Handheld gaming PCs have been round for longer than their current increase may point out, even when the Steam Deck blew the doorways off of the market by making a mannequin that the typical particular person might really afford. Whereas Valve might lay declare to being the “greatest worth” transportable PC with its loss-leadingly low worth, in the event you’re available in the market for consolation, sheer efficiency, or the performance of getting Home windows proper out of the field, there are many extra succesful Steam Deck options obtainable to these with greater budgets. It’s on this house the place Ayaneo has historically operated, providing full-fledged Home windows gaming PCs with high-performance elements and on the spot compatibility throughout Steam and each different launcher’s full library.
Premium is sort of the path it’s important to go in in the event you don’t additionally personal some sort of retailer that permits you to subsidize low value merchandise for the mass market. To fanatics, Ayaneo’s typically 4 determine units have been mouthwatering, however even a boutique producer can’t ignore the Steam Deck ceaselessly. Valve is now the elephant within the nook of each handheld PC producer’s room.
Launching alongside the flagship Ayaneo 2, the Ayaneo Geek (obtainable on IndieGoGo) maintains a premium standing however is the primary of the corporate’s full energy handhelds to at the very least get inside spitting distance of the Steam Deck’s worth (there’s the Ayaneo Air, but it surely’s meant for much less demanding video games than the Deck). It options extra in widespread with the Ayaneo 2 than it doesn’t, together with its wonderful Corridor Impact joysticks and a strong AMD Ryzen 7 6800U processor. But it surely begins $150 cheaper than the Ayaneo 2, at $849. That can nonetheless set you again greater than even the most costly Steam Deck ($640). However in the event you’re simply seeking to spend lower than $1,000 for a real Home windows gaming PC that’s extra highly effective than the Deck and isn’t a lot greater than a Nintendo Change OLED, it’s an ideal selection, particularly in comparison with gaming laptops. Lastly, we have now a “price range” boutique Steam Deck competitor. Or, if it helps to consider it this fashion, a considerably reasonably priced “Steam Deck Professional.”
A succesful AMD Ryzen 6800U handheld gaming PC
Regardless of its Nintendo Change-like design, the Ayaneo Geek is a full-fledged gaming PC and has the specs to match. Essentially the most reasonably priced mannequin comes with 16GB of DDR5 reminiscence clocked to a speedy 6,400MHz and features a 512GB NVME SSD. The SSD will be upgraded to 1TB or 2TB for one more $150 and $250, respectively. The highest tier mannequin is presently priced at $1,199 and consists of 32GB of reminiscence and a 2TB SSD, but when all you want is storage, the Geek additionally helps MicroSD playing cards for a less expensive various (albeit at a slower 300 MB/s velocity). The Geek can also be obtainable with 800p or 1200p screens, even when that is barely unclear on the present IndieGoGo marketing campaign.
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As the budget counterpart to the pricier Ayaneo 2, the Geek is remarkably similar and really just feels like a slightly pared down version of the flagship model. You’re getting the same fast Ryzen 7 6800U processor, so gaming performance is the same between both models. It uses the same outstanding Hall Effect triggers and joysticks, which feel great and are immune to joystick drift. Both units have bright 7-inch touchscreen displays. Their layouts and control schemes are the same, though the Ayaneo 2 offers more customization options for the buttons and triggers. They’re nearly identical in shape, size, and weight. Both offer a 50.25 wHr battery.
There are a handful of differences, but they’re overall small and feel like fair scale-backs for the lower price. The biggest difference is that the Ayaneo 2 features an edge-to-edge display while the Geek has thin bezels on all sides. There are other smaller differences, too. The Geek has a single gyroscope for motion aiming while the Ayaneo 2 has two. The Geek has a linear vibration motor instead of the 2’s HD motor, which Ayaneo says is identical to the one in the Nintendo Switch. The Geek also ships with a PCIe 3.0 NVMe SSD instead of the newer PCIe 4.0 drive that comes with the Ayaneo 2, though the impact on load times is small enough that you may not even notice. The flagship model also comes with a full glass front while the Geek just has a glass screen.
