AYANEO Retro Mini PC AM01 Review: Small but Mighty

Over the past few years, AYANEO has been building a reputation for producing sleek handheld gaming devices that deliver impressive performance.

The company is now expanding its product lineup with the introduction of the AYANEO Remake concept. This new collection features a range of nostalgia-infused products, including not only handhelds, but also mini PCs and accessories.

One of the first products in this new lineup is the AYANEO Retro Mini PC AM01, which was kindly sent to us for this review. The AM01 marks the company’s debut in the mini PC space, and this little machine is just as impressive as it looks.

In this article, we’ll take a look at the charming retro-inspired aesthetics of this compact PC and see how it performs as a gaming machine, with a particular focus on its emulation capabilities. So let’s dive right in.

What’s in the box?

The AM01 comes in a clean, minimalist package that looks like it was designed for an Apple product. The beige box features an image of the mini PC on the front and a 1-bit diagram of the device on its side, outlining all of the ports available on the device.

Inside the box, everything is neatly organized into layered compartments, including the mini computer itself, the power supply, an HDMI cable and a set of tools and accessories that can be used to make modifications to the device, such as installing a hard drive or upgrading the RAM.

The package also comes with a range of fun stickers and magnetic tiles that allow you to change up the look of this mini PC.

Specs

The AYANEO Retro Mini PC AM01 comes in a few different configuration options, including a barebones version with no operating system, storage or memory. The pre-configured options come with Windows 11 installed, and you can choose between a Ryzen 3 3200U or Ryzen 7 5700U APU. I would definitely recommend going with the latter for a better price-performance ratio.

The Ryzen 7 model offers configuration options of up to 32GB DDR4 RAM and a 1TB of M.2 2230 SSD storage, while the Ryzen 3 model tops out at 16GB RAM and 512GB of storage. Another difference between the two options is that the Ryzen 7 variant is equipped with WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5.2, while the Ryzen 3 counterpart comes with WiFi 5 and Bluetooth 4.2.

The units are currently available for pre-order on Indiegogo with prices ranging from $200 USD for the base Ryzen 3 unit, all the way up to $421 USD for the Ryzen 7 5700 U with 32GB of RAM and 1TB of storage.

In terms of ports, there’s quite a bit on offer here. The front of the unit includes 1 USB-C 3.2 Gen 1 port and a 3.5mm headphone jack, and on the back there are 3 USB-A 3.2 Gen 2 ports, 1 USB-A 2.0 port, an HDMI 2.0 port, a DisplayPort, a Gigabit Ethernet port and the power connector for the unit.

Design & Build Quality

As you can probably tell, the AM01 draws inspiration from the iconic design of the Macintosh computer, and I think it looks absolutely awesome. AYANEO has managed to successfully incorporate the design language of Apple’s original all-in-one machine, including some clever stylized touches such as the power button, which mimics the Mac’s floppy disk eject button.

A few other nods to the original include the signature “Happy Macintosh” icon designed by Susan Kare in 1984, and a small rainbow tile where the Apple logo used to sit on the original computer.

As mentioned previously, the package comes with a few of these magnetic tiles and they can be easily swapped out to change the look of the device.

There’s also a set of retro-inspired stickers, including a few that can placed directly on the AM01’s “screen”, which unfortunately isn’t a real, working display. It would’ve been cool to see a functional screen on this unit, a feature that will be included in AYANEO’s upcoming NES-inspired AM02.

In terms of the build quality, the AM01 is excellent, with solid components and a premium plastic shell that closely resembles the matte texture and beige color of the old Macintosh computers. The unit is also very compact and lightweight, coming in at 132 x 132 x 64.5mm (5.2 x 5.2 x 2.5 inches) and weighing only 486 grams (1.07 lb).

Gaming on the AYANEO Retro Mini PC AM01

I talked a little bit about the different configurations available for the AM01 in the specs section of this article and the one I got from AYANEO is a Ryzen 7 5700U, with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. With those specs in mind, and fully knowing I wouldn’t be able to run most modern AAA games on this unit, I decided to set it up primarily as a dedicated emulation machine. But before I jumped into old school gaming, I tested a few indie and AA titles such as Celeste, Cocoon, Sea of Stars and TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge, all of which ran great on the AM01, with no issues whatsoever.

