With so many handheld PCs entering the market, most of which at a high price point, it makes sense that the AYANEO Next Lite has been announced as a budget-friendly alternative. And while many are using Windows as the OS, AYANEO is using SteamOS for the upcoming device.
AYANEO is known for its brilliant handhelds, as well as a line of incredible looking mini-PCs. While the recent announcement from AYANEO may seem familiar to fans of the company, we now know it will be the AYANEO Next Lite.
Presumably using a shell of the AYANEO Next, the biggest feature of the company's next device is the reveal that it will be using SteamOS, a Linux-based operating system from Valve. While SteamOS has been regularly updated for over 10 years at this point since its release in 2013, it gained popularity after the release of the excellent Steam Deck.
The specs of the product have yet to be announced. However, we'd expect it to have some lighter specs than the original model, considering the name of the device. The original uses a Ryzen 7 5825U, so we'd predict it will use a cheaper Ryzen CPU to remain budget-friendly. According to Dexerto, the company has confirmed the handheld will have a 7-inch 800p screen and a 47WHr battery.
It also saves money by reusing older AYANEO Next shells, making it cheaper for consumers to buy in the long run. And since SteamOS is free licensable OS for manufacturers to use, AYANEO is no doubt saving money on paying for Windows license fees too.
It appears that the product will be available in three colours when it launches, those being a white with orange accents, a light blue-like colour, and black with white accents. Personally, I think the white and orange looks great, but the black will likely fit most people's tastes.
Prices for the device haven't been confirmed either, with "subscriptions open" on January 11, 2024 at 9:30 PM EST, which is 2:30 AM GMT on the following day. There will likely be different variations of the product so you can pick the best one for your gaming setup.
Will the AYANEO Next Lite be able to enter the best gaming handheld list, especially with the MSI Claw release date and specs announced? We imagine so, especially if it can cater to non-PC gamers by giving them a cheaper alternative to the more expensive handhelds on the market. Whether AYANEO's upcoming device can appeal to mainstream gamers or not, competition will certainly help bring the prices of its rivals down.