There are clear quality of life improvements that come with the more expensive model, but the Geek really doesn’t feel like much of a step down at all, especially if you’re comparing it to the Steam Deck. I’ve used both extensively and the most noticeable difference is the screen, which you quickly get used to and won’t notice at all if you don’t have both models side by side. If you have the money for the Ayaneo 2, it delivers the better experience over all, but the Geek is the rare tech purchase that doesn’t feel like you’re making a big sacrifice by opting for the cheaper model.
Like the Nintendo Switch and a gaming laptop had a baby
The Ayaneo Geek is what would happen if the Nintendo Switch and a gaming laptop had a baby. The Geek is a touch larger than the Switch OLED but has a very similar layout. The Geek adopts a much more curved design than Nintendo’s console, however. It has an ovular face and deep, curved grips that Ayaneo says are based on a baby’s sleeping position. The controllers are also non-removable, so you’ll need to hold the Geek in your hands unless you plug in peripherals and a docking station.
Despite the similarities to a Switch with default joycons, the Geek is far nicer to actually use. The grips are thick and contoured, tapering toward the top to guide your fingers toward the triggers. The sticks are bigger, smoother, and have more throw. The triggers have a deep, controller-like pull. The buttons are snappy and more crisp than the Steam Deck’s. Like any handheld, everything still feels slightly compressed: the right joystick in particular feels just a hair too low for even my medium-sized hands. Even so, I would take the Ayaneo Geek over either the Switch or Steam Deck any day of the week when it comes to comfort and ease of use. Even if the Geek is ever so slightly heavier than the Steam Deck, at 680 grams vs the Deck’s 669.
Ayaneo has outfitted the Geek with an array of extra buttons to navigate Windows and access its different options. There are View and Menu buttons below the D-pad on the left (mimicking an Xbox controller, and generally fulfilling the same role as Start and Select on more old-school devices). Two more extra buttons are positioned below the right joystick. One can be mapped to a custom command while the other, the Aya button, can be clicked to access a quick settings adjustment menu or held to draw up the full AYASpace settings software suite. There are bumpers and triggers on the top, as well as a pair of shoulder buttons that can be tied to custom commands, like raising the on-screen keyboard or Task Manager.
This isn’t a full laptop, so I/O is limited. There are three USB Type-C ports total here: two on top and one on bottom, and each can be used for power or data. There are two USB Type-C to Type-A adapters in the box for connecting peripherals, but you’ll need a docking station to connect the Geek to an external monitor if you plan to use it as a full PC. There’s also a power button with an integrated fingerprint reader for biometric login, a volume rocker, headphone jack, and a MicroSD card slot for expandable storage.
Hall Effect analog sticks and snappy buttons
Like the Ayaneo 2, the Ayaneo Next, and the Ayaneo Air before it, the Ayaneo Geek uses Hall Effect triggers and joysticks. As the axiom goes, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, and this design is anything but broken. Rather than using mechanical potentiometers for its triggers and joysticks, the Geek uses magnetic sensors to detect movement. The lack of mechanical wear and tear all but eliminates the chance for joystick drift and makes these inputs some of the smoothest you’ll find on any gaming controller. With the right software tuning, you can even customize your deadzones (the parts of a joystick that your controller doesn’t read, so as to avoid small random movements).
While all of the Geek’s inputs are smaller than what you’ll find on a normal controller, they still feel closer than you might expect. The added throw on the triggers and joysticks, while not as deep as on an Xbox or PlayStation controller, feel much closer than you might expect and are noticeably deeper than on the Steam Deck. The triggers especially feel at home in my console-acquainted hands, yet all the better for their added smoothness. The sticks have a bit more of a learning curve due to their reduced height and are less accurate than a full-size controller because of it. Using the built-in gyro helps to fine-tune aiming; however, the Geek requires installing an applet to enable motion controls while the Ayaneo 2 has them built in from the start.
The face buttons are snappy and tactile. There’s no mushiness to them at all, which is great for button heavy games like platformers. The D-pad is a bit less crisp, with a slight wiggle to the cross, but it worked for a casual like me, even in fighting games. Each is a big improvement from the Steam Deck’s somewhat mushy inputs, however, and all in all, make the Ayaneo Geek surprisingly great to game on.