The AM01 comes pre-installed with AYANEO’s proprietary software AYASpace. This application acts as a game launcher, allowing you to easily access your library from one place, and also gives you access to a range of settings on the device. These include TDP limits, fan configuration, Bluetooth settings and more. As AYASpace was originally designed for handhelds, I am not going to delve too much into it here, and will instead focus on the application when I review the AYANEO Slide in the near future.

Emulation on the AM01

To make the emulation setup process as smooth as possible I used EmuDeck to get everything ready. This is a tool that was originally designed for the Steam Deck and a beta version is now available for Windows. EmuDeck makes it extremely easy to install and configure all your emulators in one go. You can check out more about the project here.

Once everything was good to go I tested a range of different systems on this unit, starting with older consoles including the NES, SNES, Sega Master System, Sega Genesis, Sega CD and 32x. All these systems run extremely well on the AM01, which isn’t a big surprise. This mini PC even passed the Yoshi’s Island test on the SNES emulator with flying colors.

I then moved on to PlayStation 1, Sega Saturn, Nintendo 64, Dreamcast, GameCube, Nintendo 3DS and even the Nintendo Wii. Once again the AM01 performed admirably, with games running at full speed, and I had a ton of fun testing these systems.

Other systems like the PS2, PSP and the original Xbox are a bit more challenging to run, but still playable on the AM01. I managed to get some decent frame rates and mostly smooth gameplay in games like God of War 2 (PS2), Chains of Olympus and Ghost of Sparta (PSP), after a few tweaks. Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal (PS2) runs quite well, with only a few occasional frame drops. On the Xbox side of things, games like OutRun 2 and Red Dead Revolver run extremely well, but a few others like Project Gotham Racing are just unplayable.

Wii U emulation is also doable on this machine, but it won’t be a flawless experience. Most games are certainly playable, but I wasn’t able to run all of the games I’ve tested at full speed, and some titles had a few audio issues as well. As I mentioned earlier, my review unit only has 8GB of RAM, and I’m sure this mini PC can perform a lot better with some additional memory.

Overall, I was extremely impressed with the performance of the AM01, but I didn’t go beyond Wii U emulation in my testing, as I knew consoles like the PS3, Xbox 360 or the Nintendo Switch could prove to be too much to handle for this little device. Having said that I can definitely recommend this unit if you’re looking for a highly capable, compact machine that can emulate a huge range of old school consoles. The version with 16GB of RAM is the one I’d personally go for, to get the best possible performance out of this mini PC without breaking the bank, as 32GB would just be overkill in most scenarios.

Upgradability

As I briefly mentioned earlier, the unit comes with a few tools and accessories that can be used to upgrade things like the RAM and storage on this mini PC. The instructions manual is pretty thorough, taking you through all the required steps in order to take it apart.

Having said that, the process is actually a bit more convoluted than it should be. The motherboard in my review unit came with one additional screw that wasn’t mentioned in the manual (the instructions booklet mentions 3 screws, my unit had 4), so I had to remove the heatsink that was attached to the board in order to get to that extra “hidden” screw, before I could finish disassembling the unit.

Once that was done, I was able to get to the bottom of the device and the back of the motherboard itself, which would then allow me to install additional memory or storage on this device.

AYANEO has already confirmed that this extra screw will not be included in retail units, so this shouldn’t pose a problem for anyone buying the actual product. Plus, if you’re happy to go with one of the pre-configured setups and have no intention of modifying the internal components anyway, this will not affect you at all.

I do have to say however, that other mini PCs are better designed when it comes to this upgradability aspect, allowing easy access to components such as memory slots and the SSD without requiring you to take the entire unit apart.

Pros & Cons

Now that we are familiar with AYANEO’s first mini PC, let’s take a look at the pros and cons of the AM01.

Pros

• Beautiful retro-inspired design
• Great emulation performance
• Various connectivity options
• Compact and lightweight
• Good value for money

Cons

• The chipset options available are a few years old
• Not very easy to upgrade

Verdict

The AYANEO Retro Mini PC AM01 is a fantastic looking device that delivers impressive performance in a compact package. Its unique retro-inspired design sets it apart from other mini PCs, making it an eye-catching addition to any desk or entertainment setup. But this little guy is not just a pretty face, it also delivers outstanding emulation performance on a range of classic gaming systems. If you’re on the market for a mini PC that combines great aesthetics, performance and value, the AM01 could be just what you’ve been looking for.

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