit, Twitter, Instagram

 

[Axido]

@Prans Please add a big warning to take this information with a grain of salt, because you should not trust nicely rendered images accompanied by strange-looking prototypes.

This project has "scam" written all over it if they claim to release in 2020 and show off such an early prototype anyone could make in a day.

Does anyone remember the PGS Kickstarter from 2016? The Kickstarter campaign promised a lot, but was fishy from the start and people got insulted for pointing that out. People demanded a working prototype and all they got shown was a Windows-tablet with bluetooth controllers attached that looked nothing like the renders they had shown.
The campaign got cancelled right before it was over. The creators launched a pre-order website and guess what? They posted some minor updates until 2018 and then went completely silent without ever releasing a working product.

Man, back in 2017 or so I even bet that I would pay someones PGS in case they actually delivered it. That's how sure I was that it never ended up being made and I was right all along.

So, yeah, guys. In case there is a way to order this, make sure that the advertised product actually exists. I have to admit, at first I was blinded by the nice specs, but then I realized that those are hard to cram into such a slim design. And when I watched the video, I got very cautious, because that prototype doesn't say anything about the feasibility of such a handheld console.

 

[Prans]

@Prans Please add a big warning to take this information with a grain of salt, because you should not trust nicely rendered images accompanied by strange-looking prototypes.

This project has "scam" written all over it if they claim to release in 2020 and show off such an early prototype anyone could make in a day.

Does anyone remember the PGS Kickstarter from 2016? The Kickstarter campaign promised a lot, but was fishy from the start and people got insulted for pointing that out. People demanded a working prototype and all they got shown was a Windows-tablet with bluetooth controllers attached that looked nothing like the renders they had shown.
The campaign got cancelled right before it was over. The creators launched a pre-order website and guess what? They posted some minor updates until 2018 and then went completely silent without ever releasing a working product.

Man, back in 2017 or so I even bet that I would pay someones PGS in case they actually delivered it. That's how sure I was that it never ended up being made and I was right all along.

So, yeah, guys. In case there is a way to order this, make sure that the advertised product actually exists. I have to admit, at first I was blinded by the nice specs, but then I realized that those are hard to cram into such a slim design. And when I watched the video, I got very cautious, because that prototype doesn't say anything about the feasibility of such a handheld console.

from what I learnt, the AYA won't go for pre-orders/crowdfunding. they'll go directly on sale once mass production starts

 

[Axido]

from what I learnt, the AYA won't go for pre-orders/crowdfunding. they'll go directly on sale once mass production starts

That would be great. Tbh, I really hope it will and I'd be one of the first to buy it, but I sure have my doubts until it is released.

 

[Prans]

That would be great. Tbh, I really hope it will and I'd be one of the first to buy it, but I sure have my doubts until it is released.

yeah they're catching a bad rap because of the likes of PGS and Smach Z, which is understandable. you can keep in touch with the progress on the social media accounts I shared. they are mostly active on Discord afaik

I'll also share significant updates if/when I learn more

 

[Aftershock]

I prefer the camshell design of the GPD win Max. I've pre-ordered one of those. I'll keep that for a year or two then sell and get the next GPD device.

 

[MagnesG]

A 40 minute travel with MGSV or Arkham City/Origins costs 20% of my GPDWin 2 battery, no overheating. A 3 hours game time is on par with BOTW, am I not right ?

What about the settings of the game? No heat issues? Also not sure about Arkham but MGSV is pretty optimized for low end pc, and new games would require much higher power than before.

The switch is severely underclocked too, and even then the new version only survives around 4.5 hours tops for BOTW, indies >9 hours.

Overall the battery life would always be detrimental to any high end portable experience, even with low power chip.

Still I would always applaud any efforts for these kind of thing though, no matter how unfeasible it is to have a satisfactory experience, affordably.

 

[anhminh]

Why would anyone want a console that only play PC game? And you have to play it with no keyboard and mouse too, with no aim assist either. It suck.

 

[Berkiel]

Why would anyone want a console that only play PC game? And you have to play it with no keyboard and mouse too, with no aim assist either. It suck.

Because games on PC are much cheaper, have actual graphical settings, access to fan made patches or MODS, have you ever heard of mods? Also emulation, have you heard of that before? Because any decent PC can emulate consoles up to the PS3, even the Wii U and nowadays the Switch too.

If a PC game has controller support, which is standard these days and has been since the x360/PS3 era it means you can play it as you would on consoles, with the ability to change resolution, framerate, graphical options like antialiasing, shadows, depth of field...

You sound like you're stuck 20 years in the past if not more, that's weird. PC players don't only play strategical games, and those even exist on consoles too more often than not, srsly.

