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MagyarAyaneo Air 1S Retro Power gaming handheld in test - Zen4 Power for your pocket
Ayaneo is not a new player in the world of portable gaming consoles. The company has already been offering small handheld computers with Windows and AMD processors that have plenty of computing power since 2019. The new Air 1S relies on the AMD Ryzen 7 7840U. This can run at high speeds thanks to the integrated Radeon RX 780M with a TDP of only 25 watts, which can also render current titles smoothly. After we were a bit disappointed in the last review of a gaming handheld, the Ayaneo Air 1S is fully convincing. Besides the strong hardware, the model also has more than usable software. This makes the difference because the handheld is easy to control at any time with Aya Space.
Thumbsticks and triggers with Hall sensors ensure precise inputs in every situation. Stick drift is not to be feared with the Ayaneo Air 1S.
The two most important competitors of the Air 1S here are probably the Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme and the OneXPlayer 2. Also, the GPD Win 4 is an interesting handheld, which is definitely based on the Sony PSP. Among all comparison devices, only the Ayaneo Air 1S comes with a responsive OLED screen.
Possible competitors in comparison
Rating | Date | Model | Weight | Height | Size | Resolution | Best Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 88.2 % | 10/2023 | Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power R7 7840U, Radeon 780M | 443.8 g | 21 mm | 5.50" | 1920x1080 | |
| 87.5 % | 05/2023 | Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme Z1 Extreme, Radeon 780M | 611 g | 21.22 mm | 7.00" | 1920x1080 | |
| 80.3 % | 03/2023 | GPD Win 4 R7 6800U, Radeon 680M | 607 g | 28 mm | 6.00" | 1920x1080 | |
| 84 % | 07/2023 | One Netbook XPlayer 2 R7 6800U, Radeon 680M | 864 g | 23 mm | 8.40" | 2560x1600 | |
03/2023 | Valve Steam Deck 512 GB LCD , | 669 g | 49 mm | 7.00" | 1280x800 | ||
| 80.1 % | 09/2023 | Aokzoe A1 R7 6800U, Radeon 680M | 735 g | 21 mm | 8.00" | 1920x1200 |
Case - A lot of plastic but extremely stable
The Ayaneo Air S1 is available in two different cases and four different colors. Aurora White, Polar Black, Retro Power, and Ultra thin & light limited edition are the names of the different models. Our review sample is the Retro Power version. In light beige with dark magenta X, Y, A, and B buttons and lots of black and gray, the device's color resembles a classic Game Boy or rather a yellowed Super Nintendo. Ayaneo doesn't match the typical magenta of the Game Boy keys, but the overall color scheme is harmonious and evokes memories of the 90s.
The device itself is hardly bigger than a Sony PSP. The Air 1S weighs just 453 grams. The Thin & Light configuration weighs almost 50 grams less. Thus, the Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power feels incredibly compact. We couldn’t force the handheld to bend or creak, so we gave up. You can definitely trust the device with some rage quits during gaming. Only the OLED display with a glass cover is a potential weak point. The biggest shortcoming in the handheld's build is the clearly visible injection-molded edge at the air vent.
The case itself is about 21 mm thick and even a bit thicker in the area of the two controller grips. Thus, the handheld fits well in the hand, but still remains under 3 cm in thickness and is thus significantly flatter than a Game Boy or even the Steam Deck. All in all, we have a small hand flatterer in our fingers, which is also pleasant to hold over a longer period of time with its matte surfaces. Thus, nothing stands in the way of longer gaming sessions.
The gaming handheld also has the typical RGB light. There is an RGB light ring around each of the two thumbsticks. This is relatively freely configurable, but can also provide information about the charging status or other status messages.
With its 5.5-inch display, the Ayaneo Air 1S is one of the smallest gaming handhelds on the market. In our database, we find at least two competitors with similar dimensions: GDP Win 3 and GDP Win 4. Steamdeck, Asus Rog Ally Z1, and even the Nintendo Switch are much bigger and also weigh a few grams more.
Equipment - Two times USB 4
Ayaneo has not placed many ports in the small case. However, there is one USB 4 port below and one above the screen. Both are fully equipped, so they are also suitable for charging or connecting external hardware and monitors. 4K60Hz monitors can be operated on both. There is also a microSD card reader at the bottom of the handheld. There is no need for a webcam or a built-in microphones. A headset can be connected via a 3.5 mm jack.
SD card reader
Our AV PRO microSD achieves about 80 MB/s in the test with the gaming handheld. The transfer rates are equally fast in both directions. Thus, the SD slot only seems suitable for expanding the memory for games to a limited extent. However, older titles should run smoothly and load quickly from an SD card.
| SD Card Reader | |
| average JPG Copy Test (av. of 3 runs) | |
| GPD Win Max 2 (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II) | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme (Angelbird AV Pro V60) | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 (Angelbird AV Pro V60) | |
| Average of class UMPC (42 - 184, n=6, last 2 years) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| GPD Win 4 (AV Pro SD microSD 128 GB V60) | |
| Valve Steam Deck 512 GB LCD (Angelbird AV Pro V60) | |
| maximum AS SSD Seq Read Test (1GB) | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme (Angelbird AV Pro V60) | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 (Angelbird AV Pro V60) | |
| GPD Win Max 2 (Toshiba Exceria Pro SDXC 64 GB UHS-II) | |
| Average of class UMPC (84.6 - 251, n=4, last 2 years) | |
| GPD Win 4 (AV Pro SD microSD 128 GB V60) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
Communication
WiFi 6E is on board with the Intel AX 210. The small handheld falls a bit short of the standard's capabilities in the 5 GHz WLAN, but it can fully convince in the 6 GHz network with our Asus ROG AXE11000, at least in terms of reception. Both network connections are stable and should be more than sufficient for smooth online gaming.
The low transfer rates could also be due to an incorrectly installed antenna cable in our test device. We will show this in more detail in the maintenance section.
Security
Ayaneo has integrated a fingerprint sensor in the power button of the Air 1S. Besides that, the security features of the current AMD processor are also available. The Ryzen 7 7840U offers a TPM 2.0, for example.
Accessories
The Ayaneo 1S comes with a very small 65-watt power supply and a few travel adapters so that it can be used worldwide. The manufacturer also includes two USB-A 3.0 to USB-C adapters.
Ayaneo offers a wide range of accessories in its own store. Starting with carrying cases, powerbanks, and thumb stick caps via docking stations and controllers, you will find a large selection to match the device.
One problem with the included adapters is that they stick together. After a short time, the two halves of the case of our EU adapter separated from each other. A repair with superglue was successful, but there is a considerable risk if this happens when the power supply is plugged in.
Software
One of the most important points for smooth gaming on the handheld is good software in addition to powerful hardware. In the OneXPlayer 2 review, we recently found out that the included control center called Gamer Zone left a lot to be desired, as it liked to send games into the background and only offered a few setting options.