A bright and colorful screen that begs for OLED
The Geek’s 7-inch screen is bright and colorful. Even though it lacks the edge-to-edge coverage of the Ayaneo 2, it still feels fairly large thanks to its 16:10 aspect ratio. Ayaneo quotes a peak brightness of 400 nits, and I’ve discovered multiple times that it’s bright enough to play in direct sunlight. It doesn’t support advanced features like HDR support or gaming at 120Hz, but for most games, those are non-issues. And really, would you expect either from a handheld designed to be cost friendly?
No, and neither would you expect an OLED screen, but the Geek begs for it. The colors are rich and blacks are fine, but after seeing how much better OLED can look on the Ayaneo Air, the Geek isn’t quite as impressive without it. Contrast levels are typical for an LCD screen, with blacks being more of a deep gray, but the rich contrast and inky blacks of the Air would have pushed this to another level.
The screen supports touch input, and it overall works well. The screen is responsive and registers presses reliably. The biggest challenge is tapping on-screen elements that can just be, well, tiny. The Geek packs a full, desktop version of Windows 11. Even with Windows scaling turned on, choosing items in drop down menus or navigating settings within applications can be difficult. AYASpace, the Geek’s configuration software, solves this by allowing you to control a virtual mouse cursor using the joysticks. It doesn’t replace using an actual mouse, but works surprisingly well when touch doesn’t cut it.
The screen is available in 800p or 1200p options, but it’s not worth paying extra for the 1200p screen, even if 800p will net you the same resolution as the less costly Steam Deck. While the added resolution might sound great on paper, it has a significant impact on gaming performance and doesn’t offer a major advantage in visual quality. In fact, that resolution bump is mainly only visible in still images–remember, the screen here is just 7 inches. Unless you’re playing older games or indies, it’s better to leave the screen at 800p and enjoy a higher FPS with more responsive gameplay.
AYASpace is the Ayaneo Geek’s backbone
AYASpace is the Geek’s main configuration app and the backbone to using it as an actual computer. The software, called up using the dedicated AYA button below the right joystick, acts as a central hub for all of your configuration options, and you can also use it as a game launcher. Inside, you can set your TDP (the power limit for the system’s processor), fan speed, button shortcuts, and more. It’s also where you’ll go to download and apply firmware updates as they’re released over time.
Tapping the AYA button also brings up a quick menu for when you want to make fast changes or send common commands. It allows you to change the performance settings, brightness, and volume. You can assign nine different shortcuts for things like putting the system to sleep, enabling system-wide FSR upscaling, or force closing games. It’s fast and reliable, and if you happen to quit AYASpace by accident, you’ll immediately miss it.
AYASpace is still in beta and it shows. It’s improved by leaps and bounds over the last year, but there are still rough edges, with instances of broken English, Chinese only descriptions in many applets, and a propensity to reset itself to Chinese with software updates. Despite that, it overall works well. If you should happen to find yourself stuck in Chinese, you can change your language by clicking on your profile in the top right corner, then clicking on the hexagon with a dash icon through it in the next menu. The next screen has language settings in the left-most option of the middle row.
If you shut AYASpace down, the Geek just doesn’t work right. Key functions like the mouse cursor or button shorts for the on-screen keyboard stop working, and those shortcuts are the key to the handheld’s ability to function as a computer. Without a mouse and keyboard, they allow you perform basic tasks like pressing the Escape key to back out of menus. While it’s technically possible to run the Ayaneo without AYASpace, I wouldn’t recommend it. It’s painful.
Forget your work laptop? The Ayaneo Geek has you covered.
One of the amazing things about the Ayaneo Geek is one of its most obvious: this is a genuine Windows gaming PC in a handheld form factor. There’s no Linux. No compatibility layer like the Steam Deck’s Proton. You can use all of the apps and tools you would normally use on your desktop or laptop with a fraction of the footprint.
And even though it’s small, The Geek is mighty. The Ryzen 7 6800U is a very fast, very capable processor, and it’s backed by 16GB of high-speed memory. The Geek has enough horsepower to run just about anything an enthusiast PC user could want: productivity apps, creative apps, websites and streaming services: the works. It’s a high-performing little computer.
To actually use it in this way requires some add-ons, unless you want to hunt and peck your way through its onscreen keyboard and small screen. You’ll need to buy peripherals, as well as a monitor if you don’t already have one. Then you’ll need a docking station to connect everything and power the device. But it’s possible. With the Geek, I wrote multiple articles across Google Docs and Microsoft Word, edited photos and videos with Adobe, and even plugged in a USB mic to record some song ideas in Reaper, my digital audio workstation.
