Update 11/01/24 10:18 AM UTC - AYANEO replied to my email to give a tiny bit more info on their Linux OS use:
The SteamOS pre-installed on NEXT LITE is adapted and optimized by AYANEO based on HoloISO. Users also can install Windows system by themselves after purchasing NEXT LITE, and download Windows driver from AYANEO official website.
HoloISO is not actually SteamOS, but very close. So this is not in any way a partnership being done with Valve. HoloISO for those not aware can be found on GitHub and anyone can use it. I've asked if they can share what changes they've made.
Original article below:
Finally we're seeing another handheld vendor jump in with Linux. The AYANEO NEXT LITE was announced today and much like the Steam Deck, they plan to ship it with SteamOS! AYANEO are one of the top brands when it comes to PC handhelds, so it's really interesting to see them be one of the first to jump in like this. If Linux is a success for them, no doubt they will do more and other vendors will follow along.
Don't go expecting some next-gen power-house though, this is a "value-for-money option" but with various great sounding features like Hall Effect Joysticks, a 7-inch 800p display, a 47Wh battery, X-axis linear motors "and other features".
Now, this forward-looking flagship handheld, AYANEO NEXT, returns in full force with the rejuvenated AYANEO NEXT LITE. Building upon the foundation of top-tier flagship design and texture, AYANEO NEXT LITE comes pre-installed with the SteamOS gaming system for the first time. AYANEO NEXT LITE integrates outstanding cost-effectiveness, lowering the entry barrier while further popularizing numerous flagship features, offering an upgraded experience to more players, and allowing them to enjoy the endless fun and convenience of gaming handhelds.
AYANEO
AYANEO say "subscriptions" will open 9:30 PM EST on January 11th EST / 2:30 AM January 12th UTC. They haven't revealed specifications or the pricing yet, so we assume that will be revealed then. The announcement post also showed off two different colour variations with a white shell and orange shoulder buttons like above, plus a black shell with grey shoulder buttons.
Currently it's not clear how they're using SteamOS. As Valve have not announced any kind of partnership, and there's no official public SteamOS 3 release yet. We know Valve wanted to get SteamOS on other devices, and all those discussions would have of course been behind closed doors until an announcement. So maybe Valve will say something soon. I've reached out to both Valve and AYANEO for an answer anyway.
Interestingly, they were previously working on their Linux-based AYANEO OS that was due in 2023, but perhaps that was shelved in favour of SteamOS directly to prevent fragmentation.
What do we think, AMD still like most others or Intel this time like the MSI Claw?
See the announcement here.
Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
QuoteI saw it in person in 2022. It looked like it was done at that point. They went back to the drawing board after that and it's dead/in development hell.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b7bORW_R4gY
Quoting: dpanterBleh, guess I didn't have enough fingers. Concerned this might hurt the Linux gaming handheld scene instead. I didn't trust Ayaneo before, things like this sure don't help and I definitely don't trust their ability to maintain a fringe spin of a fringe distro. [...]
Agreed. This either increases the longevity of this Ayaneo device, cause it taps into the tailor-making effort that goes into SteamOS via HoloISO. Or people are going to blame Linux and say it is worse than Windows for handhelds cause it is neither tailor made for the Ayaneo device nor a mainstream linux distro.
Mohandevir Jan 11
Quoting: PenglingQuoting: StoneColdSpiderKind of spooky..... We were just talking about something like this the other day........Now let's see how much else of what we discussed shows up here.
Quoting: MohandevirLow cost, entry level handheld with SteamOS... Direct competitor to the Steam Deck... I was expecting a high end SteamOS based handheld... Would have made more sense, imo. Unless they aim to sell it where the Steam Deck is unavailable?The high-end SteamOS handheld is the Steam Deck. Really, though, this makes perfect sense, but only assuming it's as low-cost as the literature so far implies.
I'll be surprised if they are able to match the Steam Deck price brackets.