Ayaneo offers an almost perfect user experience here with AyaSpace. The app can be launched at any time via its own button as an overlay and offers a variety of options to control the performance of the small handheld. This includes numerous comfort settings, a performance overlay with an FPS counter, controller settings, and much more. A long press on the Aya button opens the app in full-screen mode. Games can be managed and started, many other settings can be made here. Games downloaded from Steam, GOG, Epic, and Ubisoft are automatically added to the library. We only had to manually help with games from Amazon Prime Gaming.
AyaSpace as an overlay (Ouick Tool 2.0)
AyaSpace in full-screen mode
Thus, the AyaSpace proves to be a flexible companion that is highly customizable and offers good controllability in addition. Unfortunately, the customization options do not extend to the language. Without English or Chinese knowledge, you won't get anywhere in the application. Other languages are not available (yet).
Maintenance
The first two screws that hold the device together can easily be found on either side of the USB-C port on the bottom. Another one is hidden under the cover of the microSD card slot. A few screws also secure the two halves of the case on the upper side. To access them, you have to carefully remove the upper bar between the shoulder buttons. There is also a screw hidden underneath each of the trigger keys. After unscrewing, only a plastic opening tool helps to lever out the many clips. Overall, the case is very difficult to open.
When separating the two halves of the case, you should also pay attention to the ribbon cable to the fingerprint sensor in the power button. This is long enough to forgive many mistakes here, but there is still a certain risk of hurting the sensitive cable. Inside the handheld, we see extremely compact equipment that still leaves a lot of room for repairs.
When you get right down to it, a few points of criticism are also apparent. For example, the gray antenna cable to the WiFi module is not neatly placed in its loop right from the start and is also not routed sensibly on the antenna and speaker module, although corresponding cutouts are actually provided here. The result here is a slightly squeezed cable. Another point of criticism on our part is the small warranty sticker. But this is hardly to be taken seriously since it could easily be removed in one piece. Thus, you could screw around with the device to your heart's content and then reapply the sticker.
However, we find more positive than negative points inside the Ayaneo Air 1S. We are surprised that the manufacturer relies on standard components for the Wi-Fi module and M.2-2280 SSD despite the compact build. Only the generously sized working memory of 32 GB is soldered. Apart from that, there are many other modular components that we have already discovered individually in Ayaneo's online store.
During assembly, we noticed that the trigger buttons could be plugged in on the left as well as on the right. However, if you are not sure where which button belongs, you will also find a label on the mounting points.
In the end, the Ayaneo Air 1S shows that laptop manufacturers too often make excuses about the desired compactness of laptops when it comes to modularity. Ayaneo shows how to build an easy-to-repair device with many replaceable parts, even though it fits in a pocket.
Input devices - Strong controller but weak vibration
With Hall sensors in the triggers and the two thumbsticks, you never have to worry about stick drift. Besides the typical buttons that you would find on an X-Box controller, the Ayaneo Air 1S also offers some freely assignable buttons. Between the two big shoulder buttons, there are two more buttons that can be assigned with functions or macros. The key next to the Ayaneo key can also be freely assigned. Additional macros can be saved via input gestures.
The Air 1S feels good in the hand when gaming. The two thumbsticks offer excellent precision. Adjustable deadzones and a pleasant feel ensure high accuracy.
On the other hand, we find the four A, B, X, and Y keys a bit small. With a diameter of only 7 mm, they are significantly smaller than on typical controllers or the Gameboy and PSP. This is the first time it becomes clear how small the handheld actually is. But the four buttons offer a clear pressure point, and so we also notice that small buttons don't lead to noticeably more incorrect inputs, even in hectic gaming scenes. The two shoulder buttons also have a clear pressure point. There is also little to criticize about these.
The two triggers offer a very linear input. However, some gamers might be bothered by the very low resistance of the buttons.
Besides the various buttons, triggers, and thumbsticks, a touchscreen is also available for input. This also works well and reliably in desktop mode. But the touchscreen heats a lot during gaming. You should stick to the input options with the controller elements here.
If you can't do without a mouse at all, there is an option to switch the controller to a virtual mouse via Ayaneo Space. The left stick is used to move the mouse pointer, and the right one to scroll. X triggers a right click, A a left click. The shoulder keys serve as forward and backward keys.
Only the built-in vibration motors prove to be a bit weak. You can feel a certain amount of rumble, but the vibration is by far not as clear as in the XBOX or Playstation controller. However, you also have to consider the weight of the small handheld here. A Dualsense of the PS5 weighs 281 grams, while the Ayaneo Air 1S is not even 200 grams heavier. Thus, the weight share of the haptic motors should be significantly lower here.
Display - Responsive OLED
An OLED display with Full HD resolution provides a strong picture in the Ayaneo Air 1S. A pixel density of about 400 ppi is achieved on the 5.5-inch screen. Thus, individual pixels can hardly be noticed. For a gaming device, the 60 Hz refresh rate might seem quite low at first glance. However, the OLED panel has a very fast response time, and with 60 FPS the hardware is utilized to almost full capacity in most games at Full HD resolution and medium quality settings. The low frame rate only becomes noticeable in a few situations when you specifically look for it. For example, you can sometimes see artifacts when climbing stairs in some games or scrolling through websites. In the end, we can state that 60 Hz is completely sufficient when you consider the hardware's performance. Current games mostly run at 30 to 60 FPS on medium quality settings in Full HD here.
Compared with the other gaming handhelds, the Air 1S probably has the best screen. The ROG Ally Z1 Extreme comes with a brighter 120 Hz IPS screen, but its response times are partly twice as high as in our test device.
