Linux-based Orange Pi Neo gaming handheld with AMD Ryzen 7 starts at $499

Best known for its broad SBC lineup, Orange Pi revealed its first gaming handheld in February of this year. While we got most of the details on the device at that unveiling, the company left out the pricing information. But that has just been revealed, and as initially speculated, it's priced competitively.

To be more specific, the Orange Pi Neo will start at $499, which is $200 lower than the launch price of Asus ROG Ally (available at Best Buy). On that note, the base variant of the gaming handheld features the AMD Ryzen 7 7840U, which is an identical APU to the Z1 Extreme found inside the Ally.

In addition, Orange Pi has revealed a second configuration of the Neo. It comes with the Ryzen 7 8840U and will cost $599. While that's a newer processor, the performance difference might not be that noticeable as it only comes with a better NPU than the 7840U. It even has the same Radeon 780M iGPU running at the same clock speed.

Besides the processor, both the configurations of the Orange Pi Neo are identical. They both come with Steam Deck-like touchpads and standard gaming handheld controllers. The two also have the same 7-inch screen with a 120 Hz refresh rate and 500 nits brightness rating. You can get a better idea about the hardware from the spec sheet attached at the end.

Nonetheless, what really makes the Neo stand out is its operating system. As a company that's well-known for delivering Linux-friendly hardware, Orange Pi will ship the new gaming handheld with Manjaro by default. Of course, it should also be possible to install Windows on it.

That said, while Orange Pi Neo got its pricing officially revealed, the company didn't share an exact release date. However, the gaming handheld is planned to start shipping sometime in Q2 2024.