TL;DR
- The AYANEO Pocket S2 is the first device with a Snapdragon G3 Gen 3 chipset.
- The standard model has a 8,000mAh battery, with the Pro model upping that to 10,000mAh.
- It’s available for pre-order now, with shipping expected to start at the end of July.
AYANEO is the most boutique brand when it comes to Android gaming handhelds, and its latest release doesn’t pull any punches. The AYANEO Pocket S2 is now available on Indiegogo, and it sports the latest chipset, an upgraded design, and a Pro model with a shockingly large battery.
This is the first device to launch with the Snapdragon G3 Gen 3 chipset, which is designed to offer the right mix of performance and efficiency. It’s the most powerful of the three gaming-focused SoCs announced earlier this year, and our early testing of its budget cousin, the G1 Gen 2 in the Retroid Pocket Classic, showed that the effort has paid off.
The Snapdragon G3 Gen 2 offered in previous flagship handhelds like the Pocket ACE sometimes suffered from poor compatibility with mobile games and demanding emulators, but that should now be a thing of the past. AYANEO has worked directly with Qualcomm to ensure better compatibility across the board with the G3 Gen 3, including with the latest third-party turnip drivers. The company claims it now has the same level of compatibility as the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, and new device spoofing software can trick games into thinking it has a Snapdragon 8 Elite to unlock the highest settings options.
That chipset powers a new 6.3-inch 1440p IPS display, with higher peak brightness and better color reproduction than its predecessor. However, it’s limited to 60Hz, so you won’t get ultra-high framerates or black frame insertion in emulated retro games.
The Pocket S2 and S2 Pro have significantly larger batteries than their peers.
The other most notable upgrade is the battery size, which is now a whopping 8,000mAh. That’s the largest cell we’ve seen in a handheld this size, and it should offer incredible longevity when paired with the new, efficient chip. The standard model also has 40W PD charging to top it off in a hurry, with bypass charging and the option to cap max charge to improve battery health over time.
It also has new TMR sticks, a more ergonomic CNC metal frame, and a larger D-Pad and buttons. Audio performance has also been improved, and it’s the first AYANEO handheld in years to have a headphone jack.
One big surprise of the launch earlier today is that the Pocket S2 is the first AYANEO product that also includes a Pro model. It has the same chipset and screen, but ups the ante with a massive 10,000mAh battery and 60W PD charging. Despite the size of the cell, it has the same slim profile, adding just 12g over the standard model (428g vs 440g).
Pricing starts at $439 with early bird discounts.
The Pocket S2 Pro also takes a cue from the AYANEO 3 with a replaceable D-pad. You can swap between a standard D-Pad and an eight-way pad for better control in fighting games. The Pro models also feature more RAM and storage, at a higher price.
All models are now available for pre-order with early bird discounts on Indiegogo. The standard model starts at $439 for the 8GB+128GB configuration, and the Pocket S2 Pro maxes out at $699 for the 16GB+1TB configuration with premium Retro Power or B. Duck colorways. Shipping is expected to begin at the end of July.