As is typical for OLEDs, we see deep blacks and bright colors. At most, the overall picture is marred by the flickering that accompanies the technology. In OLED screens, the screen is updated line by line, whereby the most current line is turned off. However, with the high resolution on a small surface and updating in several lines simultaneously, this effect is not noticeable for our combination of brightness sensor and oscilloscope at full brightness.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Brightness Distribution: 90 %
Center on Battery: 335 cd/m²
Contrast: 4729:1 (Black: 0.07 cd/m²)
ΔE Color 4.76 | 0.5-29.43 Ø5, calibrated: 5.04
ΔE Greyscale 8.79 | 0.57-98 Ø5.3
99.71% AdobeRGB 1998 (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
100% sRGB (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
99.85% Display P3 (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
Gamma: 2.155
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power Ayaneo-OLED, OLED, 1920x1080, 5.50 | Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme TL070FVSX01-0, IPS, 1920x1080, 7.00 | GPD Win 4 G1618-04, IPS, 1920x1080, 6.00 | One Netbook XPlayer 2 FLQ8423, IPS, 2560x1600, 8.40 | Valve Steam Deck 512 GB LCD 1280x800, 7.00 | Aokzoe A1 BOE0207, IPS, 1920x1200, 8.00 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Display | -25% | -27% | -19% | -20% | ||
| Display P3 Coverage | 99.85 | 65.6 -34% | 63.1 -37% | 75.4 -24% | 72.3 -28% | |
| sRGB Coverage | 100 | 92.1 -8% | 92 -8% | 97 -3% | 92.6 -7% | |
| AdobeRGB 1998 Coverage | 99.71 | 67.9 -32% | 64.6 -35% | 71.1 -29% | 73.4 -26% | |
| Response Times | -80% | -414% | -546% | -141% | 1058% | |
| Response Time Grey 50% / Grey 80% * | 4.4 ? | 10.5 ? -139% | 26.8 ? -509% | 36.8 ? -736% | 30.1 ? -584% | 28.9 ? -557% |
| Response Time Black / White * | 5 ? | 6 ? -20% | 20.9 ? -318% | 22.8 ? -356% | 14.5 ? -190% | 21.1 ? -322% |
| PWM Frequency | 240 ? | 1080 ? 350% | 9970.7 4054% | |||
| Screen | -44% | -60% | -41% | -66% | -80% | |
| Brightness middle | 331 | 513 55% | 413.1 25% | 369 11% | 517 56% | 328.4 -1% |
| Brightness | 339 | 474 40% | 407 20% | 363 7% | 524 55% | 323 -5% |
| Brightness Distribution | 90 | 84 -7% | 81 -10% | 89 -1% | 97 8% | 92 2% |
| Black Level * | 0.07 | 0.38 -443% | 0.39 -457% | 0.28 -300% | 0.47 -571% | 0.39 -457% |
| Contrast | 4729 | 1350 -71% | 1059 -78% | 1318 -72% | 1100 -77% | 842 -82% |
| Colorchecker dE 2000 * | 4.76 | 3.7 22% | 6.97 -46% | 7.1 -49% | 5.7 -20% | 10.17 -114% |
| Colorchecker dE 2000 max. * | 9.2 | 8.3 10% | 14.11 -53% | 10.9 -18% | 10.5 -14% | 18.14 -97% |
| Colorchecker dE 2000 calibrated * | 5.04 | 1.24 75% | 2.6 48% | 1.07 79% | ||
| Greyscale dE 2000 * | 8.79 | 5.1 42% | 9.9 -13% | 8.3 6% | 5.7 35% | 12.7 -44% |
| Gamma | 2.155 102% | 2.14 103% | 2.04 108% | 2.01 109% | 2.18 101% | 2.7 81% |
| CCT | 7571 86% | 7732 84% | 9571 68% | 8838 74% | 7733 84% | 12502 52% |
| Total Average (Program / Settings) | -50% /
-45% | -167% /
-103% | -202% /
-108% | -104% /
-87% | 319% /
160% |
* ... smaller is better
The Ayaneo Air 1S is certainly not a device for graphic designers or video editors. It is designed for gaming, so we are all the more pleased that the built-in OLED panel is nevertheless able to reproduce AdobeRGB and DiplayP3 almost completely. However, the 100% reproduction of sRGB and the screen's short response times are crucial for gaming.
Whether the screen in the gaming handheld has to have a high color accuracy is questionable. An average ΔΕ2000 of 4.72 in ColorChecker without further calibration is more than acceptable for a gaming device. Our ICC profile (download in the info box) does not improve the actual color reproduction, but it can provide a significant improvement in the grayscale.
Especially games that rely more on gloomy scenes with reduced dynamic range should benefit from our ICC profile.
Display Response Times
| ↔ Response Time Black to White | ||
|---|---|---|
| 5 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined | ↗ 2.5 ms rise |  |
| ↘ 2.5 ms fall | ||
| The screen shows very fast response rates in our tests and should be very well suited for fast-paced gaming. In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.1 (minimum) to 240 (maximum) ms. » 12 % of all devices are better. This means that the measured response time is better than the average of all tested devices (21.5 ms). | ||
| ↔ Response Time 50% Grey to 80% Grey | ||
| 4.4 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined | ↗ 2.6 ms rise |  |
| ↘ 1.8 ms fall | ||
| The screen shows very fast response rates in our tests and should be very well suited for fast-paced gaming. In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.2 (minimum) to 636 (maximum) ms. » 11 % of all devices are better. This means that the measured response time is better than the average of all tested devices (33.7 ms). | ||
Screen Flickering / PWM (Pulse-Width Modulation)
| Screen flickering / PWM detected | 240 Hz |  | |
| ≤ 300 cd/m² brightness | |||
The display backlight flickers at 240 Hz (worst case, e.g., utilizing PWM) Flickering detected at a brightness setting of 300 cd/m² and below. There should be no flickering or PWM above this brightness setting. The frequency of 240 Hz is relatively low, so sensitive users will likely notice flickering and experience eyestrain at the stated brightness setting and below. Flickering occurs even at high brightness setting and may have an effect on the user during everyday use. In comparison: 53 % of all tested devices do not use PWM to dim the display. If PWM was detected, an average of 17903 (minimum: 5 - maximum: 3846000) Hz was measured. | |||
With an average brightness of about 340 cd/m², the Ayaneo Air 1S is not exactly outstandingly bright. This is compounded by the glossy display surface. Nevertheless, outdoor use is not difficult, as our following pictures show. The OLED display is usually still easy to read even in bright sunlight. However, gaming with the handheld is much better in a shady spot.
Normally, OLED displays tend to show slight rainbow effects at larger viewing angles. We can hardly notice any color changes here, even at steep viewing angles. Tilting around the horizontal axis might be more important for gaming here since you should usually hold the device with both hands.
Performance - Convincing AMD Zen4 power
All Ayaneo Air 1S come with the AMD Ryzen 7 7840U. Depending on the configuration, different memory sizes are installed. Our device has a higher configuration with 32 GB of working memory and 2 TB of hard drive. Of the 32 GB working memory, up to 16 GB are used for the Radeon 780M. Thus, the graphics chip in the test device can show what it is capable of.
Test conditions
Several power plans are available via Ayaspace, which also switches the power plans in Windows. All power plans can be freely adjusted to the user's needs. A maximum TDP of 25 watts is available in mains operation. In battery mode, the PL2 (continuous power) is at a maximum of 20 watts. We decided to limit the preloaded "AAA Game" power plan to 20 watts for all following benchmarks to show the device's mobile performance.
Various power settings can be set via the AYASpace. The fan curves can also be set. In Smart TDP mode, the boost power of the Air 1S is limited. Thus, the processor draws less power, and the battery life improves. Experience shows that the reduced boost performance only has a very small impact on the expected FPS during gaming.
Processor
The AMD Ryzen 7 7840U is a high-end processor that can deliver a lot of performance with a low TDP. Among other things, this is ensured by the modern TSMC 4 nm FinFET process. Eight cores with 16 threads work here and are supported by a Radeon 780M. The APU in the Ayaneo is almost identical on paper to the AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme which is used in the Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme or the Lenovo Legion Go.
