AYANEO KUN" Windows Portable Gaming Console - Fastest Review! Enjoy the most powerful GPU & powerful 8.4-inch monitor!

In recent years, portable gaming PCs running Windows OS have been appearing one after another, and one of the main reasons for their popularity is that they can easily play PC games distributed on Steam.

In this crowded portable gaming PC market, the AYANEO KUN stands out with its large 8.4-inch screen. We had the opportunity to review the AYANEO KUN, and here are our impressions.

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Large 8.4-inch display and rich control mechanisms

The AYANEO KUN made its debut at the 2023 Tokyo Game Show, and anyone who sees it in person will be surprised by its size.

The large 8.4-inch display is eye-catching.

The 8.4-inch 1600P display (2,560 x 1,600 pixels) on the AYANEO KUN is a stately display. AYANEO KUN measures 312.4 (W) x 132.5 (H) x 37.6 (D) mm (including the controller) and weighs approximately 950 g. Although it weighs nearly 1 kg, it does not seem so heavy when actually held.

AYANEO KUN" is also characterized by its abundant control mechanisms. First of all, there are three buttons on the top of the main unit, one on each side of the left and right triggers.

Top button on the right hand side

Top button on the left hand side

These buttons should be used mainly for shooting, attacking, reloading, and defensive actions in FPS/TPS.

Trigger button best suited for FPS firing operations.

In addition, two buttons are provided on the left and right rear surfaces. These buttons are placed along the curved surface of the back and seem to fit a variety of people's hands.

Two left and right rear buttons

Accurate command input is essential for fighting game play, and the floating 8-way D-pad is located on the lower left side. This will be of great use when the joystick does not allow for detailed command input.

Floating 8-way buttons are also included.

Equipped with the most powerful GPU available today

AMD Ryzen 7 7840U processor

The AYANEO KUN is available in two versions, a 16GB/512GB version and a 32GB/2TB version, depending on the combination of memory and storage, the latter of which will be reviewed here.

The latter is the one reviewed here. It is not uncommon to find games distributed on Steam today with data capacities approaching 100GB, but with 2TB of storage space, there is plenty of room to enjoy the games. The storage capacity is larger than that of the gaming notebook PC that the author owns, which is somewhat frustrating. ......

The processor installed is the AMD Ryzen 7 7840U, with AMD Radeon 780M graphics built into it. The AMD Radeon 780M is such a powerful GPU that some say it is the "most powerful built-in GPU" at the moment.

It has even been evaluated to be able to compete in benchmark tests with entry-level gaming notebooks developed before the Corona disaster, making it the perfect graphics performance for portable gaming PCs with space limitations.

Playing the multiplayer Western knight action game "MORDHAU

Now, let's play a game on this machine.

The first game we chose was "MORDHAU," a multiplayer Western knight action game. It is a realistic FPS without any fantasy elements, and fights only with physical attacks such as swords, spears, and projectile weapons.

The game is characterized by its "weight. When you press the attack button, you swing your weapon, but because of this action, there is naturally a time lag before the sword hits the enemy. The game accurately reproduces the "movement of swinging the weapon and the few seconds it takes to do so," making it very difficult to damage enemies who are moving around.

The recommended playing environment for "MORDHAU" is as follows.

OS	Windows 10 64 Bit (latest update) or Windows 11 64 Bit (latest update)
Processor	Intel Core i5 - 6600k or AMD equivalent
Memory	16 GB RAM
Graphics	NVIDIA GTX 1060 or AMD equivalent
DirectX	Version 11
Networking	Broadband Internet connection
Storage	40 GB free space

We actually played this game and did not notice any choppiness or fatal delays. We played the game with the joystick input sensitivity at its default setting, and found it to be enjoyable enough.

Although this was my first time playing with "AYANEO KUN," I succeeded in defeating a knight in the enemy army. This game is very difficult to defeat just one enemy, and I played with a heavy feeling that I might be dragging my friends down, but in the end, I defeated three of them! The controls seem to be as good as those of a regular gamepad.

I must also mention the high quality of the graphics. MORDHAU" is a game in which battles take place in a variety of settings, from snowy mountains to villages in the desert, and the AYANEO KUN's high-resolution (2,560 x 1,600) display beautifully reproduced the endless natural scenes in this game.

Playing "Warlander," a multiplayer fantasy battle

Next, we played a game called "Warlander" with default settings.

Like "MORDHAU," this is a multiplayer battle game that requires a constant online connection. The difference is that "Warlander" has a wizard. As a multiplayer TPS in a royal fantasy world, it became a big hit in Japan immediately after its release.

The recommended specifications for "Warlander" are as follows.

OS	Windows 10 64-bit
Processor	Intel Core i7-8700 @ 3.20Ghz / AMD Ryzen 7 2700
Memory	12 GB RAM
Graphics	GeForce RTX 2060, 6 GB / Radeon RX 5700 XT, 8 GB
Networking	Broadband Internet connection

As it turns out, this game, too, could be played with "AYANEO KUN" without any difficulty.

While "MORDHAU" expresses "the weight of swords and armor," "Warlander" is a game characterized by "high-powered magic" and "nimble physical attacks. In other words, "Warlander" has faster character movement than "MORDHAU. The fact that the fast-paced movements of the characters are well described, and the game can be played comfortably, is highly commendable.

In "Warlander," a huge structure called a siege tower appears. Looking up at the tower up close is a powerful experience only possible when using a large display. There are no visual imperfections, at least not to the naked eye.

Another fact that should be mentioned is the fact that this machine is aided by the large number of buttons it is equipped with. In this work, the player must use a variety of abilities, including physical attacks, various types of magic, and special skills, and it is advantageous to have preset buttons for each of these abilities in order to master them. Needless to say, the abundance of buttons on this machine was a positive factor in playing this work.

Product shipment is scheduled for January 27.

Both MORDHAU and Warlander take more than a dozen minutes per play. At first I thought it would be somewhat painful to hold the "AYANEO KUN," which weighs less than 1 kg, in both hands while playing ......, but that was not the case when I started playing with it.

The grip shape allows the user to hold it for long periods of time.

What makes this possible is the rational grip shape as shown in the photo. The palm of the hand fits snugly into the line separating the thumb and the other four fingers, and the weight is distributed well, so I felt almost no stress from the weight when holding the device. The weight of about 950g was unbelievable.

In addition to the grip mentioned above, the AYANEO KUN can be said to be a product that has been meticulously designed in every area, including the various buttons and the round touchpad, all of which are located in easy-to-reach positions. The carefully designed grip-type body shape and well-positioned control mechanisms are also excellent in reducing the nearly 1 kg weight of the product.

The AYANEO KUN is currently available for pre-order, and is scheduled to ship on January 27.