AYN is the Chinese specialist in beefed-up Android handhelds: ever since the first Odin, the brand has been fitting high-end Snapdragon chips into machines dedicated to emulation, at prices that shook up the market. Here is where it comes from, what its range is worth and what you need to know before ordering. Updated in August 2026.
AYN is a Chinese company that made its name in 2021 with the first Odin, funded on Indiegogo and delivered from the start of 2022. With its Snapdragon 845, its 6-inch 1080p screen and its $240 price, it offered a power-to-price ratio never seen before for emulating 3D consoles. The brand then tried a Windows range, the Loki, remembered above all for its long delivery delays. It is indeed the Odin line, running Android, that established its reputation: serious hardware, direct sales from China, and since 2026 an official AliExpress store to bypass the resellers who were inflating prices.
Three families exist side by side. The main Odin line (Odin, Odin 2, Odin 3) brings together horizontal Android consoles with Snapdragon chips, each available in several RAM and storage configurations (base, Pro, Max). The Mini and Portal variants take the technical base of an Odin in a different format or with a different screen. Finally the Thor, launched at the end of 2025, opens a family of its own: a clamshell with two screens designed in particular for emulating Nintendo's dual-screen consoles. The Loki Windows range is no longer at the heart of the brand's strategy.
Odin 2 (late 2023). The console that dominated Android emulation for two years thanks to its Snapdragon 8 Gen 2. AYN announced its end of life in January 2026; it can still be found second-hand, and it remains an excellent machine.
Odin 2 Portal (2024). The large-format version: a 7-inch 120 Hz AMOLED screen and an 8,000 mAh battery on the Odin 2 base. Cut to $249 in early 2026 to clear stock, it was one of the best deals on the market for as long as it lasted.
Thor (late 2025). The brand's dual-screen clamshell, powered by a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 and available with up to 16 GB of RAM and 1 TB of storage. In high demand, it frequently falls victim to speculative reselling at unreasonable prices: it is better to go through an official channel or a serious reseller.
Odin 3 (2025-2026). The new flagship, built around the Snapdragon 8 Elite. This is the console aimed at the most demanding emulation, sold in successive pre-order batches, with prices that change from one batch to the next.
AYN hardware has a good reputation: the Odin 2 has aged well and build quality is regularly praised. The reservations mainly concern the business model. AYN sells in pre-order batches: between the announcement and delivery, the wait is counted in weeks, sometimes longer in periods of high demand, and the Loki track record is a reason to be cautious about announced schedules. In early 2026 the brand also announced price rises linked to the global memory shortage. On after-sales service, as with most Chinese manufacturers selling direct, any return goes back to China, with delays and costs to plan for; buying through a European reseller often costs a little more but makes the warranty simpler. Finally, an Android console is relatively bare out of the box: you have to install and configure your emulators yourself, and these machines are sold without games or ROMs.
The Odin 2 Portal remains an excellent deal as long as there is stock, the Odin 3 aims for maximum power with its Snapdragon 8 Elite, and the Thor is aimed first and foremost at fans of dual-screen consoles thanks to its clamshell format.
Broadly yes, these platforms are comfortable on a chip of this generation, but results always vary depending on the games and the settings; no emulation console guarantees 100% of titles.
AYN sells in pre-order batches from its own site and its official AliExpress store; between two batches, the wait can last several weeks, or even longer in periods of high demand.
No, they are sold without games or ROMs; you install your emulators and then, legally, your own copies of games.
Find the available models in our AYN collection and place them against the competition among all our handheld consoles. Our comparison tool puts the spec sheets side by side, and our firmware compatibility table summarises the systems available machine by machine.