The processor achieves about 15% less than the Z1 Extreme in the ROG Ally in the multi-core performance benchmarks. However, the latter can also draw on 30 watts of continuous power and 43 watts of boost power. With 30 to 50% more consumption, the performance advantage of the ROG Ally in the benchmarks thus looks very small. In combination with a low TDP, the AMD processors are overall very strong in the comparison of multi-core performance. This is also shown by a short comparison with the Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen 4. Despite a similar PL1, it is clearly behind the Ayaneo in terms of processor performance.
Cinebench R15 Multi loop
Cinebench R23: Multi Core | Single Core
Cinebench R20: CPU (Multi Core) | CPU (Single Core)
Cinebench R15: CPU Multi 64Bit | CPU Single 64Bit
Blender: v2.79 BMW27 CPU
7-Zip 18.03: 7z b 4 | 7z b 4 -mmt1
Geekbench 5.5: Multi-Core | Single-Core
HWBOT x265 Benchmark v2.2: 4k Preset
LibreOffice : 20 Documents To PDF
R Benchmark 2.5: Overall mean
| CPU Performance Rating | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 7840U | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average of class UMPC | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 -1! | |
| Cinebench R23 / Multi Core | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 7840U (11739 - 15074, n=10) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average of class UMPC (3984 - 15074, n=5, last 2 years) | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| Cinebench R23 / Single Core | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average of class UMPC (1597 - 1733, n=4, last 2 years) | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 7840U (1373 - 1742, n=10) | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| Cinebench R20 / CPU (Multi Core) | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 7840U (4469 - 5917, n=10) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average of class UMPC (1521 - 5917, n=5, last 2 years) | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| Cinebench R20 / CPU (Single Core) | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 7840U (533 - 678, n=10) | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| Average of class UMPC (357 - 676, n=5, last 2 years) | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| Cinebench R15 / CPU Multi 64Bit | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 7840U (1025 - 2439, n=12) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average of class UMPC (689 - 2439, n=5, last 2 years) | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| Cinebench R15 / CPU Single 64Bit | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average of class UMPC (246 - 268, n=4, last 2 years) | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 7840U (217 - 272, n=10) | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| Blender / v2.79 BMW27 CPU | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 7840U (208 - 270, n=10) | |
| Average of class UMPC (208 - 262, n=3, last 2 years) | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| 7-Zip 18.03 / 7z b 4 | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 7840U (50087 - 62156, n=10) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| Average of class UMPC (19684 - 62156, n=5, last 2 years) | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| 7-Zip 18.03 / 7z b 4 -mmt1 | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 7840U (4657 - 6408, n=10) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| Average of class UMPC (3653 - 5782, n=4, last 2 years) | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| Geekbench 5.5 / Multi-Core | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 7840U (7399 - 10558, n=10) | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| Average of class UMPC (4457 - 9803, n=6, last 2 years) | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| Geekbench 5.5 / Single-Core | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 7840U (1355 - 1933, n=10) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average of class UMPC (1355 - 1898, n=6, last 2 years) | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| HWBOT x265 Benchmark v2.2 / 4k Preset | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Average of class UMPC (14.6 - 18.6, n=4, last 2 years) | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 7840U (14.4 - 18.6, n=10) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| LibreOffice / 20 Documents To PDF | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| Average of class UMPC (48.1 - 57.8, n=4, last 2 years) | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 7840U (43.4 - 67.1, n=10) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| R Benchmark 2.5 / Overall mean | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 7840U (0.4559 - 0.581, n=10) | |
| Average of class UMPC (0.4651 - 0.4945, n=4, last 2 years) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
* ... smaller is better
AIDA64: FP32 Ray-Trace | FPU Julia | CPU SHA3 | CPU Queen | FPU SinJulia | FPU Mandel | CPU AES | CPU ZLib | FP64 Ray-Trace | CPU PhotoWorxx
| Performance Rating | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Average of class UMPC | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 7840U | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| AIDA64 / FP32 Ray-Trace | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Average of class UMPC (18736 - 25901, n=4, last 2 years) | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 7840U (17924 - 25901, n=9) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| AIDA64 / FPU Julia | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Average of class UMPC (78607 - 109745, n=4, last 2 years) | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 7840U (78360 - 109745, n=9) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| AIDA64 / CPU SHA3 | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Average of class UMPC (3691 - 4847, n=4, last 2 years) | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 7840U (3519 - 4847, n=9) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| AIDA64 / CPU Queen | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Average of class UMPC (91289 - 113343, n=4, last 2 years) | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 7840U (83206 - 113343, n=9) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| AIDA64 / FPU SinJulia | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Average of class UMPC (12286 - 14822, n=4, last 2 years) | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 7840U (11969 - 14822, n=9) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| AIDA64 / FPU Mandel | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Average of class UMPC (41726 - 58482, n=4, last 2 years) | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 7840U (40720 - 58482, n=9) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| AIDA64 / CPU AES | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| Average of class UMPC (57678 - 166333, n=4, last 2 years) | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 7840U (53018 - 166333, n=9) | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| AIDA64 / CPU ZLib | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 7840U (801 - 1047, n=9) | |
| Average of class UMPC (687 - 1047, n=4, last 2 years) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| AIDA64 / FP64 Ray-Trace | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Average of class UMPC (9738 - 13846, n=4, last 2 years) | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 7840U (9347 - 13846, n=9) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| AIDA64 / CPU PhotoWorxx | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 7840U (26622 - 38173, n=9) | |
| Average of class UMPC (26622 - 34764, n=4, last 2 years) | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
System performance
In principle, the Ayaneo Air 1S is also quite good in the PCMark10 benchmarks, but the ROG Ally cannot fully realize its performance advantage once again. The Ayaneo is about 15% behind the much bigger handheld from Asus in the system performance benchmarks. Thus, the device proves to be powerful once again. Also, the performance of the Ryzen 7's integrated Radeon 780M is shown to be an advantage in the benchmarks with PCMark 10. Crossmark, on the other hand, tests the boost performance. The Ayaneo is very far behind in the comparison field, which also explains the poorer performance in this benchmark.
Ultimately, it also shows that the handheld could also serve as a PC replacement with a docking station in an appropriately equipped workplace. The performance is sufficient for office and Internet applications.
