Steam Deck or Aya Neo (Or something else)?

[Louis Miles]

I'm really not sure what i should do. Should I wait a year to get a Steam Deck or should I just buy an Aya Neo (or something else)?

While i'm usually console gamer, having a switch handheld like computer, that has all the advantages such as emulators and having the ability to plug the console into a TV and hook up a bluetooth controller, sounds like a great must have for me!

I really just want to play emulators on something like this, like Dolphin, Citra and Desmume HD in high resolution and stable frame rate.

After doing some research on these consoles, I think the best alternative to the Steam Deck seems to be the Aya Neo.
Even though I've done a lot of research, I still haven't been able to figure out if the Aya Neo's resolution can be increased on monitors / TVs or is it only capable of outputting 720p? And I haven't been able to find a review that shows how well Bluetooth controllers work (I hope there is no input lag)

Another strange thing is that there seem to be 2 websites that you can buy the Aya Neo, but which one is the right one? There's the "store ayaneo" page that seems to be the official one but not sure, but then there's the indiego page that, oddly enough, says it's sold out.

 

[Tom Bombadildo]

The Steam Deck isn't out yet so this question is impossible to answer. We don't know how good the Steam Deck is compared to something like the NEO or GPD Win 3, so we can't tell you whether you should buy it over something else.

Price-performance wise, the Steam Deck is 100% a better investment than the NEO, you'll get a better GPU and better RAM for a much lower price (slightly over half off, if you decide to buy the 64GB version and use MSD cards for expansion/upgrade the storage yourself to avoid Valve's high up-charge for storage). But we still don't know a lot of in-depth details about the thing, and we have no real idea when they'll ship if you didn't grab a reservation the first hour or two when they launched last month so you will end up having to wait until like Q2 or more probably Q3 2022 if you try reserving one now.

As for questions, yes you can set the NEOs resolution when connected to a monitor, it's a PC. It should be able to output to 4k/60hz just fine with a USB-C dock (an official one will come out eventually, but you can just buy any $20 hub and it'll be fine).

For input lag, it'll be as good as any other BT device, it's not using any fancy special adapter just some standard Intel AX200 module. Any input lag will vary depending on interference and your controller and other such things.

In regards to stores, this page is the correct one to order from now: https://store.ayaneo.com/products/ayaneo < The Indiegogo models are all sold out, so you have to pay the full price for them now ($900ish for the 500GB, $1000ish for the 1TB).

 

[Taleweaver]

This kind of reminds me to the earlier days of pc gaming : "get a computer now or wait another year for a better one that's also cheaper?".

The neo certainly looks solid, I'll give you that. But as said : we can't compare to something that isn't out yet. Valve is a powerhouse, so there's hype. And if they deliver on their promise, it's a better deal price /power. But how it handles? How it plays? That's anyone's guess right now.

I'm personally ordering a deck, but it's a gamble I'm taking. I don't feel comfortable filling in the poll, as I'm talking of what I'm doing here. You really should make your own choice; I don't want to be an influence in what might end up an expensive fad.

Best of luck on your decision. :-)

 

[pcwizard7]

For me, with Steam Deck with better ram and GPU, and it's cheaper + with the trackpads will make it easy to adapted strategy games that require a mouse. But the layout and size of the device is only concern for me

Plus depend on how deep the m.2 slot is will make a storage upgrade a possibility

 

[Xzi]

No contest, Steam Deck has better/newer hardware and comes in at about half the price. Linus compares the two in his hands-on video released yesterday:



About 8:30 in he starts the comparison. For a game like DOOM Eternal you're looking at nearly twice the FPS on Steam Deck (with the same graphics settings). RDNA 2 blows Vega out of the water. The only area where Aya Neo has a slight advantage is thickness, but honestly neither is pocketable so you might as well go for the more comfortable grips.

 

[Kwyjor]

I really just want to play emulators on something like this, like Dolphin, Citra and Desmume HD in high resolution and stable frame rate.

So you want to get one just so you can play all the games you have already been playing? Why would you expect this to alter the experience?

 

[Xzi]

So you want to get one just so you can play all the games you have already been playing? Why would you expect this to alter the experience?

