The folks at Indiegogo are putting crowdfunding products to the test in our new series of honest reviews.In this issue, our own email marketing and lifecycle strategist Karisa Hunt tries Ayane slide, The new handheld gaming computer our crowdfunding community is talking about. Does it live up to the hype? Read on as we put it to the test!
I like video games, but not the largely non-portable nature of them. While the Nintendo Switch is great, it’s old enough that it has trouble playing new games, and the options to play are limited. I think I’m almost stuck with what I have, limitations and all that.
But then handheld gaming PCs became a thing and I became interested. I’ve always wanted to try it, and when AYANEO launched their new SLIDE model, I knew it was time to give it a try.
Unboxing
I want to give a huge compliment to the AYANEO team here because the moment I took it out of the box, I was hooked. I mean, look at how awesome this packaging is!
Of course, this packaging is aimed at a certain age group who will both understand what it is and miss it…but as it happens, I’m in that age group. I’m still happy with that giant VHS box.
set up
Everything you need is in the box, which is great…because while I’m excited to try it out, I need to charge it first.
AYANEO SLIDE is not like a game console, it has its own operating system and way of working. Instead, it’s a true handheld PC, so it runs Windows and any other programs you download to it. Setup is easy and Windows guides you through the process.
The first problem I encountered was when launching the AYANEO software. It kept crashing me so I decided to bypass it completely for now and download Steam. (It comes pre-installed with Xbox Game Access, but I’m primarily a Playstation gamer, so I went a different route.) There were no issues there, nor were any other programs loading, so I’m blaming the AYANEO software issues on issues with the program itself It’s not a console issue.
use
The AYANEO SLIDE I bought has 64GB RAM, so it runs super fast.I want to test it out by playing Ori and the Will of the WispsI tried to play a game on my Switch but had to stop because it was too glitchy to enjoy it.
I’m not exaggerating when I tell you that playing on the AYANEO SLIDE is a complete pleasure. Ori Featuring gorgeous graphics and seamless flow, it makes for an enjoyable gaming experience when played on a machine with the processing power. I am very happy with this experience.
Of course, I couldn’t stop there. AYANEO SLIDE HANDLE Resident Evil 4 Easily (also around 50 FPS). It can play a few different first-person shooters with zero glitches.Even played Baldur’s Gate 3 Like an absolute champ, I can take it with me wherever I go instead of being tethered to a specific location like I do at home.
There are a few other smaller features that really enhanced my experience as well. The sliding screen tilts up so I can hold the console at a comfortable angle while still being able to see. The customization is incredible, too – you can change every detail, from preferred gaming settings to different color background lighting for the keyboard and each joystick. It’s also incredibly fast, and with a 4TB SSD, it’s by far the most advanced computer I’ve ever used.
shortcoming
While I like the way AYANEO SLIDE handles gaming, it does have some shortcomings. First and foremost, the battery life isn’t very great.After a full charge I can play for about an hour and a half Baldur’s Gate 3 before it dies. Granted, it’s a battery-heavy game, but it’s still not a great runtime. (This is a problem with a lot of similar devices, though, and I don’t think the AYANEO SLIDE is any worse than average here. Just needs to be careful.)
Second, while the sliding keyboard is neat (and makes entering long, unintelligible passwords easier), there aren’t many places where it feels necessary. It’s also a bit odd in size, which makes sense, but is a bit difficult to use. My hands aren’t big enough to reach the middle keys when holding the console with both hands, but if the buttons were scaled down so they were smaller, the keys would be harder to hit accurately (and the screen size would shrink, which would be sad).
Third, it is Heavy. While it’s not unusable due to the weight, it’s probably two and a half as heavy as the Switch. It didn’t start to get very uncomfortable until the battery was nearly drained, so I didn’t feel the need to put it down for my wrist, but it’s noticeably heavier than many other handheld computers and the Steam platform. There (probably due to the keyboard).
in conclusion
Overall, the AYANEO SLIDE is a very, very good gaming computer and one that can be taken anywhere. Its biggest differentiator—the keyboard—ended up not being as attractive as I originally hoped, but it’s probably more useful for browsing the web and chatting on apps like Discord than just in a gaming environment.However, the way it handles heavy gaming, e.g. Baldur’s Gate 3 Will keep me returning to it happily for a long time to come.
learn more, View AYANEO SLIDE’s events!