CrossMark: Overall | Productivity | Creativity | Responsiveness
WebXPRT 3: Overall
WebXPRT 4: Overall
| PCMark 10 / Score | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| Average of class UMPC (5866 - 6439, n=4, last 2 years) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| PCMark 10 / Essentials | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| Average of class UMPC (9068 - 10081, n=4, last 2 years) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| PCMark 10 / Productivity | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average of class UMPC (7323 - 8996, n=4, last 2 years) | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| PCMark 10 / Digital Content Creation | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Average of class UMPC (7204 - 8975, n=4, last 2 years) | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| CrossMark / Overall | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average of class UMPC (840 - 1340, n=3, last 2 years) | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| CrossMark / Productivity | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average of class UMPC (874 - 1416, n=3, last 2 years) | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| CrossMark / Creativity | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average of class UMPC (808 - 1278, n=3, last 2 years) | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| CrossMark / Responsiveness | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average of class UMPC (831 - 1309, n=3, last 2 years) | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| WebXPRT 3 / Overall | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| GPD Win Max 2 | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| Average of class UMPC (188.4 - 300, n=5, last 2 years) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| WebXPRT 4 / Overall | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Beelink SER7 | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average of class UMPC (107 - 196.4, n=2, last 2 years) | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| PCMark 10 Score | 5866 points | |
Help | ||
| AIDA64 / Memory Copy | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 7840U (43255 - 70532, n=10) | |
| Average of class UMPC (32617 - 76512, n=5, last 2 years) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| AIDA64 / Memory Read | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 7840U (37399 - 61602, n=9) | |
| Average of class UMPC (25380 - 55710, n=4, last 2 years) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| AIDA64 / Memory Write | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 7840U (49426 - 92289, n=11) | |
| Average of class UMPC (25596 - 108872, n=6, last 2 years) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| AIDA64 / Memory Latency | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average of class UMPC (112.6 - 132.7, n=5, last 2 years) | |
| Average AMD Ryzen 7 7840U (90 - 137.2, n=10) | |
* ... smaller is better
DPC latencies
The Ayaneo does not perform particularly well in the DPC latency test with LatencyMon. However, the latencies we observed during browsing and other tasks are clearly below those of the ROG Ally. Thus, the current AMD drivers are probably a bit more mature in the meantime.
We are more concerned about the playback of our YouTube test video at 4K 60 Hz. Here, 69 frames were scipped even though neither the CPU nor the GPU were heavily loaded during the test.
| DPC Latencies / LatencyMon - interrupt to process latency (max), Web, Youtube, Prime95 | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Aokzoe A1 | |
* ... smaller is better
Storage devices
The Cyberthunder, with a capacity of 2 TB, is not as fast as the SSDs in many gaming laptops. Ayaneo apparently relies on a white-label solution here because no program can find out the correct name of the SSD under Windows. The highest measured transfer rate of the storage in 2280 format is around two gigabytes per second. In return, the SSD keeps its performance constant. Compared to the rivals, the SSD in the Ayaneo Air 1S is significantly slower.
* ... smaller is better
Continuous reading: DiskSpd Read Loop, Queue Depth 8
Graphics
The Ayaneo Air 1S does not have a dedicated graphics unit. Thus, the Radeon 780M will have to suffice here. In the factory settings, 6 GB of the handheld's working memory is reserved for the graphics chip. In AyaSpace, up to 16 GB can be reserved for the 780M in our case. A reboot is required for the setting to take effect. With the amount of working memory that makes an RTX 2050 jealous, the handheld is still not on par with most dGPUs in terms of performance, but the 780M is sufficient for many current titles. It should also be clear here that you should rather limit yourself to the medium and low quality settings if you want to play without upscaling or upsampling. However, high frame rates and quality settings can also be set in many games. The Radeon 780M can improve quite a bit in frame rates with FSR 2.1.
In our generic benchmarks with 3DMark, the Ayaneo does not show any weakness against the Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme. Both are close to each other in the achieved scores. If you let the Ayaneo Air 1S, or more precisely its processor, off the leash in mains operation, the handheld even surpasses the ROG Ally by a few points in the Time Spy benchmark. However, it should be noted that the CPU Turbo clearly eats away the battery life without mains connection and doesn't really provide a higher performance in most games.
| 3DMark Performance Rating - Percent | |
| Acer Aspire 5 A515-58GM-76S8 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme -1! | |
| Average of class UMPC | |
| Average AMD Radeon 780M | |
| Aokzoe A1 -1! | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| GPD Win 4 -1! | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 -1! | |
| 3DMark Vantage P Result | 29746 points | |
| 3DMark 11 Performance | 10092 points | |
| 3DMark Cloud Gate Standard Score | 27313 points | |
| 3DMark Fire Strike Score | 6857 points | |
| 3DMark Time Spy Score | 2912 points | |
Help | ||
Gaming performance
Those who expect the same high FPS from the small Ayaneo Air 1S as from a full-fledged gaming PC will probably be disappointed by the results of our gaming benchmarks. However, those who are only looking for playable FPS in the display's native Full HD resolution will see a clear picture here, at least in low and medium quality settings. All tested games ran without stutters on the small gaming handheld. Only Ratchet & Clank Rift Apart remained below 30 FPS throughout the benchmark, although the rest of the game ran much smoother than our benchmark scene.
Atlas Fallen (2023), Hogwarts Legacy (2023), and Baldur's Gate also produced more than 30 FPS on medium quality settings. If you want to see more here, you can use AMD's upscaling or upsampling technologies. With FSR 2.1, about 45 FPS are permanently possible in Hogwarts Legacy.
All in all, it can be concluded that Ayaneo installed a display that matches the capabilities of the processor and the iGPU. The same is, of course, also true for the Full HD display in the Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme. The two devices do not differ much in the gaming benchmarks. The positioning of the Lenovo Legion Go becomes questionable. This is because it comes with a much higher-resolution display that probably cannot be supplied with a corresponding performance by the AMD 780M.