The "Blue Ocean Strategy" has a term for this, and it's how all market disruption starts: "Crappy products for crappy customers.". That's not crappy as in low-quality, but rather "crappy" as in the big players in the market rejected them and refuse to cater to them even though there's a ready-made market just waiting to hand over their money (the fact that Linux gaming recently overtook Mac gaming, but we're still seeing companies refusing to support Linux whilst making large concessions for MacOS also plays into this).
The lack of certain features isn't a problem, either, for that reason - in fact, some more "Lite" options are likely to help adoption (as well as hopefully cover regions where the Steam Deck is not yet available).
That's one way to see it, I get your point, but what I meant its that I was expecting something in the performance range of the Ally, Legion Go or Claw, with SteamOS. Probably easier to justify the cost of such a device; No need to compete with the Steam Deck, in the low price range and might sell more than the 3 others because of the diffrent offering/better experience. It would have picked my interrest, at least. Just my two cents.
Last edited by Mohandevir on 11 January 2024 at 3:39 pm UTC
Quoting: elmapulpeople asked about licencing cost...IIRC this is (one of the) reason(s) which brought down MS tablets with WindowsRT (and also their whole smartphone business): MS was greedy and charged manufacturers "some" licence fees (most probably not small) for each copy of windows on tablets and smartphones, which - in turn - raised the costs to manufacture these devices, which - in turn - raised prices of MS devices on the market. And they just were more expensive than their Android counterparts...
so long as developing proton is more expensive than developing their own linux distro, i dont see why valve would charge for anything, the biggest the marketshare the more advantage for then.
Quoting: elmapulin other words, companies like valve target the most profitable markets, while smaller companies target the markets that valve isnt interessed yet...Hmmm . . . one of the markets Valve apparently isn't interested in has quite a bit of profit potential. Presumably this Ayaneo thing will sell in China. I mean, it's a Chinese company.
Last edited by Purple Library Guy on 11 January 2024 at 5:17 pm UTC
pleasereadthemanual Jan 11
Quoting: Purple Library GuyObligatory comment about the Steam Deck not being sold in Australia/NZ. Though I'll be the first to admit we don't have as many people as China does.Quoting: elmapulin other words, companies like valve target the most profitable markets, while smaller companies target the markets that valve isnt interessed yet...Hmmm . . . one of the markets Valve apparently isn't interested in has quite a bit of profit potential. Presumably this Ayaneo thing will sell in China. I mean, it's a Chinese company.
(But they sell it in Canada!)
Quoting: pleasereadthemanualQuoting: Purple Library GuyObligatory comment about the Steam Deck not being sold in Australia/NZ. Though I'll be the first to admit we don't have as many people as China does.Quoting: elmapulin other words, companies like valve target the most profitable markets, while smaller companies target the markets that valve isnt interessed yet...Hmmm . . . one of the markets Valve apparently isn't interested in has quite a bit of profit potential. Presumably this Ayaneo thing will sell in China. I mean, it's a Chinese company.
(But they sell it in Canada!)
Haha - I just looked up the numbers! In terms of landmass, China is only slightly larger than Australia (around 20% bigger). But it has, wait for it, 46 TIMES as many people - 1.4 billion compared to Australia's 30 million! Yikes!! So I guess Ayaneo has a market at least!
But as for Valve, yeah, good point - Canada has around the same population as Australia, so it's clearly not the numbers driving this decision. It's either regulation, import/export laws, or supply chain. Or something else - global freight isn't my thing, so I'm guessing.
TruckStopSantaClaus Jan 11
Quoting: scaineBut as for Valve, yeah, good point - Canada has around the same population as Australia, so it's clearly not the numbers driving this decision. It's either regulation, import/export laws, or supply chain. Or something else - global freight isn't my thing, so I'm guessing.
Canada is, like, a couple of miles from Valve HQ.
Doing stuff like that saves from the potential of the Steam Client updating and breaking whatever hooks or plugins they would need to do similar stuff with Steam in SteamOS mode (and ultimately HoloISO), and ChimeraOS likely already is providing support for the device after release anyways, so it'd be a win/win pooling efforts.
Last edited by R3BiRtH on 11 January 2024 at 10:20 pm UTC
Patreon
PayPal
See more from me