AYANEO is known for its premium handhelds, and these almost always come with price tags which reflect their high-end status. The Pocket Air Mini, however, bucks this trend with a sub-$100 price point, putting the cat amongst the pigeons in the crowded budget emulation space.
While the device was released last year, I've only just caught up with it via the special edition 'B.Duck Sunny Pop' edition, which features the Hong Kong-based SMEK's cute mascot character. Outside of the eye-catching casing, the device is the same as the version that launched last year.
What you're getting here is a MediaTek Helio G90T (confusingly referred to on the packaging by its alternative name, the MT8185V), a 1280x960 LCD screen with a 4:3 aspect ratio, 3GB of RAM (on the version I tested, at least), 64GB of internal storage, MicroSD expansion, a 4500mAh battery and Hall Sensor analogue sticks.
The big selling point for me personally is that display, which is the perfect ratio for retro gaming. When you're playing NES, SNES, Game Boy and Mega Drive games, the image almost entirely fills the available screen real estate without the need for large, unsightly black borders around the edges. The LCD panel is also high-quality, despite not offering the punch of an OLED.
Like AYANEO's other non-Windows handhelds, the Pocket Air Mini runs Android and therefore benefits from the mature app ecosystem that has grown around Google's OS over the past few years – and that naturally includes emulators.
The first thing I download on any Android gaming handheld is RetroArch, which allows you to download emulator cores for a wide range of retro systems. However, you can also install emulators individually if you wish; many are available on the Google Play Store, while others can be sideloaded.
The MediaTek Helio G90T / MT8185V isn't a top-level chipset, so it's wise to temper your expectations here. 8 and 16-bit emulation will be perfect, and most vintage handhelds can be emulated just fine by this device. PS1, Dreamcast and N64 emulation is also excellent, but when you hit the PS2 and GameCube levels, the Pocket Air Mini begins to struggle – as do most devices at this price point, to be fair.
It's possible to get some PS2 and GameCube games running at a playable frame rate, but it's a lot of hard work, which makes me feel that this device is better suited to emulating older, weaker systems. Sega Saturn emulation is possible, but again, you'll have to make sure you're using the right emulator and setup, and you shouldn't expect every single game to run at full speed.
That aside, there's a lot to like here. The Pocket Air Mini doesn't come across as a handheld that costs under $100 – it has the same premium feel as AYANEO's other products and is likewise paired with the company's decent AYASpace and AYAHome software.
The controls are fantastic, too; the D-pad, in particular, feels great to use. It's located above the left-hand analogue stick, which is the perfect position for me personally, as I mainly play 2D titles on this device. The analogue sticks are a little small, as are the four face buttons, but these are hardly deal-breakers.
The four shoulder buttons feel great, and are accompanied by two additional buttons which can be mapped to bring up emulator menus and the like. In terms of ergonomics, it's abundantly clear that AYANEO invests significant time and effort in ensuring its handhelds are as comfortable to use as possible, and the Pocket Air Mini is no exception. Even after hours of use, I didn't feel like my hands needed a break.
I was also impressed by the battery life, especially given how small this device is. When running low-level emulators, I found I was getting well over 5 hours of use from a single charge, sometimes much longer.
Now, you may be reading this review and thinking to yourself how many times the same things have been said about a multitude of devices in this space. It's certainly true that, for under $100, you're totally spoilt for choice when it comes to emulation handhelds that can run everything from the Dreamcast downwards.
However, what makes the Pocket Air Mini so special is that it combines this level of budget performance with build quality far superior to that of Anbernic and PowKiddy, making it easy to recommend to anyone looking to play classic games on the go without breaking the bank.