| Performance Rating - Percent | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Aokzoe A1 | |
| Average of class UMPC | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| The Witcher 3 - 1920x1080 Ultra Graphics & Postprocessing (HBAO+) | |
| Average of class UMPC (26.3 - 33.9, n=4, last 2 years) | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Aokzoe A1 | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| GTA V - 1920x1080 Highest Settings possible AA:4xMSAA + FX AF:16x | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Average of class UMPC (19.5 - 26.7, n=6, last 2 years) | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| Aokzoe A1 | |
| Final Fantasy XV Benchmark - 1920x1080 High Quality | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Average of class UMPC (18.4 - 28.6, n=5, last 2 years) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Aokzoe A1 | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| Strange Brigade - 1920x1080 ultra AA:ultra AF:16 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Aokzoe A1 | |
| Average of class UMPC (30 - 49.1, n=5, last 2 years) | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| Dota 2 Reborn - 1920x1080 ultra (3/3) best looking | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Aokzoe A1 | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| Average of class UMPC (57 - 78.7, n=5, last 2 years) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| X-Plane 11.11 - 1920x1080 high (fps_test=3) | |
| Aokzoe A1 | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average of class UMPC (24.5 - 33.8, n=5, last 2 years) | |
| The Witcher 3 | |
| 1366x768 Medium Graphics & Postprocessing | |
| Average AMD Radeon 780M (47.7 - 101.5, n=16) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average of class UMPC (last 2 years) | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| 1920x1080 High Graphics & Postprocessing (Nvidia HairWorks Off) | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Average AMD Radeon 780M (21.3 - 50.9, n=31) | |
| Average of class UMPC (34.9 - 46.4, n=3, last 2 years) | |
| Aokzoe A1 | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| 1920x1080 Ultra Graphics & Postprocessing (HBAO+) | |
| Average of class UMPC (26.3 - 33.9, n=4, last 2 years) | |
| Average AMD Radeon 780M (14.3 - 33.9, n=33) | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Aokzoe A1 | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| GTA V | |
| 1920x1080 High/On (Advanced Graphics Off) AA:2xMSAA + FX AF:8x | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Average AMD Radeon 780M (32.5 - 68.6, n=32) | |
| Average of class UMPC (43.3 - 68.4, n=5, last 2 years) | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| Aokzoe A1 | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| 1920x1080 Highest Settings possible AA:4xMSAA + FX AF:16x | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Average of class UMPC (19.5 - 26.7, n=6, last 2 years) | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| Average AMD Radeon 780M (12.2 - 27.6, n=32) | |
| Aokzoe A1 | |
| Far Cry 5 | |
| 1920x1080 High Preset AA:T | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Average AMD Radeon 780M (21 - 47, n=29) | |
| Average of class UMPC (27 - 45, n=5, last 2 years) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Aokzoe A1 | |
| 1920x1080 Ultra Preset AA:T | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Average AMD Radeon 780M (21 - 45, n=29) | |
| Average of class UMPC (23 - 43, n=5, last 2 years) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Aokzoe A1 | |
| 1920x1080 Low Preset AA:T | |
| Average AMD Radeon 780M (24 - 58, n=8) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average of class UMPC (41 - 42, n=2, last 2 years) | |
| 1280x720 Low Preset AA:T | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Average AMD Radeon 780M (42 - 87, n=27) | |
| Aokzoe A1 | |
| Average of class UMPC (47 - 65, n=2, last 2 years) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Cyberpunk 2077 1.6 - 1920x1080 Low Preset | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average of class UMPC (last 2 years) | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| Average AMD Radeon 780M (22 - 53.3, n=12) | |
| Aokzoe A1 | |
| F1 22 | |
| 1920x1080 High Preset AA:T AF:16x | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Average AMD Radeon 780M (31.7 - 66.7, n=23) | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Aokzoe A1 | |
| Average of class UMPC (last 2 years) | |
| 1920x1080 Medium Preset AA:T AF:16x | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Average AMD Radeon 780M (41.5 - 89.8, n=23) | |
| GPD Win 4 | |
| Aokzoe A1 | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average of class UMPC (last 2 years) | |
| One Netbook XPlayer 2 | |
| F1 23 | |
| 1920x1080 High Preset AA:T AF:16x | |
| Average of class UMPC (43.7 - 61.1, n=4, last 2 years) | |
| Average AMD Radeon 780M (28.4 - 61.1, n=23) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| 1920x1080 Medium Preset AA:T AF:16x | |
| Average of class UMPC (63.4 - 84.4, n=3, last 2 years) | |
| Average AMD Radeon 780M (38.1 - 84.4, n=22) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Hogwarts Legacy | |
| 1920x1080 Low Preset AA:Low T | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average of class UMPC (last 2 years) | |
| Average AMD Radeon 780M (29.8 - 37.8, n=3) | |
| 1920x1080 Medium Preset AA:High T | |
| Average of class UMPC (26.2 - 37.6, n=3, last 2 years) | |
| Average AMD Radeon 780M (21.9 - 37.6, n=5) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| 1920x1080 High Preset AA:High T | |
| Average of class UMPC (19.4 - 28, n=3, last 2 years) | |
| Average AMD Radeon 780M (17.7 - 28, n=5) | |
| Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Baldur's Gate 3 | |
| 1920x1080 Medium Preset | |
| Average AMD Radeon 780M (30.9 - 33.7, n=3) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average of class UMPC (last 2 years) | |
| 1920x1080 High Preset | |
| Average AMD Radeon 780M (22.9 - 28.1, n=3) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average of class UMPC (last 2 years) | |
| 1920x1080 Ultra Preset | |
| Average AMD Radeon 780M (21.9 - 27, n=3) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average of class UMPC (last 2 years) | |
| 3840x2160 Ultra Preset | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average AMD Radeon 780M () | |
| Average of class UMPC (last 2 years) | |
| Atlas Fallen | |
| 1920x1080 Low Preset | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average AMD Radeon 780M () | |
| Average of class UMPC (last 2 years) | |
| 1920x1080 Medium Preset | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average AMD Radeon 780M () | |
| Average of class UMPC (last 2 years) | |
| 1920x1080 High Preset | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average AMD Radeon 780M () | |
| Average of class UMPC (last 2 years) | |
| 1920x1080 Very High Preset | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average AMD Radeon 780M () | |
| Average of class UMPC (last 2 years) | |
| Ratchet & Clank Rift Apart | |
| 1920x1080 Low Preset | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| Average AMD Radeon 780M () | |
| Average of class UMPC (last 2 years) | |
| 1920x1080 Medium Preset AA:T | |
| Average AMD Radeon 780M (22.2 - 25, n=2) | |
| Average of class UMPC (22.2 - 25, n=2, last 2 years) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| 1920x1080 High Preset AA:T | |
| Average AMD Radeon 780M (15.7 - 20.6, n=2) | |
| Average of class UMPC (15.7 - 20.6, n=2, last 2 years) | |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power | |
| low | med. | high | ultra | 4K | |
| GTA V (2015) | 91.6 | 50.1 | 26 | ||
| The Witcher 3 (2015) | 75.3 | 34.9 | 26.3 | ||
| Dota 2 Reborn (2015) | 110.4 | 89.6 | 62.7 | 57 | |
| Final Fantasy XV Benchmark (2018) | 56.6 | 34.2 | 24.4 | ||
| X-Plane 11.11 (2018) | 43.5 | 28.6 | 29.1 | ||
| Far Cry 5 (2018) | 47 | 38 | 36 | 35 | |
| Strange Brigade (2018) | 150.4 | 61.5 | 52.5 | 45.4 | |
| Cyberpunk 2077 1.6 (2022) | 38 | 29.9 | 24.4 | ||
| F1 22 (2022) | 75.3 | 67.5 | 50.5 | 12.8 | |
| Hogwarts Legacy (2023) | 35.2 | 26.2 | 19.4 | 14.9 | |
| F1 23 (2023) | 69.9 | 63.4 | 43.7 | 8.87 | |
| Ratchet & Clank Rift Apart (2023) | 23.9 | 22.2 | 15.7 | ||
| Baldur's Gate 3 (2023) | 30.9 | 22.9 | 21.9 | 8 | |
| Atlas Fallen (2023) | 31.5 | 29.2 | 26.4 | 21.7 | |
| Cyberpunk 2077 2.0 Phantom Liberty (2023) | 36.14 | 28.54 | 23.84 |
Emissionen - Loud fans, louder speakers
Noise emissions
As far as measuring the gaming handheld's volume is concerned, we run into problems here with our typical measurement setup. The fan control also does not make reporting easy for us in this test section. We have to note that the volume of the fans in the handheld is extremely high and the fan control itself does not turn up the fans above 80%, but Ayaneo recommends setting the speed to the highest level when gaming.