More powerful hardware means you can run newer emulators for newer systems, it also allows you to pump up the internal resolution in stuff like Dolphin. So in terms of performance, visuals, and compatibility, yes it alters the experience. That's just relative to other portables/handhelds of course.

 

[Taleweaver]

So you want to get one just so you can play all the games you have already been playing? Why would you expect this to alter the experience?

Erm... Because beter resolution and better frame rates? It's literally in the part you quoted. If you want testimonies that a better of either improves the experience, I can provide plenty.

 

[Kwyjor]

Erm... Because beter resolution and better frame rates?

But does better resolution really matter all that much if you're playing on a tiny screen? Also, surely these devices aren't going to have substantially better resolution and frame rates than what you can get on a standard PC, at least when it comes to emulation. And it still doesn't change that you're probably playing the same games you've played many times already.

 

[teamlocust]

Steam deck is the most overhyped device, but only useful for people with a huge steam library. For others, a hacker switch or a powerful cellphone is good enough for emulators.

 

[The Real Jdbye]

The Steam Deck isn't out yet so this question is impossible to answer. We don't know how good the Steam Deck is compared to something like the NEO or GPD Win 3, so we can't tell you whether you should buy it over something else.

Price-performance wise, the Steam Deck is 100% a better investment than the NEO, you'll get a better GPU and better RAM for a much lower price (slightly over half off, if you decide to buy the 64GB version and use MSD cards for expansion/upgrade the storage yourself to avoid Valve's high up-charge for storage). But we still don't know a lot of in-depth details about the thing, and we have no real idea when they'll ship if you didn't grab a reservation the first hour or two when they launched last month so you will end up having to wait until like Q2 or more probably Q3 2022 if you try reserving one now.

As for questions, yes you can set the NEOs resolution when connected to a monitor, it's a PC. It should be able to output to 4k/60hz just fine with a USB-C dock (an official one will come out eventually, but you can just buy any $20 hub and it'll be fine).

For input lag, it'll be as good as any other BT device, it's not using any fancy special adapter just some standard Intel AX200 module. Any input lag will vary depending on interference and your controller and other such things.

In regards to stores, this page is the correct one to order from now: https://store.ayaneo.com/products/ayaneo < The Indiegogo models are all sold out, so you have to pay the full price for them now ($900ish for the 500GB, $1000ish for the 1TB).

Per LTT's hands on with the Steam Deck, games perform about 50% better than the Aya Neo. Worth waiting for IMO.

I'm really not sure what i should do. Should I wait a year to get a Steam Deck or should I just buy an Aya Neo (or something else)?

While i'm usually console gamer, having a switch handheld like computer, that has all the advantages such as emulators and having the ability to plug the console into a TV and hook up a bluetooth controller, sounds like a great must have for me!

I really just want to play emulators on something like this, like Dolphin, Citra and Desmume HD in high resolution and stable frame rate.

After doing some research on these consoles, I think the best alternative to the Steam Deck seems to be the Aya Neo.
Even though I've done a lot of research, I still haven't been able to figure out if the Aya Neo's resolution can be increased on monitors / TVs or is it only capable of outputting 720p? And I haven't been able to find a review that shows how well Bluetooth controllers work (I hope there is no input lag)

Another strange thing is that there seem to be 2 websites that you can buy the Aya Neo, but which one is the right one? There's the "store ayaneo" page that seems to be the official one but not sure, but then there's the indiego page that, oddly enough, says it's sold out.

Of course it can output higher resolutions. It's a PC. It can do anything a PC with the same CPU could.

 

[pcwizard7]

But does better resolution really matter all that much if you're playing on a tiny screen? Also, surely these devices aren't going to have substantially better resolution and frame rates than what you can get on a standard PC, at least when it comes to emulation. And it still doesn't change that you're probably playing the same games you've played many times already.

1. when the internal res of emulator is 240-340P um yes upscale it to 720P is a worth improvement
2. a game that would normally run 15 fps on real hardware can run 60 fps in emulator
3. yes u can do this on pc but its the idea of portable/handheld emulation device that's the appealing factor

@teamlocust

1. you can access other stores
2. you can install windows on it if u want too
3. a hacked switch once you get to game cube/dream cast era games, u start to get a hit or miss with games that will run or not
4. cellphone has its limits depending on the phone, you hit frame rate problems on systems around the same era as the switch

--------------------- MERGED ---------------------------

Per LTT's hands on with the Steam Deck, games perform about 50% better than the Aya Neo. Worth waiting for IMO.

