Hello, as stated in the title I'm looking for a handheld and not sure what to get. I haven't had a gaming console before so controls will be a bit of a learning curve. I've already stared researching and some that I'm looking into are the Steam Deck (OLED), Legion go S, or maybe an AYN Odin 3 / Thor (but these are purely for price range). Not looking for a Switch, as the games don't have much appeal to me and I'd like to be able to play my steam games.

I'm not willing to spend more than $1,600 CAD (not including accessories like docking/cases/screen protectors). I'd like to have SteamOS either be pre-installed or be able to install it myself with minimal issue. I do not plan to take the device out of the house very often so size shouldn't be much of an issue. Would like more storage, but understand that more storage means more I have to pay. I'd also like for the device not to run too hot or loud, I usually do longer gaming sessions so that could become an issue.

The beefiest game I'd play is Planet Zoo 2 (I understand it probably won't have best controller compatibility), but I mainly play Stardew valley, Minecraft (modded), Slime Rancher (1 and 2), and a few other similar games. I'd like to be able to play these on normal graphics, which would be an upgrade to my current setup (an ASUS laptop I've had for a few years now). I do play a few multiplayer games (Phasmo, Big Walk, etc) but I can always just use my laptop to play them so not a big issue.

Currently leaning towards the Legion Go S or the Steam Deck but not too sure. Would prefer new, but open to refurbs, though I am hesitant about the second hand market.

Is there ANY handheld consoles for around 400( can be used ) thay can atleast play cyberounk edgerunners, as cheap as possible please!!^^

J’ai le choix entre les deux consoles, je choisis laquelle

Targetted mainly at non-retro gamers, but all input is welcome.

So, both are basically the same in raw performance: But Legio Go has native compatibility with SteamOs and i've heard that feels better in general, while Ally X has a way bigger battery and battery life in general with a better construction it seems.
As expected, i'll want to put SteamOs in the Ally too, but i'm a little concerned about the compatibility issues: The problem with the Sleep/Quick resume mode is what worries me the most, also i've heard that sometimes the console just get stuck and you have to do a forced restart.
I've heard also that you have to install DeckyLoader and SimpleTDP to solve some problems with TDP control and CPU Boost issues, in this case, im concerned about having to configurate something every time i want to play a different game.
So, what are your opinions about this?

I am looking into a real good quality gaming handheld to play! I’ve never had one. I wanted to get one of the retro ds’ but the few I’ve tried were scams. I’m open to looking into steam decks or switches too! I just don’t have a lot of knowledge about them! Help! I'd love to hear real experience from you guys here.

Thank you

What’s the best handheld pc? I just sold my pc and I’m looking at getting into the handheld space. I’m seeing Legion Go’s for $500-$600 on marketplace near me, 1TB Z1E Rog Ally for 400-500, I just don’t know where to start lol. I don’t wanna spend more than $500. Preferably around 300-400.

Greetings

I am a heavy steam deck user but cannot help noticing how it is falling back in newer games. SD 2 seems far off and I don’t know if any newer handhelds are being released this year ( rampocalypse doesn’t help). I am considering a lenovo legion go s as it works with steam os.

What other options do I have? Is lenovo legion go z1 a good option? is the performance gain noticeable? is it noisy? how is steam os implementation?

Hey all,

I have a phone with a screen that just cracked yesterday. I can honestly get another one of the same phones for about $50 - $70, and a replacement screen is more than that, so I'll probably just get a new one. BUT I am curious, as the internals still work completely fine, and this is no throwaway chipset. How feasible would it be to get maybe a roughly 7-inch display and handheld controller set, get the necessary components out and turn this into something of a gaming handheld? I'm not new to repairing tech but I have pretty much no experience with this type of project, so any advice is welcome!

So Im looking to buy an android handheld for around €150. I came across the Retrroid Pocket 5, and it looks AMAZING. However my main issue is that I feel the 5.5" screen is a bit too small for what I want.

The only other option i found so far that seems to fit what I’m looking for is the AYN Odin 2 Portal, since it has a much bigger 7" screen, but it costs €220+, which is outside my budget.

Are there any other android handhelds i might have missed that have a larger screen while staying close to my budget? what would you recommend?

So as the title says, I'm interested in buying a gaming device, mainly to play PC games via steam. Currently own a laptop (intel mac), so as you can guess not quite optimal for gaming lol. At the same time it fulfills essentially all my other needs. There are ways to play games on it (bootcamp / Wine / Crossover etc.) but needs a lot of tweaking and frankly is just an annoying experience.

So now one question is what type of device itself to buy. PS / Xbox is out of the question here (PC games mostly), so initially I thought a second laptop is the way to go. However, I then came across handhelds and now I'm confused.

I think a proper gaming PC would be pretty much out of budget for me right now. I saw the options of prebuilt PCs / mini PCs but I'm not sure if they are value for money.

Within handhelds I've eliminated the Switch (not suitable for the games I want to play), the steamdeck (costs way too much for the performance imo) - that brings us to the ROG Ally and the Lenovo Legion Go - specifically the **Legion Go S z1e** (32 GB ram, 1 TB ssd) is what I'm looking at. I will most probably be able to purchase one of these from Hong Kong where online websites say the price is around 70K INR - kind of pushing my budget but if the device is worth it and will last for some years I am willing to go for it. This is definitely better than buying something second hand on gameloot I feel.

Advantages of a gaming laptop:

* Screen size
* Dedicated GPU

Disadvantages:

* Having an entire laptop for just gaming seems overkill. From what I've read online, gaming laptops don't really have the best lifespan in general (happy to be educated here if I'm wrong).

Advantages of Handheld:

* Might be slightly cheaper than a good gaming laptop.
* Form factor - the idea of jumping into a game for a short 30 mins session and resuming when I want sounds pretty cool and convenient.

Disadvantages:

* I don't really plan to play on the go - I'll only game at home, so I'm probably not even going to be utilizing one of the main selling points of a handheld device.
* No dedicated GPU - integrated graphics. While the Legion Go S comes with 32 GB of RAM, no GPU mean no GPU. Will have to accept perf of 30-60 fps on modern games / playing around and tweaking settings to get the most juice out as a sacrifice for the form factor / convenience.

So now please help me decide - happy to hear your suggestions / opinions on what might be the best deal :)

Lately, mine has been this Redmagic Astra 2 with Shadow Blade Gamepad 3. I've also got a Switch 2 docked with a portable monitor and Bluetooth controllers for passengers in the back. Of course, it wouldn't be complete with the requisite RGB for full gamer status.