If you hold the Ayaneo in your hands, the user will hear three to six dB(A) less than when the handheld is placed on the table at the same distance. Thus, it is rather third parties who could feel disturbed by the handheld. In principle, it can be stated that the handheld remains relatively quiet with about 32 dB(A) in most situations. This also includes many games that are either a bit older or do not have quite as high demands on the graphics as AAA titles.
When playing Hogwarts Legacy or Cyberpunk, however, the fan spins quite fast. Depending on the direction of measuring, 42 dB(A) to 49.1 dB(A) arrive at the microphone 15 cm away. The fan only reaches the full speed of around 5,100 rpm in our tests when this is requested in the fan control. This is mainly to reduce the screen's surface temperature. But above all, the Ayaneo Air 1S then clearly cracks the 50 dB(A) mark and lands at 51 dB(A).
Noise Level
| Idle |
| 24.7 / 25.2 / 25.2 dB(A) |
| Load |
| 32.1 / 47.1 dB(A) |
 | ||
30 dB silent 40 dB(A) audible 50 dB(A) loud |
||
min:  , med:  , max:  Earthworks M23R, Arta (15 cm distance) environment noise: 23 dB(A) | ||
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power Radeon 780M, R7 7840U, Ayaneo CyberThunder-2TB | Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme Radeon 780M, Z1 Extreme, Micron 2400 MTFDKBK512QFM | GPD Win 4 Radeon 680M, R7 6800U, BiWin CE480Y2D100-1TB | One Netbook XPlayer 2 Radeon 680M, R7 6800U | Valve Steam Deck 512 GB LCD , | Aokzoe A1 Radeon 680M, R7 6800U | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Noise | 0% | -22% | -12% | -1% | -11% | |
| off / environment * | 23 | 23.3 -1% | 24 -4% | 26.1 -13% | 24.3 -6% | 23 -0% |
| Idle Minimum * | 24.7 | 23.3 6% | 31.2 -26% | 26.1 -6% | 24.3 2% | 23.3 6% |
| Idle Average * | 25.2 | 23.3 8% | 31.2 -24% | 31.6 -25% | 24.3 4% | 27.1 -8% |
| Idle Maximum * | 25.2 | 27.3 -8% | 33.5 -33% | 31.6 -25% | 30 -19% | 37.3 -48% |
| Load Average * | 32.1 | 39.2 -22% | 45.5 -42% | 35.7 -11% | 37.4 -17% | |
| Load Maximum * | 47.1 | 39.2 17% | 49 -4% | 43.3 8% | 40.7 14% | 46.2 2% |
| Witcher 3 ultra * | 39.2 | 48.6 | 43.3 | 40.7 | 41.2 |
* ... smaller is better
Temperature
The handheld surface can be divided into three regions in terms of temperature. While the points where you hold the Air 1S remain quite cool, it is mainly the touchscreen that causes our concern. It sometimes reaches over 50 °C during gaming and thus becomes unpleasant to touch. The high temperature might also be problematic for the OLED panel. High temperatures have a negative impact on the longevity of this display technology. On the back mainly the area around the heat sink gets very warm under load.
By the way, the manufacturer recommends setting the fans to 100% speed when gaming in order to keep the screen as cool as possible. However, our tests showed that at least with a TDP setting of 20 watts, the screen surface is hardly cooled down.
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power AMD Ryzen 7 7840U, AMD Radeon 780M | Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme, AMD Radeon 780M | GPD Win 4 AMD Ryzen 7 6800U, AMD Radeon 680M | One Netbook XPlayer 2 AMD Ryzen 7 6800U, AMD Radeon 680M | GPD Win Max 2 Intel Core i7-1260P, Intel Iris Xe Graphics G7 96EUs | Beelink SER7 AMD Ryzen 7 7840HS, AMD Radeon 780M | Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen4 IRU Intel Core i7-1355U, Intel Iris Xe Graphics G7 96EUs | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heat | 24% | 37% | 19% | 38% | 30% | ||
| Maximum Upper Side * | 55 | 44.4 19% | 35 36% | 42.6 23% | 28.6 48% | 34.2 38% | |
| Maximum Bottom * | 53.2 | 37.9 29% | 26.8 50% | 39.6 26% | 33 38% | 35.8 33% | |
| Idle Upper Side * | 37.1 | 29.9 19% | 28.4 23% | 32.4 13% | 24.6 34% | 28.6 23% | |
| Idle Bottom * | 40.1 | 28.3 29% | 25 38% | 34.3 14% | 27.6 31% | 30.4 24% |
* ... smaller is better
Stress test
The Ryzen 7 in the Ayaneo Air does not reach more than 61 °C during our stress test with Prime95 and Furmark. Despite the relatively cool processor, the surface temperatures are quite high.
Speaker
The speakers of the Ayaneo Air 1S are not only very loud with up to 91 dB(A) but also have a good sound quality. Only the basses could be a bit stronger for our taste. Mids and trebles sound good. Despite the rather small distance of 15 cm between the speakers, a certain stereo effect is achieved, at least at normal hand distance. The small speakers can clearly drown out the fans.
Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power audio analysis
(+) | speakers can play relatively loud (91.7 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(-) | nearly no bass - on average 16% lower than median
(±) | linearity of bass is average (10.5% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(±) | higher mids - on average 7.4% higher than median
(+) | mids are linear (6.7% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 4.2% away from median
(+) | highs are linear (6.4% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(±) | linearity of overall sound is average (18.1% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 33% of all tested devices in this class were better, 22% similar, 44% worse
» The best had a delta of 13%, average was 19%, worst was 23%
Compared to all devices tested
» 33% of all tested devices were better, 8% similar, 59% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 25%, worst was 134%
Apple MacBook Pro 16 2021 M1 Pro audio analysis
(+) | speakers can play relatively loud (84.7 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(+) | good bass - only 3.8% away from median
(+) | bass is linear (5.2% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(+) | balanced mids - only 1.3% away from median
(+) | mids are linear (2.1% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 1.9% away from median
(+) | highs are linear (2.7% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(+) | overall sound is linear (4.6% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 0% of all tested devices in this class were better, 0% similar, 100% worse
» The best had a delta of 5%, average was 18%, worst was 45%
Compared to all devices tested
» 0% of all tested devices were better, 0% similar, 100% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 25%, worst was 134%
Energy management - 37 Wh smaller battery
Power consumption
We note a maximum power consumption of 50 watts. Thus, the included power adapter is at least always able to charge the handheld with 15 watts. In the stress test, the handheld's power consumption remained at 50 watts throughout. The Asus ROG Ally is considerably more energy-efficient in idle according to our measurements. However, it can consume a good 65 watts under load. Especially in long-term consumption, the Ally approaches the same performance level with 50 watts that we also see in the Ayaneo Air.