What's the IMO?

 

[Tom Bombadildo]

Per LTT's hands on with the Steam Deck, games perform about 50% better than the Aya Neo. Worth waiting for IMO.

Given LTT's recent quality of their videos, I'd take that claim with a grain of salt. How many games did they bother testing before making that 50% claim? 1? 2?

I'm sure the RDNA 2 based iGPU will kick shitty Vega's ass, but I highly doubt it will be "about 50% better" in a lot of titles.

 

[The Real Jdbye]

Given LTT's recent quality of their videos, I'd take that claim with a grain of salt. How many games did they bother testing before making that 50% claim? 1? 2?

I'm sure the RDNA 2 based iGPU will kick shitty Vega's ass, but I highly doubt it will be "about 50% better" in a lot of titles.

As many as they could in an hour. /shrug
We're not getting any better info until close to release. At worst it's still a significant upgrade over the Aya Neo and the comfort and controls are better too.

 

[Enkuler]

Given LTT's recent quality of their videos, I'd take that claim with a grain of salt. How many games did they bother testing before making that 50% claim? 1? 2?

I'm sure the RDNA 2 based iGPU will kick shitty Vega's ass, but I highly doubt it will be "about 50% better" in a lot of titles.

Probably not a lot since people didn't have an infinite time to test during the event. But at least LTT came with a heat camera, a thing that detects flashes on screen to measure input lag, an Aya Neo and a Switch for comparisons, an ifixit tool kit for no reason because it was forbidden but still, and a frigging entire monitor to test video output. Meanwhile other people who came were just like "oh yes this thing plays games indeed".
So ok, can't necessarily infer general stats but these still are numbers and the lack of more numbers doesn't come from the lack of quality from LTT.

 

[teamlocust]

@pcwizard7
I forgot to mention the cellphone I have.. it’s the mi 11 ultra.. trust me when I tell you all dreamcast games and GameCube work flawless on it. Steam deck is bulky and not portable at all like a switch.. but yes you will justify it because you will turn around and say it is a PC. Also the battery life will be pathetic on the steam deck.. mark my words.

Steam deck is a niche device for tinkering and valve knows it.

 

[Xzi]

I forgot to mention the cellphone I have.. it’s the mi 11 ultra.. trust me when I tell you all dreamcast games and GameCube work flawless on it.

Touchscreen controls and access to very few games outside of emulation...barf.

Steam deck is bulky and not portable at all like a switch..

Both fit inside a case just fine, neither is pocketable. Not to mention that joycons aren't nearly as comfortable as the Hori Splitpad Pro, which puts Switch at much closer to the same thickness as Steam Deck. This is being pedantic.

Also the battery life will be pathetic on the steam deck.. mark my words.

It's a 40 wHr battery, the APU draws 4 - 15 Watts. We don't have to wait for release to do math that simple. Just like with Switch, new AAA games will drain the battery much faster than indies.

Steam deck is a niche device for tinkering and valve knows it.

Steam Deck can be whatever the hell you want it to be, that's the advantage of not being trapped in a walled garden. A lot of people will use it as a straight-up gaming/entertainment console and never pull up the desktop environment once.

 

[NyaakoXD]

As mentioned by others, the Steam Deck is better compared to the Aya Neo. It pretty much beats it out in pricing, specs, and having Steam support services. And since the Steam Deck has overall better specs, it can also means overall better emulation. Steam Deck allows users to be able to install a different OS, like Windows, so you can get better compatibility with other games, programs, and emulators.

 

[Xzi]

Steam Deck allows users to be able to install a different OS, like Windows, so you can get better compatibility with other games, programs, and emulators.

To be fair I'm sure you could install Arch Linux or SteamOS on Aya Neo, but the cost of a Windows license is still built-in to the MSRP so it'd almost feel like a waste.

 

[nero99]

if you don't care about pocketability, get a One X Player when they release their ryzen 4800u version. Perfect size screen, some of the best controls out there, has a turbo button to go from 20w to 30w, has a freaking kick stand that actually works, dual usb C 4.0 ports, one is thunderbolt 4 for e-gpu useage as well.