- Aokzoe is ready to compete with other gaming handheld this year with A1 x
- Using the new AMD Ryzen AI HX 370 APU which uses the same IGPU as Z2 Extreme
- There is no confirmation of a release date or price
If CES 2025 wasn’t enough that 2025 could be one of the best years for handheld gaming devices, enjoy this: Aokzoe A1 X has been announced and it seems to compete with Lenovo’s Legion Go 2 and Asus ROG Ally X, and could outperform the Nintendo Switch 2 based on rumored specifications.
As highlighted by Videocardz, AOKZOE A1 X will use AMD’s new Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 APU, which uses the integrated Radeon 890m GPU (the same is found in the upcoming Z2 Extreme Chip)-and it also has 16 RDNA 3.5 GPU kernels, With an 8-inch 120Hz VRR screen and a 72.7WHR. While it doesn’t quite match the Legion Go 2 or Switch 2’s ergonomics with the removable controllers, it definitely makes up for it with its processing power.
We still haven’t seen how AMD’s Ryzen Z2 Extreme will perform as there are no handheld gaming PCs using this processor -but the AMD HX 370 ApPU uses the same integrated GPU with multiple CPU kernes and threads ( 12 and 24), and it is already present in Onexfly F1 Pro and proved to provide great performance in several games such as Cyberpunk 2077 and The war god Ragnarok Via ETA Prime on YouTube.
This should be a good indication of how the Ryzen Z2 Extreme -driven Legion Go 2 can perform (depending on its final specifications as it is still a prototype), compared to the newly announced Nintendo Switch 2 (if the rumors are legitimate) – But it is also worth noting that pricing (which has not been confirmed or a release date) will most likely determine the success of these handhelds on the market.
Is 8 inches the ideal screen size for handheld gaming devices?
With handheld gaming devices like Acer Nitro Blaze 11, which boasts an 11-inch screen, questions about the ideal screen size for these systems must be processed. As my colleague Christian Guyton said earlier, 11-inch screens on a handheld playing unit are too big and I totally agree with this feeling.
After testing Lenovo Legion Go (which has an 8.8-inch screen) and spent most of my time with ASUS ROG ALLY (using a 7-inch screen) I can say that 8-inch is the best place . Many of the criticisms that came with Legion Go from users (and myself included) were that the device is too heavy to hold, especially after long hours of playing time.
Devices like MSI Claw 8 AI+ and Lenovo Legion GO S (both of which use an 8-inch screen) can produce different results in terms of how comfortable they are to hold while playing as their designs will vary quite drastically. However, I am absolutely convinced that 8-inch screens should be the standard for new handheld devices, as 7 inches (at least for me) are too small, especially for competing games. Fortunately, it seems that the majority of the upcoming handhelds in 2025 will get the balance between having a screen large enough to see what is happening in play, without making a device that is too large and Extensive to comfortable to play for a long time.