 

[emigre]

Because games on PC are much cheaper, have actual graphical settings, access to fan made patches or MODS, have you ever heard of mods? Also emulation, have you heard of that before? Because any decent PC can emulate consoles up to the PS3, even the Wii U and nowadays the Switch too.

If a PC game has controller support, which is standard these days and has been since the x360/PS3 era it means you can play it as you would on consoles, with the ability to change resolution, framerate, graphical options like antialiasing, shadows, depth of field...

You sound like you're stuck 20 years in the past if not more, that's weird. PC players don't only play strategical games, and those even exist on consoles too more often than not, srsly.

I've got a giant boner here just thinking of the visual novels and sidescrollers from Steam I can play on this thing or the Win Max.

 

[pedro702]

Remember what happened when Valve put their minds to creating a regular gaming PC?

i guess he forgot how amazing the steam boxes sales and demand were ...

 

[Teletron1]

I hope they solved the drifting issues so I can use those controllers on my Switch

battery issue will be the biggest issue with this like the Nomad it will be a pig

 

[EvilJagaGenius]

Remember what happened when Valve put their minds to creating a regular gaming PC?

I remember the Steam Machines were a commercial failure, but they (along with some other projects of Valve's) did a lot to get gaming on Linux in a playable state. Now any indie worth their salt (and a couple AAA titles too) comes out with a Linux/SteamOS release. (I've tried gaming on Linux before Valve made it popular... it was painful) And I remember the Steam Controller was too weird for it to gain a lot of popularity, but it was one of the first to have gyro controls and those are now standard going forward. I hear from Splatoon players that they're a nice substitute for mouse and keyboard. And Valve's put a lot of effort into VR, improving that technology and making it more accessible.

So whether a handheld gaming PC by Valve would be successful or not, I think it could kick off a trend and coax others into making similar machines, improving the tech, and eventually we could get some pretty sweet handhelds out of that effort.

 

[geargeeksp]

I hope they solved the drifting issues so I can use those controllers on my Switch

battery issue will be the biggest issue with this like the Nomad it will be a pig

i am pretty sure they are not inter-exchange-able

as aya is using its own design~(or nintendo will sue , as they have always done lol)

--------------------- MERGED ---------------------------

I remember the Steam Machines were a commercial failure, but they (along with some other projects of Valve's) did a lot to get gaming on Linux in a playable state. Now any indie worth their salt (and a couple AAA titles too) comes out with a Linux/SteamOS release. (I've tried gaming on Linux before Valve made it popular... it was painful) And I remember the Steam Controller was too weird for it to gain a lot of popularity, but it was one of the first to have gyro controls and those are now standard going forward. I hear from Splatoon players that they're a nice substitute for mouse and keyboard. And Valve's put a lot of effort into VR, improving that technology and making it more accessible.

So whether a handheld gaming PC by Valve would be successful or not, I think it could kick off a trend and coax others into making similar machines, improving the tech, and eventually we could get some pretty sweet handhelds out of that effort.

if steam did a handheld , their os might be a thing, but i think smach z tried to be that guy, and u know how that ended (or if it will ever end lol)

 

[Deleted User]

What about the settings of the game? No heat issues?

You're right, settings are of the essence.
They are always set to minimum for best FPS performance, 16:9 resolution, sometime 4:3 like Arkham, anti aliasing or hi res textures on a 6 inches screen are generally useless.

I personally like to reduce processor consumption by 20% in W10 settings (undervolting is also a good thing), considering I'm not into recent stuff, that's largely enough, and I always have reasonnable temperatures (while even Halo Wars can become really REALLY hot at 100% processor power supply).

MGSV is pretty optimized for low end pc

That's definitely true, this game is amazing in that regard.
That's the one that always amaze other people while playing on the go and even convinced some of them to buy a GPD (or to try to mug me, but I seem be quite dissuasive for some reason).

Still I would always applaud any efforts for these kind of thing though, no matter how unfeasible it is to have a satisfactory experience, affordably.

That's the spirit !
I'm glad to read such positivity here, keep it up !

Talking about unfeasible...My pityful tutorial 'how to play starcraft I on NS' I posted last year convinced me that dedicated x86 handheld projects have to be helped and backed in order to protect future generations from the chore of installing Win98 through Qemu on Nintendo's lawnmowers.

 

[HeartfeltDesu]

How is it ever going to compete with the Smach Z?

 

[Berkiel]

How is it ever going to compete with the Smach Z?

you're joking, right? xD

 

[HeartfeltDesu]

you're joking, right? xD

Of course! lol

 

[Solidsnake451]

I want this.

 

[Deleted member 397813]

everyone rushing to make a crysis joke

 

[64bitmodels]

funded the SmachZ back in 2017 for 300€, they still seem alive but hey, nothing ventured...

SmachZ looks ugly as all hell, no thanks, il take this instead