Do we actually want extra highly effective Android gaming handhelds?

At GDC 2025, Qualcomm introduced its latest lineup of processors that may quickly make their manner into Android gaming handhelds. Headlining the trio is the Snapdragon G3 Gen 3, coming greater than a 12 months after its predecessor was launched. It guarantees to supply a 30% CPU increase and an virtually 30% soar to the GPU, which is sweet on paper and possibly in observe.

In fact, these weren’t the one bulletins, as we additionally noticed AYANEO, OneXSugar, and Retroid announce new gaming handhelds. AYANEO’s introduction of the Pocket S2 comes as little shock, seeing the unique Pocket S was the primary machine to ship with the Snapdragon G3x Gen 2.

Till now, this operated as probably the most highly effective chip for Android gaming handhelds, customized driver help however. So naturally, I am fairly darn excited to get my arms on the Pocket S2 and see whether or not the G3 Gen 3 performs in addition to Qualcomm claims.

Nonetheless, on the similar time, I’ve had this nagging query behind my thoughts: have we reached the purpose of diminishing returns? It is sort of the identical feeling that I’ve on the subject of smartphones, as I really feel that slab telephones have reached their peak, which drives my dedication to foldables.

Fortunately, I do not really feel the identical on the subject of the design of gaming handhelds, as there’s much more flexibility. However I do not really know if we’d like quicker and extra highly effective processors. Do not get me fallacious, if RPCS3 for Android continues its breakneck tempo in improvement and Winlator continues to enhance; then this take will in all probability look fairly dumb.

Even with Nintendo doing every thing it could possibly to place a cease to Change emulation, the truth that you should use Android to play PS3, Change, and PC video games is mind-blowing. However to be able to reap the benefits of that, you will must pony up a fairly penny.

When the AYANEO Pocket S Indiegogo marketing campaign began, you have been taking a look at a beginning worth of $399 for the 1080p base mannequin. Presently, you possibly can’t really purchase the bottom mannequin Pocket S, however earlier than it went out of inventory, you would be taking a look at $559. You may know the place I am going with this, however that is dearer than the 512GB Steam Deck OLED, which is sort of a bit extra succesful than the Pocket S.

On the similar time, there’s AYN with its Odin 2 lineup of Android gaming handhelds, all of that are powered by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2. The trio of Odin 2 fashions affords quite a lot of RAM configurations, however the base mannequin can at the moment be had for $299.

Proper now, the corporate’s newest handheld, the Odin 2 Portal with OLED, begins at $329. Even if you happen to go for the Odin 2 Portal (Max), with its 16GB of RAM and 1TB of storage, its $499 price ticket continues to be lower than the entry-level Pocket S.

That is what worries me a bit in regards to the standing of high-end Android emulation. AYANEO did not share pricing specifics for the Pocket S2, however contemplating that it is arriving with a brand-new Qualcomm chip, I think it’s going to be fairly darn costly. And whereas a number of design tweaks have been made, there’s actually not a lot of a compelling cause to get one until you are a specs snob like me.

I do not know whether or not the Pocket S2 will tip the scales in a single route or the opposite. I believe that the onus is being placed on what the numbers appear to be with the Retroid Pocket Flip 2 and the Pocket Basic.