Ayaneo Kun revealed: New Steam Deck rival has killer feature ROG Ally missed

Sayem Ahmed
Ayaneo Kun header image featuring three consoles

The Ayaneo Kun is the latest Steam Deck competitor on the block, and it boasts impressive features and specs, as well as a trackpad, a first for Windows handhelds of this kind.

Following months of speculation following its announcement, Ayaneo has finally unveiled the Ayaneo Kun. The new device sports a brand-new shell, and a whole host of new features packed under the hood. The company took to Twitter to announce the new device, which will be Ayaneo’s “Most powerful Windows handheld console yet”.

The company is also planning to release the Ayaneo Next II, as well as other handhelds with fast iteration. But, we think that the Ayaneo Kun looks different enough from its competitors, thanks to a key new feature that we thought was missing in the Asus ROG Ally and Ayaneo 2.

The Ayaneo Kun pulls out all the stops

Ayaneo Kun on blue background

The device will sport a bezel-less 8.4-inch screen, in addition to dual touchpads, which have never been seen before in a Windows handheld, or Steam Deck competitor. This is also paired with a Windows Hello camera for verification and the addition of back buttons for further controller customization.

The device is claimed to sport “very large battery capacity” according to Ayaneo CEO Arthur Zhang. He further clarified on Ayaneo’s official Discord channel that the battery will also be larger than 65W. He also stated that due to “Different structures and screens” that the Ayaneo Kun will also have overall lower heat output when compared to its previous devices.

Additionally, you should expect classic Ayaneo features like hall-sensing joysticks, a killer screen, and fingerprint recognition. It’s about time that Windows handhelds got touchpad support, and while we do not have specs for the device just yet, it’s looking like an incredibly promising contender that we cannot wait to get our hands on.

Ayaneo Pocket Air specs revealed

Ayaneo Pocket Air surrounded by retro games, playing Axiom verge

Since Ayaneo is not one to shy away from announcing handhelds, the company has also revealed the specs for the Ayaneo Air Pocket, its first-ever Android-based handheld, which will be running Android 12.

  • CPU: MediaTek Dimensity 1200
  • Screen: 5.5-inch AMOLED
  • Size: 224 x 89.5 x 17mm
  • Battery: 7350 mAh
  • OS: Android 12
  • Weight: 380g
  • Features: Fingerprint module, hall-sensing sticks and triggers, gyroscope, dual-mic, vibration motor, AyaHome launcher

The device is sporting an older mid-range Android chip, which debuted several years ago, and was also sued in the GPD XP+. This could be why the device is launching with an older version of Android. In terms of emulation performance, the device is expected to emulate up to PS2 titles, if benchmarks from other handhelds are to be believed.

While the chipset might be disappointing to some, the shell looks identical to the Ayaneo Air, which we were big fans of. The device is expected to launch very soon.

About The Author

Dexerto's Hardware Editor. Sayem is an expert in all things Nvidia, AMD, Intel, and PC components. He has 10 years of experience, having written for the likes of Eurogamer, IGN, Trusted Reviews, Kotaku, and many more. Get in touch via email at sayem.ahmed@dexerto.com.