Skip to main content

Steam Deck rival Onexplayer Mini launches in January

While PC gaming fans avidly await the arrival of the Steam Deck, the original December arrival date of which was pushed back by supply chain delays, another portable PC gaming handheld has entered the picture. (No, it’s not the Nintendo Switch.) Chinese technology company One-Netbook has announced the Onexplayer Mini, a smaller, even more portable version of its Onexplayer gaming device.

The Onexplayer Mini runs Windows 11, which allows users to play games that they would normally experience on a PC. It also has a touchscreen, as well as the usual controller-based inputs, and promises high-end graphical capabilities. The Onexplayer Mini doesn’t have a price yet, but its release is planned for January 15, 2022.

The original ONEXPLAYER handheld.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

The original Onexplayer raised over $2 million on Indiegogo, which gave One-Netbook the basis to expand the product line. The Onexplayer Mini is aimed at players who want to bring their PC libraries on the go, but don’t want to lug around a bulky handheld. It has a 7-inch IPS screen with a resolution of 1920 x 1200, which is just above HD. The power comes from its Intel Tiger Lake i7-1195G7 quad-core processor, which works hand in hand with PC-style cooling fans to keep the system running at its best.

Recommended Videos

Its gaming battery life is a fairly paltry two hours, but that’s likely the cost of the power it promises. Besides running games, the system can also handle regular PC tasks like making documents and watching videos.

One-Netbook is putting a lot of stock into the Onexplayer Mini’s ergonomic design. The company claims its design was inspired by Xbox controllers and that its physical inputs are “distributed evenly” across both controllers, making for a more comfortable gaming experience. It’s designed to fit in players’ pockets like a phone, enabling them to game wherever they go.

There is no word on how much storage space the system will have, so it’s unclear whether it will allow users to put their entire Steam or Epic library on the device. However, it does feature several USB ports that will presumably allow players to attach external hard drives.

The Onexplayer Mini launches on January 15, 2022.

Emily Morrow
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Emily Morrow is a games journalist and narrative designer who has written for a variety of online publications. If she’s…
Nvidia GeForce Now is coming to Steam Deck, Apple Vision Pro, and more
Nvidia GeForce Now's app running on Steam Deck.

Nvidia revealed that its cloud gaming service, Nvidia GeForce Now, is coming to several new platforms in the future. We learned at CES 2025 that a GeForce Now app for Steam Deck is coming later this year, while browser support on Meta Quest 3, Meta Quest 3S, Pico mixed reality headsets, and even Apple Vision Pro will also be coming later this month.

Nvidia GeForce Now is a service that lets players use Nvidia's servers to stream games in their Steam library from higher-end PC hardware via cloud gaming. If you have a great internet collection but a lackluster PC or laptop for gaming, something like GeForce Now is a solid solution. Previously, GeForce Now was only available through PC, Mac, iOS, Android, and certain smart TVs from companies like Samsung, but this year Nvidia is committed to broadening its availability.

Read more
The Handheld Dock Chroma is the ultimate Steam Deck accessory
A ROG Ally sits in a Handheld Dock Chroma on a TV stand.

Razer unveiled the Handheld Dock Chroma, a new device built for portable gaming devices like the Steam Deck. The dock allows players to connect their handheld of choice to an external monitor, as well as connect additional accessories through USB ports. It does not have a release date yet, but it will retail for $80.

The announcement is part of Razer's CES 2025 lineup, which featured multiple gaming announcements. That's become standard for the hardware maker, who previously revealed its Razer Edge handheld at CES 2023. While it didn't reveal any new gaming devices of its own this year, the Handheld Dock Chroma continues the company's push into the portable PC space -- this time by creating an accessory for its competitors' devices.

Read more
I’m a Steam Deck apologist. Here’s why I’ve been using the ROG Ally instead
Elden Ring running on the Asus ROG Ally X.

Since its launch, I'm a bit of a Steam Deck apologist. It doesn't need the advocacy, as the Steam Deck is easily the best handheld gaming PC you can buy, but even in the face of competition from the ROG Ally, Lenovo Legion Go, and MSI Claw, I still use my Steam Deck for gaming on the go. A couple of apps have been slowly changing that story, however.

I like playing on my Steam Deck OLED due to the convenience. SteamOS isn't perfect, no, but it allows me to pick up and play my games quickly, which I value more than the higher performance available on Windows handhelds. A couple of key tweaks to the Windows experience can unlock that pick-up-and-play experience, and ever since configuring the ROG Ally X properly, I've been gravitating toward it more and more for my handheld gaming.
A proper sleep

Read more