| Off / Standby | 0.32 / Watt |
| Idle | 7.01 / 7.91 / 12.3 Watt |
| Load |
19.66 / 50 Watt |
   
| |
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power R7 7840U, Radeon 780M, Ayaneo CyberThunder-2TB, OLED, 1920x1080, 5.50 | Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme Z1 Extreme, Radeon 780M, Micron 2400 MTFDKBK512QFM, IPS, 1920x1080, 7.00 | GPD Win 4 R7 6800U, Radeon 680M, BiWin CE480Y2D100-1TB, IPS, 1920x1080, 6.00 | One Netbook XPlayer 2 R7 6800U, Radeon 680M, , IPS, 2560x1600, 8.40 | Valve Steam Deck 512 GB LCD 1280x800, 7.00 | Aokzoe A1 R7 6800U, Radeon 680M, , IPS, 1920x1200, 8.00 | Average AMD Radeon 780M | Average of class UMPC | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Power Consumption | -30% | -39% | -17% | 21% | -35% | -42% | -30% | |
| Idle Minimum * | 7.01 | 4.2 40% | 7.5 -7% | 7.2 -3% | 5.4 23% | 8.8 -26% | 6.37 ? 9% | 8.18 ? -17% |
| Idle Average * | 7.91 | 6.1 23% | 12.4 -57% | 9.3 -18% | 7.6 4% | 11.3 -43% | 8.59 ? -9% | 9.9 ? -25% |
| Idle Maximum * | 12.3 | 6.3 49% | 13 -6% | 9.7 21% | 7.8 37% | 11.5 7% | 11.3 ? 8% | 14.3 ? -16% |
| Load Average * | 19.66 | 56.6 -188% | 46 -134% | 33.1 -68% | 32.1 -63% | 52.8 ? -169% | 34.5 ? -75% | |
| Witcher 3 ultra * | 38.2 | 64.1 -68% | 45.2 -18% | 49.6 -30% | 31.1 19% | 58.3 -53% | ||
| Load Maximum * | 50 | 67.2 -34% | 56 -12% | 50.7 -1% | 64.5 -29% | 73.6 ? -47% | 57.9 ? -16% |
* ... smaller is better
Power consumtion Witcher 3 / Stresstest
Power consumption with external Monitor
Battery life
The battery capacity of the Ayaneo Air 1S is not really high at about 37 watt hours. Thus, it is not surprising that the runtimes of the small handheld are rather mediocre. However, a larger battery would hardly have found room here. A few settings can be made via AyaSpace, which improves the battery life a bit. Lowering the TDP and limiting the FPS can also lead to a small improvement in runtimes.
Under full load, the Ayaneo Air 1S needs about 30 W in battery mode. Thus, about one hour of runtime is possible. This is also the result of our battery tests with The Witcher 3 and Battery Eater Pro. A runtime of just over 5 hours is possible for lighter tasks, such as web surfing. When playing Full HD videos from the installed storage, the runtime is about three hours.
However, it is possible to gamble for longer than an hour on battery power. In return, you can limit the FPS and TDP, as well as ramp up the cooling a bit. Together with the lowest possible graphics settings, you can save 10 to 15 watts, which makes more than two hours of gaming possible.
| Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power R7 7840U, Radeon 780M, 37.5 Wh | Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme Z1 Extreme, Radeon 780M, 40 Wh | GPD Win 4 R7 6800U, Radeon 680M, 46 Wh | One Netbook XPlayer 2 R7 6800U, Radeon 680M, 65.5 Wh | Valve Steam Deck 512 GB LCD 45 Wh | Aokzoe A1 R7 6800U, Radeon 680M, 65 Wh | Average of class UMPC | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Battery Runtime | 119% | 25% | 77% | 16% | 29% | ||
| H.264 | 185 | 568 207% | 185 ? 0% | ||||
| WiFi v1.3 | 355 | 465 31% | 450 27% | 628 77% | 381 7% | 504 ? 42% | |
| Gaming | 74 | 136.3 ? 84% | |||||
| Load | 63 | 77 22% | 78 24% | 56.5 ? -10% | |||
| Witcher 3 ultra | 57 | 96 | 86.5 ? | ||||
| Reader / Idle | 581 | 431 |
Pros
Cons
Verdict - Strong minigamer
A bright OLED display, a strong AMD Ryzen 7 7840U, and a sturdy case are what the handheld brings to the table. A bit of RGB light, as well as the excellent control software, round out the overall picture. The Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power is a solid device. However, the pocket form factor does not come without cuts to the usability of the device. Both the small battery and the small Full HD screen, don't exactly make it easy to unleash the handheld's full potential. On the road, you simply wish for more battery life, at home, probably, a bit more performance, or at least a bigger screen. In principle, our review of the gaming hardware shows that most current games run on Ayaneo's handheld. However, a lot of heat accumulates in the device, so its surface temperatures reach unpleasant values. Nevertheless, the small gamer can maintain its performance.
Apart from the screen's small size of 5.5 inches, we are surprised by its quality. The OLED panel with high brightness and strong color space coverage also delivers fast response times. The manufacturer made the right choice with a 60 Hz panel because the iGPU does not generate many more frames in most games anyway.
And that brings us to the core competence of the small handheld. It masters games in Full HD resolution with low or medium quality settings with flying colors. The input devices are well-positioned and can be easily reached and operated with small and large hands. The thumb sticks and triggers with Hall sensors ensure repeatable inputs. Only the vibration seems a bit too weak to us, but the large rumble motors of a DualShock 4 controller would hardly have found a room here.
The Ayaneo Air 1S is a gaming midget that fits in your pocket with full AMD Ryzen 7 power. With its fast iGPU, the handheld can render modern games smoothly. But miniaturization has its price and manifests itself in high surface temperatures and low battery runtimes.
In the end, the Ayaneo Air 1S doesn't look perfect in our comparison with the Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme. However, Asus' gaming handheld is actually a different size class than the Ayaneo. The 200 grams more weight of the ROG Ally is clearly noticeable in the arms and hands during longer gaming sessions. As far as the design is concerned, both devices are probably a matter of taste. And so we come to the sticking point of the Ayaneo Air 1S.
Price and availability
Our test device can only be purchased via Indiegogo at https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/ayaneo-air-1s-light-thin-oled-amd-7840u-handheld#/a price that is partly significantly higher than the Asus ROG Ally. The cheapest configuration of the Ayaneo Air 1S in the (still available) early-bird price of 6,272 HKD (about 756 Euros) is just under the 800 Euros that you currently pay for a ROG Ally Z1 Extreme, but import taxes probably still have to be paid for the Ayaneo. Our test configuration (Retro Power with 32 GB working memory and 2 TB hard drive) is around 975 Euros. Taxes or customs duties are also added here, so the final price could probably be around 1200 Euros.
Ayaneo Air 1S Retro Power
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10/11/2023 v7
Marc Herter
Transparency
The present review sample was given to the author by the manufacturer free of charge for the purposes of review. There was no third-party influence on this review, nor did the manufacturer receive a copy of this review before publication. There was no obligation to publish this review.
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