The ceiling of open source handhelds: ODIN handheld unboxing and experience

"open source handheld" has attracted more and more attention from domestic and foreign players in recent years. For people who like nostalgia, an open source handheld can simulate most retro game platforms, and the portability, control feel, and battery life are all within an acceptable range, so it is a good choice to use it to review old games anytime, anywhere. . For those who like to toss with hardware, open source handhelds also have a certain degree of playability in terms of hardware and systems.

Over the years, I have used GKD mini, Zhou Ge RG351M, RG552 and other open source handhelds, as well as Windows handhelds such as GPD Win 3 and OnexPlayer, but for nostalgia, neither of them can satisfy me completely. Otherwise, the performance is not enough or the screen is too small, or it is too heavy and the battery life is too poor. If you use a high-end Android phone + Bluetooth handle to solve these big problems, but small problems such as screen ratio, weight distribution when holding, and frequency reduction due to overheating always make obsessive-compulsive disorder a little uncomfortable. Under the recommendation of a friend, I have been following the "AYN Odin Odin handheld" since last year, and I finally received the Odin handheld. Here I will do a simple unpacking and talk about the use experience to share with all nostalgic players.

video :

https://www.bilibili.com/video/BV1V5411S7pE/

Odin handhelds are divided into three models, namely Base, Pro and Lite, the three in common are the 5.98-inch, 1080p IPS touch screen and palmtop The size of the machine, the difference lies in CPU, memory, storage capacity and so on. I started with Odin Pro, which uses Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 chip, 8GB LPDDR4x memory + 128G built-in storage, if the capacity is not enough, you can buy a TF card and insert it. This chip is a bit backward compared to mainstream Android phones on the market, but with active cooling, the performance of the chip basically does not fluctuate during long-term gaming.

The outer packaging is relatively simple. There is only one LOGO on the black outer box. After opening, it is the handheld body, manual and charging data cable. There is no charging head attached. Charging supports QC 3.0/4.0/4.0+/PD2.0.

This handheld of mine adopts SNES color scheme. The layout of the buttons on the body is similar to that of Switch. The grip of the shell, the joystick and the manipulation of L1 and R1 are similar to Switch Lite. The key strength is a little hard, and there is a sound when pressing and rebounding. The buttons of the L2 and R2 trigger keys are designed with Hall magnetic induction. In general, the keys feel a bit like the combination of PSV 1000 and Switch Lite. The body size is slightly smaller than the Switch, and the weight is about 370 grams. Compare the weight of the Switch with the Joy-Con handle is 398 grams, and the Switch OLED with the handle is 420 grams.

The interface on the top of the fuselage includes MicroHDMI output port, TF card slot, air outlet, volume key, power button and power indicator , the bottom of the fuselage is the symmetrical design of left and right speakers, dual speakers, 3.5mm headphone port, Type-C interface , can transfer data and charge, and support 4K@60P video output . There are two custom buttons M1, M2 and cooling fan air inlet on the back. The left and right grips of the fuselage are ergonomically designed. In addition, there are LED lights on the left and right grips and the two joysticks. Turn grip and rocker lights on or off independently in the system. The settings of

after booting are relatively simple and clear, you can set whether to choose Android system or Odin launcher when starting. Let’s talk about the former first. The handheld system is Android 10. It comes with Google Play store, Chrome browser and some basic functions. It is relatively pure. You need to download and install the APK file of the emulator yourself or go to the store to find the software you want.The

Odin launcher is also very simple. After entering, you can see the corresponding icon by adding the newly installed simulator or game APP. The interesting thing about the Odin launcher is that pressing the left and right joysticks or swiping in from the left and right sides of the screen will bring up two menus. The left menu can adjust performance mode, grip light and rocker light switch, day and night mode, and press Type classification APP, the performance adjustment part is divided into three levels, namely normal, performance, high performance, after the high performance is turned on, the cooling fan will continue to rotate. The menu on the right side of the Odin launcher contains Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Airplane Mode, Brightness, Storage, TV Settings, Sleep, Chip Temperature, and Memory Usage. There are also settings, layout, wallpaper menu buttons in the lower right corner of the system.

When playing an emulator or Android game, a menu will pop up by sliding inward from the right screen, you can adjust the screen brightness , check the chip temperature and usage, screenshots and videos, etc. The system comes with a button mapping function , you can set it here, which is more convenient. For some Android games that do not support the handle, the button mapping can add virtual buttons on the screen and bind them to the buttons on the machine.

then enters the simulator test. Since the performance of the open source handhelds used before is not enough to simulate the PS2, we first opened the PS2 simulator AetherSX2 and tested " Dragon Quest 8", " Live Football 8", "Sakura Wars Blazing Blood", etc. This game is basically stable at 60 frames under the default settings, and there is no pressure to open twice the resolution. "GT Racing 4" is relatively smooth under the output screen adjusted to 1080i resolution, but there are several frame drops during the game, and the machine performance is stable after setting the machine performance to high performance mode.The frame rate of "God of War 2" and "Wanda and the Colossus" is a bit insufficient under the default settings. You need to set the "EE loop rate" and "EE loop skip" in the simulator settings to -1 and 2, and then You can play smoothly. In general, the function of the Odin handheld is enough to simulate PS2, but the setting part of the simulator needs to be debugged slowly.

Next is the NGC emulator to play " The Legend of Zelda Wind Waker ", and the all-around emulator Retroarch to play the DC game " Soul Power ", the PS1 emulator DuckStation to play "Final Fantasy Tactics", PSP simulation Playing games such as "The Chain of God of War" and "Monster Hunter P3" on PPSSPP, the game has a smooth and stable experience when playing, and the PSP game is very clear after turning on 4 times the resolution. Hosts like SFC and GBA naturally needless to say, very easy. Except for the PS2 emulator, other emulators basically have a good experience in playing games without customizing the screen options.

In terms of battery life, Odin Pro uses a 6600 mAh battery, supports QC/PD fast charging, and consumes about 40% of the power after playing PS2 emulator for about 2 hours. It is estimated that playing PS2 can last for about 5 hours. Playing PS1 games for 2 hours consumes about 25% of the power. It is speculated that playing PS1 games can reach more than 8 hours.

We also tried the Android version of " Genshin Impact ". It is no problem to play at 30 frames under the medium quality option, but it is more difficult to adjust to 60 frames, and this game only has a touch screen when playing on the Odin handheld. Mode, the keys that come with the machine are not recognized, and you need to use key mapping to use key operations. Or you can also connect an external Bluetooth controller to play, but it doesn't make much sense.

I finally tried to stream , and I can use Steam Link software to stream and play games on PC without feeling any lag, and the picture is very clear. You can play 3A masterpieces on your handheld when your computer configuration is high enough and the router speed is good. will have a good experience. The fly in the ointment is that the Odin Pro and Base versions do not support Wi-Fi 6, only the Lite version does. The

ODIN handheld can also install Windows 11. The specific flashing method has been posted on the A9 website and in the nostalgic area of ​​the forum. Friends who like toss and flash can try it. After flashing, it can be used as a simple Windows handheld.

To sum up, the Odin handheld is very good in terms of appearance, screen, weight, performance, portability, workmanship, battery life, etc. It can be called the ceiling of the current open source handheld. If you don't have any money, just buy it. This handheld is suitable for people who want to toss with new hardware and players who want to be nostalgic anytime, anywhere. Most of the old players should have these retired consoles and handhelds, but turn them out and turn them on and plug them in. The time cost of cassettes or discs is somewhat high. If you want to be nostalgic at any time and have a better experience than a mobile phone + Bluetooth controller, then the Odin handheld is worthy of your attention.