A light version of ‘Ayaneo’ in the UMPC industry
Body that resembles a console game… retro feel
Enjoy the latest high-end PC games without delay
Disadvantages of heat, battery, and price barriers
A figure playing the role-playing game ‘Fallout 3’ on ‘Ayaneo Air’, a small mobile computer (UMPC).
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[아시아경제 차민영 기자] The ‘Ayaneo Air’ series, a lightweight version of the ‘Ayaneo’ series, which was popular in the ultra-small mobile PC (UMPC) industry, was officially released in Korea recently. Until now, it could only be purchased through social funding and parallel imports, but One Store was the sole distributor. The age has come when you can easily enjoy PC games while lying in bed or in the back seat of a car.
I tried the ‘Ayaneo Air 512GB Black’ model on the 28th. From the outside, it looks like a console game machine, but the essence is UMPC. This product is a portable personal computer that uses Microsoft’s Windows 11 operating system (OS).
Play the role playing game ‘Fallout 3’ on Ayaneo Air.
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Compared to the Nintendo Switch product, the size is similar, but the thickness of the Ayaneo Air is thicker. On the other hand, the Ayaneo Air, which weighs 398 grams, is lighter. Even compared to the weight of a regular smartphone, there is not much difference. It is light enough to be used by a woman or a small child. The handle button on top of the joystick has a luxurious finish in cobalt blue with fine pearls.
After entering the Microsoft (MS) account, connecting to Wi-Fi, and completing the basic initial settings, I downloaded the action role-playing game ‘Fallout 3’ through the Epic Games platform. An error occurred during the initial installation process, and it took a lot of effort to turn it back on after forcefully shutting it down. Since I had to download the Epic Games launcher, it took more than an hour and a half to play the game. It takes about 50 minutes to download the game even though it is connected to 5G Wi-Fi, so some patience is required to enjoy the game.
Ayaneo Air vs Nintendo Switch
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When I turned on the game, the 5.5-inch full HD organic light emitting diode (OLED) display lit up. The display is considered to be an important factor in the nature of the game, where the visual aspect is important. The speakers placed at the bottom of the left and right side are also satisfactory. I was able to enjoy conversations with NPCs (Non-player Characters) and quest missions by moving the joystick as if I were playing a regular console game. Since it can be used the same as a PC, it was possible to receive games from Steam, Xbox Live, Ubisoft, etc. as well as Epic Games, or play indie games made by single developers. It has 16GB of RAM and 512GB of capacity, and it was easy to schedule games, so the capacity limit didn’t seem that big. There was no delay even when the game was played for more than 30 minutes.
Ayaneo Air Components. It supports Type-C charging method.
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Heating and battery are areas that need to be supplemented. Ayaneo emphasized that the battery is stable, but it was difficult to enjoy more than an hour and a half when playing a game with a charge of 100%. I didn’t feel much heat in the two joysticks, but I could feel the heat in the center of the main body even before the game started. The cooling system was placed on the back and top of the body, but it felt hot to the touch. Another downside is that the Korean language guide on the device is a bit awkward, perhaps because it is a Chinese product. The official manual was also provided in two versions: English and Chinese.
The price barrier is higher than that of general game consoles. The factory price is 1.19 million won, and even if the discount event held in the One Store is applied until the 31st of this month, it is about 1 million won. It can be purchased at One Store, Fun Shop, and Hi-Mart.
By Cha Min-young, staff reporter blooming@asiae.co.kr
