AYANEO Announces Air Plus with AMD Mendocino APU & RDNA2 Graphics

[Uskompuf]

AYANEO have recently announced the Air Plus handheld gaming console featuring the new Mendocino processor from AMD with an expected retail price of 289 USD. The Mendocino processor features the same Zen 2 and RDNA 2 cores found in the Steam Deck however the exact configuration and performance figures are currently unknown with rumors suggested that the processor will only include 2 Compute Units. The AYANEO Air Plus can run the Linux-based AYA Neo OS, Windows, or Steam OS and features a 6" 1080p display in addition to a M.2 2280 expansion slot. The console will retail for 289 USD undercutting the Steam Deck by 60 USD while a limited early run of units will be available for 200 USD later this year.





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[Robin Seina]

Won't Intel sue them? Mendocino was rather famous Intel Celeron core...
Also I wonder how this handheld will fit to other Ayan line up, since cpu cores are older generation and that means (LP)DDR4 with less optimization for low power consumption. The 6600U and 6800U will run rounds around this APU before it finishes one.

 

[Denver]

2CU = Not for gaming. unless you want to play PS1.

 

[swirl09]

Probably be a better experience for streaming than the Deck. I feared the res of the Deck would bother me, and it does in plenty of games.

I hope Valve release a follow up or Pro, or whatever. Because Wifi AX, 1TB+ Built in, and a 1080p display that fills out all that bezel, Ill pay the premium without hesitation.

 

[GeorgeMan]

2CU = Not for gaming. unless you want to play PS1.

Yeah, its price suggests so. It'll be able to run Windows though, so it makes sense to be somewhat more expensive than any Anbernic or so similar handheld.

Probably be a better experience for streaming than the Deck. I feared the res of the Deck would bother me, and it does in plenty of games.

I hope Valve release a follow up or Pro, or whatever. Because Wifi AX, 1TB+ Built in, and a 1080p display that fills out all that bezel, Ill pay the premium without hesitation.

They are struggling to fulfill the first hours of reservations and we're already almost a year after. I think they'll not release another version of the Deck any time soon. They don't earn money from Deck sales, but from the embedded Steam store, so it's the best for them to support it for as long as possible rather than release further upgraded versions and abandon it soon, like all other chinese manufacturers do.

 

[ZeppMan217]

They are struggling to fulfill the first hours of reservations and we're already almost a year after. I think they'll not release another version of the Deck any time soon. They don't earn money from Deck sales, but from the embedded Steam store, so it's the best for them to support it for as long as possible rather than release further upgraded versions and abandon it soon, like all other chinese manufacturers do.

That's down to the general lack of silicon, not a Deck exclusive issue. As far as Deck 2 goes, Newell already mentioned that there was an enormous amount of interest in a more robust and, therefore, expensive version of the handheld, and that they were considering the feedback carefully.

 

[GeorgeMan]

That's down to the general lack of silicon, not a Deck exclusive issue. As far as Deck 2 goes, Newell already mentioned that there was an enormous amount of interest in a more robust and, therefore, expensive version of the handheld, and that they were considering the feedback carefully.

Of course, they were not expecting the most expensive one to be the most popular, so a more expensive version on the next iteration should be considered by them. But still, I don't think they are gonna give it any major upgrade for the next couple of years.

 

[Punkenjoy]

2CU = Not for gaming. unless you want to play PS1.

There are many rumors that come from a new website getting out of nowhere. They state that and they also claim the link between the CPU and X670 is PCI-E 4x 4.0,

Time will tell if they were accurate but many of theses things contradict others leakers or the current specs. (like X670E should provide PCI-E 5.0 on it's own lane, no way it's only linked with PCI-E 4.0).

 

[RedBear]

Leaked Mendocino slide via Videocardz:

This console looks dead on arrival, unfortunately.

 

[IceShroom]

Why 1080p screen?? Who is going to push those pixel?? 720p is good for handheld.

 

[ModEl4]

This should have been a 720p design, the resolution puts the final nail in the coffin, if the TDP limit is similar to other AYANEO designs (probably a little bit lower due to 6" class form factor and lower quality materials vs the higher-end AYANEO models) the turbo frequency would be higher than the 1.6GHz of steam deck due to 6nm.
Now deduct some frequency for TDP, take account the real median vs turbo frequency and we are talking a little bit more faster than the switch.
That's not bad, but this is SteamOS/Windows based not light weight proprietary OS with great engine/game optimizations and on top of that the full HD resolution is killing it, not even steam deck with 512SP can do 1080p, not this model which should be 1/3 of steam deck or around that depending on the frequency achieved.
Edit: the AV1 decode support is a surprise, why wasn't mentioned in the press release or did I miss it?
If true why is present in this low end design and not present in the $200 6500XT, how many transistors did AMD really shave in Navi24 with this choice?

 

[IceShroom]

Leaked Mendocino slide via Videocardz:

This console looks dead on arrival, unfortunately.

2CU or 2WPG??
[2 CU = 128 Shader Core, 2WPG = 256 Shader Core.]

 

[eidairaman1]

Not a fan of the dpad, needs to Be Sega Genesis/Dreamcast Type, by far easier to use in Fighting games over a thumb stick.

 

[Nordic]

That retail pricing is interesting.

 

[Logoffon]

Won't Intel sue them? Mendocino was rather famous Intel Celeron core...

Unless they became that one astronomer who somehow actually pissed off at Apple's using his name as a code name of their product, I doubt it. I don't think it's even trademarked anyway.

 

[stimpy88]

The next gen of these devices will be the ones to look for.

 

[Tartaros]

Not a fan of the dpad, needs to Be Sega Genesis/Dreamcast Type, by far easier to use in Fighting games over a thumb stick.

It seems to be a cross dpad like the deck has, it only has a crossing section painted in white.

 

[Octavean]

Don’t cancel that Steam Deck order,….

 

[RedBear]

AyaNeo has added two Intel alternatives for this Air Plus, one based on the Pentium Gold 8505 ($249) and one based on the Core i3 1215U ($299); the Mendocino variant is now said to cost $299 as well and it will release later in February 2023, while the Intel variants will release in December 2022:

AYA Neo Air Plus will be available with Intel or AMD chips for $249 and up (handheld gaming PC) - Liliputing

AYA Neo Air Plus will be available with Intel or AMD chips for $249 and up (handheld gaming PC)

liliputing.com

 

[Denver]

AyaNeo has added two Intel alternatives for this Air Plus, one based on the Pentium Gold 8505 ($249) and one based on the Core i3 1215U ($299); the Mendocino variant is now said to cost $299 as well and it will release later in February 2023, while the Intel variants will release in December 2022:

AYA Neo Air Plus will be available with Intel or AMD chips for $249 and up (handheld gaming PC) - Liliputing

AYA Neo Air Plus will be available with Intel or AMD chips for $249 and up (handheld gaming PC)

liliputing.com

The Pentium version is much superior on the graphics side, this 48EU iGPU sometimes outperforms or tie vega 8 and 10 (14/12nm):
https://www.notebookcheck.net/Intel...48-EUs-GPU-Benchmarks-and-Specs.466210.0.html

Mendocino makes no sense

 

[Robin Seina]

Unless they became that one astronomer who somehow actually pissed off at Apple's using his name as a code name of their product, I doubt it. I don't think it's even trademarked anyway.

Americans will sue everyone and everything if they see in it a bit of money.