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AYANEO NEXT LITE - A Fantastic Budget Device

Writer's picture: HellMonkey 88HellMonkey 88


Powered by AMD Ryzen technology, hall effect triggers and multiple interface options. There's a lot to like about the AYANEO NEXT LITE.


AYANEO were kind enough to send over their NEXT LITE handheld for us to review. We have been sitting on this for quite some time but it has given us a chance to spend a lot of time with the device. Like any new piece of technology, the first thing we are exposed to is the packaging contents when we first open up the box. The AYANEO NEXT LITE is packaged extremely well. Everything is subdued in a robust but soft foam encasing.


The device is rather weighty considering its size, (267 x 112 x 22mm) coming in at 720g. For reference, the original Steam Deck weighs around 640g but is a larger unit. We were sent the "Starry Black" edition and it has an aesthetically pleasing black finish to it although it does easily leave behind a lot of fingerprint marks and smudges.


The AYANEO NEXT LITE feels ok in your hands with the smooth finishing but the weight is very noticeable compared to its size. Being smaller in stature compared to other devices may not suit someone with larger hands but the layout is spaced out in such a manner to combat those potential issues.


The feeling of the joysticks on this device was a sure sign of quality. Usually, when testing budget options you will find loose and unresponsive joysticks but not on the AYANEO NEXT LITE. They are very tight and ultra-responsive. The same can be said with the bumpers and triggers. They don't feel like a budget option in your hands when playing games.


This device does ship with a 7" 800P IPS screen which looks perfectly serviceable until we stand it side by side with another device. The ASUS ROG Ally puts the colour vibrance of the AYANEO NEXT LITE to shame and the Steam Deck OLED blows it out of the water. However, the ROG Ally and Steam Deck OLED do cost a fair bit more.


Considering the AYANEO NEXT LITE would be classed as a budget option, you do get great interface options. Not only does it have 2 full-function Gen2 USB 3.2 Type-C ports it also has a 3rd data-only Gen2 USB 3.2 Type-C ports.


The speakers on this device aren't too bad. You won't be blown away by the quality but they serve a purpose when needed. Audio can be a tough subject to review but in the handheld PC gaming space nothing will ever sink as low as the Lenovo Legion Go speakers.


We have a whole host of great specs in such a small device. M.2 2280 PCIe 3.0 storage options, customised cooling and WiFi 6. Take a look at the full specification chart below:

Screen Size

7" 800P IPS Original Colour Screen (1280X800)

CPU

AMD Ryzen 5 4500U/AMD Ryzen 7 4800U

Storage Combination

16GB + 128GB (Only AMD Ryzen 5 4500U) 16GB + 512GB

Memory

LPDDR4x 4266MHz

SSD

M.2 2280 PCIe 3.0 SSD Support up to 8TB

Cooling

Customised Dual Copper Pipe Cooling System

Colour

Pastel Blue / Bright White / Jet Black

Controller

Master Controller

Joystick

Hall Sensing Big Joystick

Trigger

Hall Trigger

Vibration Motor

X-Axis Linear Motor

Gyroscope

Six-Axis Gyroscope

Interface

2 x Full Function USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-C 1 x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-C (data only) 3.5mm Headphone Jack

Battery Capacity

47Wh

Size

267 x 112 x 22mm (Controller: 30mm)

Weight

720g

Connectivity

WiFi 6 / BT 5.2

Operating System

Pre-installed Windows 11 64-bit Home Edition Officially provides HoloISO images for player installation

AYA Space is full-featured and has great customisation options.


AYA Space is one of the best features of the device. The software is very intuitive and can be operated with the controllers rather than a mouse. The Quick Tool allows you to adjust your power profile with the touch of a button. You can also go deeper if you like and customise your power profile fully to your liking.


AYA Space is also where you can remap your controller configurations, gyroscope aim assist, joystick sensitivity, trigger sensitivity and much more. This software has one of the most configurable performance overlays we have come across as well. Overall the AYA Space software is one of the most intuitive and customisable we have had the pleasure of reviewing.



Games Testing


Using the low/medium preset in Fortnite and the Extreme performance option (30W TDP) on the AYANEO NEXT LITE itself we were enjoying a pleasant 40-60 FPS experience. We did encounter some load spikes while waiting in the lobbies but we didn't encounter any noticeable issues once we were in the game. The load spikes more than likely show up the SSD speed for what it's worth. When engaging in gun fights, car-ramming battles and all the usual shenanigans we get up to in Fortnite, the device handled everything very well.


Next up we tested GTA V. In Story mode, you can have a pleasant 40-60 FPS experience but when we dip our toes into multiplayer 30 FPS can become a struggle. The most noticeable issue we encountered with this was the game would not pull any more than 15W maximum. We found this very strange and recalled no issues on other devices. GTA V is historically a CPU-heavy game and it usually shines on handheld devices but this may be where we start to see the limitations of the budget option.


Third on our list was EA FC 25 (FIFA) and it didn't disappoint. Taking into consideration our battery life we tried this out with the balanced performance mode. We're looking at 20-30 FPS. Still responsive enough to be able to play but for FPS snobs like myself who want all the frames all the time then performance power mode shines brighter in the 40-60 FPS range.


Lastly, we tried out 2023's Game of the Year and still very popular to this day, Elden Ring. The device did struggle slightly on low/medium presets. In some areas we could push 30-40 FPS but locking down to 30 FPS provided the most stable experience. Again, like GTA V, we encountered our power draw issue once more. 15W was the most we could pull and it does seem like the AYANEO NEXT LITE struggles with CPU-bound titles like Elden Ring and GTA V.


Pros & Cons


Pros

Cons

Price-to-performance ratio trends with the current market.

47WHr Battery may not keep up with your game time.

Multiple interface options.

CPU-Bound games struggle

Controller inputs feel great for the price.

The noticeable weight of the device may become bothersome.

AYA Space is a fantastic software for customisation and device management.

SSD speeds lag behind other devices.




Links in this article may link to a partner site we are affiliated with, if a purchase is made through one of our links we may get a small commission, we do not get any commission from the Steam Store, we also utilize some AI tools such as Grammarly and Chat-GPT to aid article creation however all source content is our own.

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