More information about the AYANEO Flip has come to light, and the device looks to take its inspiration from the Nintendo DS.
The AYANEO Flip will come in two different variants. The first features a flip-out keyboard, while the second ditches the keyboard in favor of a second screen.
The keyboard version is a solid idea. I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve needed a keyboard to enter text in games or enter web addresses. By having an in-built keyboard, I won’t need to invoke the fairly rubbish Windows on-screen keyboard every time I need to do something. As for the second screen, my mind instantly goes to DS and 3DS emulation. I know Citra – the Windows-based 3DS emulator – can let you output each screen to separate devices, so the potential here definitely has me intrigued.
In terms of what’s powering the AYANEO Flip, the AMD Ryzen 7 7840U is set to be paired with Radeon 780M graphics. The screen size – that is, the upper screen – comes in at seven inches. That’s a whole five inches wider than the original DS screen. It’s also capable of up to 120 Hertz.
Pricing info and a release date are still to be announced. Given the specs, though, I can work out what the AYANEO Flip should be capable of in terms of performance. It’s more powerful than the Steam Deck and in the same ballpark as the ASUS ROG Ally. That means it should be able to run the latest AAA games in some form. For high-end games like Starfield and Cyberpunk 2077, you can expect somewhere in the region of 30 and 45 frames per second, respectively.
If you’re eyeing up the AYANEO Flip as a retro handheld, it should theoretically be able to play every game from every emulator. The only limits here are the state of the emulators themselves. Nintendo Switch performance and compatibility aren’t perfect, neither are PS3 and Xbox 360. But, as I say, those are issues with the emulators rather than the hardware.
As always, I’ll be sure to update you as soon as I’ve got some more solid AYANEO Flip info.
