The handheld gaming market is getting more crowded all the time, with countless brands taking inspiration from the success of the Steam Deck. The latest competitor to Valve's portable gaming PC is the Ayaneo 3, now available to pre-order globally on Indiegogo, boasting a neat modular design that could help the handheld stand out from the ever-growing pack.
Ayaneo is touting its new device as "the world's first modular handheld," with detachable controller modules that you can swap around to suit your game and playstyle. Whether you need six buttons on your right for a fighting game or prefer trackpads for a point-and-click, the Ayaneo 3 enables you to easily swap or flip these Magic Modules, making it much more versatile than almost all the picks from our guide to the best Steam Deck alternatives.
Crowdfunding for consoles isn't a new strategy for Ayaneo, and we've seen the brand pull off some pretty impressive campaigns before. The fresh campaign has plenty of options, ranging from the base console with 16GB of RAM, 512GB of storage, and no modules for the early bird price of $699, to the super-premium $1,799 option, with 64GB of RAM, 4TB of storage, and all the Magic Module variations. That latter option is much more generous than anything from our guide to the best portable gaming consoles, though, admittedly, it's also much more expensive.
Outside of its Magic Modules, the Ayaneo 3 has a pretty impressive list of specs. The cheaper models all pack AMD Ryzen 7 8840U processors, the same as the stellar Ayaneo Flip DS. The more expensive models use the even more powerful AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370, which all the benchmark tests suggest is great for gaming. In terms of the display, you can pick between LCD and OLED models, which, at the time of writing, are all the same price. The OLED version currently looks like the most popular pick, which isn't surprising considering it offers 144Hz refresh rates compared to the LCD's maximum of 120Hz.
Of course, we'll be eager to get our hands on the Ayaneo 3 when shipping starts, so watch this space for our in-depth thoughts on the console. If you can't wait for a new pocket-size gaming device, be sure to check out our guides to the best gaming phones and the best retro handhelds while you're here, with plenty of options to suit all needs and budgets.