I also put it to the test with our suite of benchmarks. It scored 5,126 in PCMark 10, which is a solid 500 points higher than the HP Dragonfly Folio Elite we reviewed in January. In Geekbench 5, it scored 1,341 for single-core efficiency and 6,483 for multi-core, which falls in need of most of the gaming laptops we’ve reviewed over the past yr, and is center of the pack for productiveness PCs. However given its considerably extra reasonably priced worth than a lot of these notebooks, the Geek’s efficiency actually is fairly spectacular.
For artistic apps, the Geek maintains its center of the highway posture. In Cinebench, it scored 1,338 for single core rendering and eight,845 for multi-core, far exceeding the Dragonfly with all of its cores engaged however falling barely brief in single-core speeds. In Blender, the Geek rendered a BMW in 4 minutes and 29 seconds, placing it proper in between the Apple MacBook Professional 13 and MacBook Professional 14. With out a devoted graphics card like most gaming laptops have, its processor has to tug double-duty. It’s not the quickest, however can actually get the job carried out if you wish to use it as a full-fledged PC.
Spectacular gaming efficiency because of the AMD Ryzen 6800U
The place it actually issues—gaming—the Ayaneo Geek excels. Just like the Steam Deck, efficiency will rely in your graphics settings, decision, and the present TDP setting for the CPU. It’s a balancing act between battery life and CPU energy, however as soon as it’s dialed in (or in the event you’re enjoying plugged into wall energy), it’s greater than a bit spectacular.
Though it’s cheaper, the Ayaneo Geek sacrifices nothing in efficiency in comparison with the flagship Ayaneo 2. It makes use of the identical {hardware} to drive the expertise, so with similar settings, in-game body charges must be nearly the identical. Any scalebacks Ayaneo utilized between the fashions are purely high quality of life and don’t affect gaming efficiency.
There are 4 completely different energy modes to select from: Energy Saving (11W), Stability (15W), Sport (22W), and Professional Mode (3W – 33W). Older video games and indies can usually be performed at 11 watts and typically a lot much less. Sport mode is the very best match for contemporary video games, although normally drops battery life to lower than two hours in my testing. Stability mode strikes a center floor between the 2. With a bit tweaking, I discovered that quite a few indie video games, like Tremendous Meat Boy and Disco Elysium, might be performed with as little as 5 to seven watts, which drastically enhances battery life. Apparently, cranking up energy settings to 33W doesn’t normally provide the main efficiency enhance you may count on. It normally offers you lower than 10 additional FPS complete and drops battery life to lower than an hour, although in the event you’re enjoying plugged right into a wall outlet, it’s undoubtedly the best way to go, for peak efficiency.
I examined all kinds of video games for this evaluate and left the console in its Sport preset to maintain issues standardized. I additionally set the video games to 800p for constant comparisons.
- Forza 5 (Excessive) – 71 FPS
- God of Struggle (Inventory Settings) – 39 FPS
- Cyberpunk 2077 (Steam Deck Preset) – 63 FPS
- Borderlands 3 (Extremely) – 32 FPS
- A Plague Story (Low, FSR 2.0, Efficiency Mode) – 31 FPS
- Rocket League (Excessive) – 133 FPS
- The Witcher 3 (Excessive, FSR 2.0, Extremely Efficiency) – 43 FPS
- Dust 5 (Medium) – 56 FPS
- Elden Ring (Low) – 51 FPS
Taking part in at 800p, the Ayaneo Geek lets you flip up the settings on many new video games whereas nonetheless sustaining common body charges above 30 FPS. Some video games, like Elden Ring, are greatest locked to low settings for the improved responsiveness of upper body charges, however others, like Forza 5, have headroom to spare.
It’s troublesome to straight examine the Steam Deck’s efficiency to the Ayaneo Geek’s, as Valve’s steady updates and loads of neighborhood assist means it’s at all times getting higher. However in our unique Steam Deck evaluate, we “simply barely breached the 30 fps threshold” in God of Struggle. The AMD Ryzen 6800U is utilizing a newer processor era than the Steam Deck’s customized AMD APU, so usually, you’re more likely to see barely improved efficiency throughout the board on the Geek.
Whereas PC gaming handhelds used to demand that video games be set to their lowest potential settings, that age is usually behind us. The vast majority of video games I examined had been in a position to be pushed to medium and even excessive settings. Even when it’s important to flip issues down (it’s normally greatest to customise your settings and go for a mixture that appears greatest to you), components like decrease high quality textures are much less noticeable because of the smaller display screen. Options like FidelityFX Tremendous Decision (FSR), AMD’s technique of upscaling photos to enhance efficiency, are additionally turning into extra widespread and permit you to run much more graphically demanding video games whereas nonetheless hitting playable body charges. The Geek even has a built-in FSR possibility that can be utilized on many video games that don’t assist it natively, although the outcomes can range from nice to distractingly blurry.
I’ve talked about it earlier than, but it surely bears repeating once more: the Geek is ready to assist any recreation that’s presently obtainable on Home windows. There’s no concern that video games will or received’t work like there may be on the Steam Deck. There are few efficiency anomalies that pop up in the course of video games. The Darkish Photos Anthology: Man of Medan was unplayable on the Deck however good on the Geek. All of which means you’ll have a large library of video games to select from on day one and on the spot compatibility for it sooner or later, so long as the Geek can bodily run it. No ready on Valve to certify video games are playable or for builders so as to add assist. It simply works.
The Ayaneo Geek has variable battery life, loud followers, disappointing audio system
Whereas the Geek is clearly a really succesful gaming machine, its battery life is extraordinarily inconsistent. Should you’ve performed a conveyable gaming PC earlier than, you’re already accustomed to simply how variable battery life will be. The 50.25 wHr battery might final 4 hours or 40 minutes relying in your present TDP setting and the way demanding the sport you’re enjoying is.
The fan may also get fairly loud. Should you play on the 22-watt gaming preset, the Geek’s fan will be distractingly noisy. It produces as a lot noise as a typical gaming laptop computer, although stops in need of “jet engine” standing. However because you maintain the Geek nearer to your face and ears, its noise is extra noticeable throughout use. Working it in Stability or Energy Saving modes quiets it down, however at a noticeable lower in efficiency in demanding video games.
The fan can have you reaching for headphones, however chances are you’ll be doing that anyway because of the Geek’s disappointing audio system. They get loud sufficient to listen to nicely, however films and recreation audio lack physique and sound skinny. They’ll work in a pinch, however identical to a laptop computer, I wouldn’t advocate utilizing them when you’ve got a pair of headphones useful.
Must you purchase the Ayaneo Geek?
The Ayaneo Geek is a powerful handheld gaming PC, particularly compared towards the Ayaneo 2 and the Steam Deck. Whereas Ayaneo has scaled again sure options to hit the Geek’s worth, its gaming efficiency hasn’t suffered in any respect. It’s a top-tier handheld that appears certain to impress. Should you can afford it. And that’s the rub: although the Ayaneo Geek has rather a lot to supply for lots lower than most of Ayaneo’s units, for that very same $849, you may purchase two Steam Decks and have cash left over for video games.
That doesn’t imply the Ayaneo Geek isn’t price contemplating. It’s smaller and extra snug to make use of. It’s extra highly effective and performs higher in video games. Most significantly, it runs on Home windows as a substitute of Linux, so any recreation or app that runs on Home windows ought to work superb with none additional tweaks needed (you’ll be able to run Home windows on the Steam Deck, but it surely takes a bit of labor and doesn’t at all times internet nice outcomes). Join it to a docking station and monitor and it might develop into a real, full-featured pc. Due to that, it’s extra becoming to contemplate the Geek prefer it’s a uniquely designed gaming laptop computer fairly than a easy recreation console, and in that gentle, $849 can really begin to look fairly cheap.
Whether or not the Ayaneo Geek is sensible for you relies upon fully on how you intend to make use of it and simply how a lot you worth its consolation, non-obligatory upsells like that 1200p display screen, and pure gaming horsepower. It additionally is determined by how a lot you’re keen to take care of some small firm jank, as AYAspace is extra more likely to break than SteamOS. But it surely’s probably the greatest choices for getting only a bit greater than the very best finish Steam Deck will get you whereas not spending greater than a pair hundred {dollars} additional.
